Backdrops and naps
Dec. 6th, 2002 03:53 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
tugrikI'm amused by how much conversation online has been prompted by the silly dragon-quiz in my last post; folks have been chatterly with me about it all evening. And here I thought I'd get snerked at for finally giving in to a quiz-meme. :)
I dropped![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
reality_fox off at the airport today; he's outta here for the week to terrorize the roads between LA and Colorado as he helps his mother relocate. I should have sent him with my GPS, but it didn't occur to me until too late. D'oh. I got back home at 7pm, which is early for me, and sat down for a moment to relax. I woke up at 1am. *blink* How'd that happen? At least I had a bunch of shows on the PVR to watch to eat up time until I was tired again. I'm going to write this post and crash back out.
Anyways, about the subject: I need to buy a 2nd backdrop for the portrait kit. The mottled blue/white one which appears in most of the photos taken at last year's FC convention is nice and all, but is a bit bright for some things. I also don't like using the same color schemes all the time. I figure buying one backdrop a year (which runs between $80 and $400 depending on quality and material) will let me build up a good selection I can keep for the long haul as I maintain and upgrade the 'portrait kit'.
My problem? I have no idea what to buy. I've never taken any formal study on portrait-work, nor have I worked with/under someone who knows what they're doing. This leads to a distinct lack of color-theory knowledge and a lot of 'hey, that looks good...' type of judgements. The one fellow I know whose skills I trust in this area,storm_dragon, has a schedule that's a 90 degree polar opposite to mine so I've not caught him online long enough to pester him on backdrop selections. Storm: Any hints to offer? Or are you not much into the studio-portrait gig? :)
I'd gladly take any hints from my friends reading this as well. Do you have any backdrop-colors you'd like to recommend? Either in general, or to help fit this year's FC theme: Alice in Wonderland. If you'd like examples to peek through to recommend from, you can find some in places like Backdrop Outlet. The economy ones are like the one I have, and I have a special liking for most of the vignette muslins.
The scenic ones are probably backdrops I'll avoid. The larger sizes (which are the ones I use) go from $350-800, which puts them in the 'stupidly expensive' category. They're also rather limited use in comparison to the more generic patterns. Still -- there's a few I like, some of which might even fit the theme a bit, like the tranquilly garden one. Peek around these various links and tell me what you think.
I've been asked to do the portraitwork for FC again this year. Once more it's primarily for fursuiters, which are a generally fun lot of folks to work with photo-wise, but I'm also hoping more non-suited people show up so I can get more field-practice doing skintones and actual normal work. I have no idea why I want to develop this skill; it just seems like something useful to know, and it's a fun way to work with people in a non-intimidating fashion. Many of the things I do are either terribly solo in nature (like most of my motorcycling) or somehow seem to intimidate/make-shy the people around me. Maybe it's a size thing; maybe a presence thing, who knows. Being behind the lens seems to calm people a bit. They may still worry about having their picture taken, as the vast majority of folks I know are camera-shy, but in their worries about how the camera makes them look they relax about having me there. It's refreshing.
This also applies to vacationing and trips. Walk around as a tourist, and people will give me a wide berth. Some just due to my size... others due to the normal worry that comes from seeing a middle-aged male who's not with a family (we're automatically suspect as potential Bad People because we don't have a wife and kids). It makes me sad sometimes, as I really enjoy random little conversations with others out on the road. Pull out a good camera and look like you know what you're doing, however, and people will come up and chat -- or at least won't freak out when you say a friendly hello. Something about being percieved as "artsy" is disarming, and folks who'd normally avoid the bearded, longhaired, ear-ringed Big Guy are willing to relax and chat. It's refreshing. As a sidenote, I also get this effect when on the Gold Wing, as big, non-Harley touring bikes have that relaxed "Grandpa out RV'ing" aire to them. Doubly so if one of my ladyfriends is riding along (there's that 'he's got a mate, he's safe' thing again).
There's more to this, definately; it's the tip of an iceberg about getting around stereotypes that I've found put on me now and then. The good news is I've come to terms with most of it and lead a much more relaxed path through life than I did a decade ago (or even a few years ago). And hey, who knows --- someday my portrait skills might get good enough that I snap off a picture that gets me remembered. That'd be cool.
I dropped
reality_fox off at the airport today; he's outta here for the week to terrorize the roads between LA and Colorado as he helps his mother relocate. I should have sent him with my GPS, but it didn't occur to me until too late. D'oh. I got back home at 7pm, which is early for me, and sat down for a moment to relax. I woke up at 1am. *blink* How'd that happen? At least I had a bunch of shows on the PVR to watch to eat up time until I was tired again. I'm going to write this post and crash back out.Anyways, about the subject: I need to buy a 2nd backdrop for the portrait kit. The mottled blue/white one which appears in most of the photos taken at last year's FC convention is nice and all, but is a bit bright for some things. I also don't like using the same color schemes all the time. I figure buying one backdrop a year (which runs between $80 and $400 depending on quality and material) will let me build up a good selection I can keep for the long haul as I maintain and upgrade the 'portrait kit'.
My problem? I have no idea what to buy. I've never taken any formal study on portrait-work, nor have I worked with/under someone who knows what they're doing. This leads to a distinct lack of color-theory knowledge and a lot of 'hey, that looks good...' type of judgements. The one fellow I know whose skills I trust in this area,
storm_dragon, has a schedule that's a 90 degree polar opposite to mine so I've not caught him online long enough to pester him on backdrop selections. Storm: Any hints to offer? Or are you not much into the studio-portrait gig? :) I'd gladly take any hints from my friends reading this as well. Do you have any backdrop-colors you'd like to recommend? Either in general, or to help fit this year's FC theme: Alice in Wonderland. If you'd like examples to peek through to recommend from, you can find some in places like Backdrop Outlet. The economy ones are like the one I have, and I have a special liking for most of the vignette muslins.
The scenic ones are probably backdrops I'll avoid. The larger sizes (which are the ones I use) go from $350-800, which puts them in the 'stupidly expensive' category. They're also rather limited use in comparison to the more generic patterns. Still -- there's a few I like, some of which might even fit the theme a bit, like the tranquilly garden one. Peek around these various links and tell me what you think.
I've been asked to do the portraitwork for FC again this year. Once more it's primarily for fursuiters, which are a generally fun lot of folks to work with photo-wise, but I'm also hoping more non-suited people show up so I can get more field-practice doing skintones and actual normal work. I have no idea why I want to develop this skill; it just seems like something useful to know, and it's a fun way to work with people in a non-intimidating fashion. Many of the things I do are either terribly solo in nature (like most of my motorcycling) or somehow seem to intimidate/make-shy the people around me. Maybe it's a size thing; maybe a presence thing, who knows. Being behind the lens seems to calm people a bit. They may still worry about having their picture taken, as the vast majority of folks I know are camera-shy, but in their worries about how the camera makes them look they relax about having me there. It's refreshing.
This also applies to vacationing and trips. Walk around as a tourist, and people will give me a wide berth. Some just due to my size... others due to the normal worry that comes from seeing a middle-aged male who's not with a family (we're automatically suspect as potential Bad People because we don't have a wife and kids). It makes me sad sometimes, as I really enjoy random little conversations with others out on the road. Pull out a good camera and look like you know what you're doing, however, and people will come up and chat -- or at least won't freak out when you say a friendly hello. Something about being percieved as "artsy" is disarming, and folks who'd normally avoid the bearded, longhaired, ear-ringed Big Guy are willing to relax and chat. It's refreshing. As a sidenote, I also get this effect when on the Gold Wing, as big, non-Harley touring bikes have that relaxed "Grandpa out RV'ing" aire to them. Doubly so if one of my ladyfriends is riding along (there's that 'he's got a mate, he's safe' thing again).
There's more to this, definately; it's the tip of an iceberg about getting around stereotypes that I've found put on me now and then. The good news is I've come to terms with most of it and lead a much more relaxed path through life than I did a decade ago (or even a few years ago). And hey, who knows --- someday my portrait skills might get good enough that I snap off a picture that gets me remembered. That'd be cool.
