TRAX train at Temple Square

Temple Square Photowalk , a photo by Dornoff Photography on Flickr.

Last December Photowalking Utah did their annual Photowalk at Temple Square. This turned out to be the last Photowalking event I would be able to attend before moving.

I tried to get a few pictures of TRAX trains making the turn from Main Street onto North Temple and this was my favorite. Love the blur of the train and the lights of the police cruiser.

Sometimes you have to compromise

Temple Square Night Picture
Originally uploaded by Dornoff Photography

Sometimes you just have to compromise to get the picture you want.

This photo was taken during the Photowalking Utah event at Temple Square late last year. The photowalk followed another excellent presentation by Rich Legg about night photography and since I had little experience taken night shots I was eager to give some of his excellent tips a try.

So where did the compromise come in?

The main focus of this picture was the Temple itself. However, you also have the statuary in the foreground which was also going to be a major part of the picture.

If you focused on the temple itself, the statuary would be in blow out overexposed. If you focused on the statuary, then the temple would be too dark.

The compromise was finding a setting in the middle that would not blow out the statuary too bad but also would have a good shot of the Temple.

Setting Goals for 2009 and thanking some...

Photowalking Utah Temple Square
Originally uploaded by Dornoff Photography

This photo was taken at Temple Square in downtown Salt Lake City on December 8th. I was attending the Photowalking Utah event and this was one of the pictures I took that night. Before the actual Photowalk, Rich Legg did a session on improving your night photography.

So how does this picture and that night fit in with my goals for 2009?

2008 has been a big year for me. I learned a great deal by attending the Photowalking trips and most of all, I got the slap up side the head I have need for some time. I always loved photography and now I realize it is what I want to do full time.

That means that some of my goals for 2009 will include photography.

Goals must:

1. Be specific
2. Have a specific time frame
3. Most important: be written down.

Well what better way to write down a goal than to put it out here for the world to see.

Here are some of my photo related goals for 2009:

1. Add at least 10 photos per week to my stock photography portfolio
2. Experiment with a new technique at every photo shoot.
3. Learn something new at every photography event that I am able to attend in 2009.
4. Have fun!!

I also cannot leave 2008 without thanking some people that have made an impact on me this past year.

First of all I have to thank Ann Torrence, Rich Legg, and Kenneth Linge who hosted educational sessions as part of the Photowalking events this year. While I may not have talked one on one with them much during the year I listened while you did your sessions and at other times getting soaking up all the good information I could. A big thank you also needs to go out to all those who organized the all the excellent Photowalks we had this year.

Also to all the other Photowalkers who I have come to know and enjoy events with. Everyone of them has been a wonderful experience and I look forward to enjoying more of them in the new year.

Finally I have to thank a very special co-worker of mine named Sydney. I had not done a model shoot except for one in college which was many years ago but she volunteered to take time out to play model for me and was very patient.

Finally, I have to say that I am more optimistic going into 2009 than any year I can recall. I look forward to the new year not hoping something good was going to happen, but with a genuine optimism that 2009 will be a great year personally.

Hope that your 2009 will be a great one and remember to set your own goals because as Zig Ziglar says: "How can you hit a goal you cannot see?".

Utah Strobist Event December 2, 2008

Utah Strobist Event December 2, 2008
Originally uploaded by Dornoff Photography

On December 2nd I attended a event sponsored by the Utah Strobist Flickr group.

The event was held on the top levels of the Walker Garage which is in downtown Salt Lake City. The weather was cold but there was only a couple of sprinkles so the weather held out for us.

There was several models present for us to take pictures of. This picture is of Steven one of the 5 models that I photographed that night.

Since in the past I have not taken many pictures of people and rarely used a flash, this was the first picture I ever attempted to removed red eye on and the results came out better than I expected.

This week I plan to attend a Photowalking Utah event at the downtown library and Temple Square. I would also like to attend the Utah Photo Safari trip up to the University of Utah on Wednesday but have corporate big wigs flying in at my "real" job.

I have a lot of things coming up. In late January or early February I will do a dedicated stock photo shoot with "S" my co-worker. Then in late February we have a tripped planned to Moab and a week long trip in June to visit my friend in Seattle plus attend Lumber Days in Libby, Montana.