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Israel, Jordan and Egypt Show Photos : These 20 photos, out of more than 2,500 shot during this 19-day journey, were featured in an exhibition at the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California in Los Angeles. The show ran from July 7 through July 18, 2008 as part of the MWD Photography Club's annual exhibition.

Israel, Jordan and Egypt Show Photos

These 20 photos, out of more than 2,500 shot during this 19-day journe ...

Updated: Jun 30, 2008 6:00pm PST

West Hills Scenic : Went on a bike ride at the end of Victory Blvd on July 8. Have been doing this several times since then; it's a good way to get a good workout plus some quiet time in a peaceful setting. This trail goes off into the wilderness of the Santa Monica Mountains. This was about sunset, and just after. Peter came too, but he didn't want his picture taken. Three days later, July 11, we did it again. This time Peter let me take his picture. I used an SB800, hand-held to camera left to light Peter. You can see the shadow on the dirt trail. The flash was gelled with a 1/4 CTO gel.

West Hills Scenic

Went on a bike ride at the end of Victory Blvd on July 8. Have been do ...

Updated: Jul 13, 2008 8:37pm PST

Zack & Rachael July 1, 2008 : Rachael went to the Homeschool Co-op annual Dinner-Dance for Jr. and Sr. High students, and Zack was her "date." Shot in a hastily-set up studio in the garage. I taped a bedsheet to the rafters and put a studio light above it to create a large area light from the top, and filled in with two studio strobes shot through white umbrellas to camera right and camera left, but dialed down. I like the idea of the main light coming from above, but it creates a problem with shine on their faces. I'll have to play with this setup next time I get a chance.

Zack & Rachael July 1, 2008

Rachael went to the Homeschool Co-op annual Dinner-Dance for Jr. and S ...

Updated: Aug 21, 2008 10:20pm PST

4th of July Fireworks : Fireworks show at Shepherd of the Hills Church, Porter Ranch, California

4th of July Fireworks

Fireworks show at Shepherd of the Hills Church, Porter Ranch, Californ ...

Updated: Jul 07, 2008 11:45pm PST

Galleries

TBBF Youth Summer Camp : A small sampling of photos from The Bridge Bible Fellowship's Summer youth camp at Verdugo Pines near Wrightwood.

TBBF Youth Summer Camp

A small sampling of photos from The Bridge Bible Fellowship's Summer y ...

Updated: Aug 26, 2008 3:33am PDT

Zack & Rachael July 1, 2008 : Rachael went to the Homeschool Co-op annual Dinner-Dance for Jr. and Sr. High students, and Zack was her "date." Shot in a hastily-set up studio in the garage. I taped a bedsheet to the rafters and put a studio light above it to create a large area light from the top, and filled in with two studio strobes shot through white umbrellas to camera right and camera left, but dialed down. I like the idea of the main light coming from above, but it creates a problem with shine on their faces. I'll have to play with this setup next time I get a chance.

Zack & Rachael July 1, 2008

Rachael went to the Homeschool Co-op annual Dinner-Dance for Jr. and S ...

Updated: Aug 21, 2008 10:20pm PDT

CPAC Dance Ministry Team :

CPAC Dance Ministry Team

Updated: Aug 19, 2008 10:02pm PDT

Huntington Lake 2008 :

Huntington Lake 2008

Updated: Aug 15, 2008 5:02am PDT

Baptism in the Ocean : Youth Group from The Bridge Bible Fellowship August 13, 2008. 9 kids got dunked in the Pacific for Jesus. I used the “strobe on a stick” technique, also known as “strobe on a rope.” I took a lightstand, stuck the strobe on the end of it, used a Nikon SC-29 iTTL cable tethered to my camera, and held the strobe out on the lightstand (legs folded) like a stick, pointing the light in the direction of the subject, or feathering the light by aiming it away somewhat so that it would brush across the subject. I estimate the strobe was about 4-6 feet away from the camera. I underexposed the background for more color saturation – in some frames, as much as 3 stops under. I also used flash exposure compensation, between 1/3 to 1 stop under, so the light wasn’t too bright, and had a ¼ CTO (light orange) gel on the flash head. I even waded into the ocean with this setup towards the end of the shoot. I was shooting with a 12-24mm lens at f/4, ISO 400, Program mode on the camera, iTTL flash mode, and was continually adjusting the exposure and flash compensation to get the desired effect in the continually changing lighting conditions – obviously some are better than others. This lens was perfect for the effect I was trying to get, because it has a huge angle of view, taking in a lot of that spectacular sunset.

Baptism in the Ocean

Youth Group from The Bridge Bible Fellowship August 13, 2008. 9 kids g ...

Updated: Aug 14, 2008 3:37am PDT

Chasing Cadence Concert :

Chasing Cadence Concert

Updated: Aug 07, 2008 7:45am PDT

SETT Pool Party : You can either download (float your mouse over the picture you want and choose a size, then right-click to download), or purchase a print directly online using the shopping cart to the upper right of the page.

SETT Pool Party

You can either download (float your mouse over the picture you want an ...

Updated: Jul 19, 2008 1:32pm PDT

West Hills Scenic : Went on a bike ride at the end of Victory Blvd on July 8. Have been doing this several times since then; it's a good way to get a good workout plus some quiet time in a peaceful setting. This trail goes off into the wilderness of the Santa Monica Mountains. This was about sunset, and just after. Peter came too, but he didn't want his picture taken. Three days later, July 11, we did it again. This time Peter let me take his picture. I used an SB800, hand-held to camera left to light Peter. You can see the shadow on the dirt trail. The flash was gelled with a 1/4 CTO gel.

West Hills Scenic

Went on a bike ride at the end of Victory Blvd on July 8. Have been do ...

Updated: Jul 13, 2008 8:37pm PDT

4th of July Fireworks : Fireworks show at Shepherd of the Hills Church, Porter Ranch, California

4th of July Fireworks

Fireworks show at Shepherd of the Hills Church, Porter Ranch, Californ ...

Updated: Jul 07, 2008 11:45pm PDT

Israel, Jordan and Egypt Show Photos : These 20 photos, out of more than 2,500 shot during this 19-day journey, were featured in an exhibition at the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California in Los Angeles. The show ran from July 7 through July 18, 2008 as part of the MWD Photography Club's annual exhibition.

Israel, Jordan and Egypt Show Photos

These 20 photos, out of more than 2,500 shot during this 19-day journe ...

Updated: Jun 30, 2008 6:00pm PDT

password protected gallery

CPAC Summer 2008 Dance Performance

All of the photos have been uploaded. You may order prints directly fr ...

Updated: Jun 30, 2008 6:11am PDT

Elissa Brock : You can order directly from this website by clicking on the shopping cart icons to the right. Or, if you want one of the special package deals, you can order directly through me - call (818) 887-5586. The watermark at the bottom of the images displayed here will not appear on your prints.

Elissa Brock

You can order directly from this website by clicking on the shopping c ...

Updated: Jun 21, 2008 12:55am PDT

CPAC Dancer Portraits : You can order directly from this website by clicking on the shopping cart icons to the right. Or, if you want one of the special package deals, you can order directly through me - call (818) 887-5586. The watermark at the bottom of the images displayed here will not appear on your prints.

CPAC Dancer Portraits

You can order directly from this website by clicking on the shopping c ...

Updated: Jun 21, 2008 12:32am PDT

Erin Matthews : You can order directly from this website by clicking on the shopping cart icons to the right. Or, if you want one of the special package deals, you can order directly through me - call (818) 887-5586. The watermark at the bottom of the images displayed here will not appear on your prints.

Erin Matthews

You can order directly from this website by clicking on the shopping c ...

Updated: Jun 21, 2008 12:16am PDT

Emilio and Raquel :

Emilio and Raquel

Updated: May 07, 2008 1:13am PDT

Canoga Park Good News Club :

Canoga Park Good News Club

Updated: May 06, 2008 11:20pm PDT

Revolution March 2008 :

Revolution March 2008

Updated: Apr 05, 2008 1:05am PDT

The Huntington with the Ransoms :

The Huntington with the Ransoms

Updated: Feb 21, 2008 12:04am PDT

Hiking with the Satchwells :

Hiking with the Satchwells

Updated: Feb 16, 2008 8:33pm PDT

Kitchen Utensils :

Kitchen Utensils

Updated: Jan 24, 2008 2:00am PDT

Huntington Gardens :

Huntington Gardens

Portraits :

Portraits

Updated: Jan 16, 2008 9:23pm PDT

Lake Lindero :

Lake Lindero

Updated: Jan 07, 2008 12:10am PDT

Abrams Family Portraits :

Abrams Family Portraits

Updated: Dec 20, 2007 3:34am PDT

Oregon :

Oregon

Updated: Dec 15, 2007 3:14pm PDT

Dance Portfolio :

Dance Portfolio

Geli at BB King's :

Geli at BB King's

password protected gallery

Black Belt Test

All photos are uploaded. Be sure to scroll all the way to the end, whe ...

Updated: Nov 23, 2007 2:06pm PDT

Nathan Carlen :

Nathan Carlen

Updated: Nov 17, 2007 9:08am PDT

password protected gallery

Newt Goodwell

Updated: Nov 17, 2007 2:34am PDT

Jeffrey Vandenburg :

Jeffrey Vandenburg

Updated: Nov 16, 2007 1:33am PDT

Children Flying Thru the Air : Today Rachael and Peter and our next door neighbor Joey and I went to the park, right around sunset. I took pictures of them as they flew through the air from a swing. I put an off-camera flash with an orange gel on a lightstand in the sand and pointed it up towards the flight path. I exposed for the sky and adjusted the light accordingly to balance the exposure. I sat in the sand to get a good angle, and used a wide-angle lens to accentuate their size in relation to the background, to make them look bigger and higher than everything else in the frame.

Children Flying Thru the Air

Today Rachael and Peter and our next door neighbor Joey and I went to ...

Updated: Nov 12, 2007 6:22pm PDT

Civil War Reenactment :

Civil War Reenactment

Updated: Nov 11, 2007 1:35am PDT

password protected gallery

Chatsworth Volleyball

Pictures are all uploaded. You may order prints directly using the sho ...

Updated: Nov 10, 2007 6:02pm PDT

Artificial Turf : Cross-section of artificial turf sample in a clear plastic box, shot for a brochure on water conservation. The "sky" is a white sheet of paper lit with a strobe covered by a blue gel.

Artificial Turf

Cross-section of artificial turf sample in a clear plastic box, shot f ...

Updated: Nov 06, 2007 10:37pm PDT

Chris Aitken Senior Portraits :

Chris Aitken Senior Portraits

Harvest Treats from the Hallowed King : October 31, 2007 event at Shepherd's Community Church, Canoga Park, CA

Harvest Treats from the Hallowed King

Todd & Kelly's Party :

Todd & Kelly's Party

Updated: Oct 28, 2007 11:06pm PDT

Another Fire Season : Well, the wind has kicked up and it's another fire season in sunny Southern California. My prayer is that we don't have another fire here in Chatsworth and have to evacuate again. The smoke in these pictures is from the Agua Dulce fire, miles away, in the late afternoon of October 21.

Another Fire Season

Shepherding the Nations : Shepherding the Nations is a newly-formed evangelical Christian missions organization.

Shepherding the Nations

Shepherding the Nations is a newly-formed evangelical Christian missio ...

Updated: Oct 16, 2007 12:05am PDT

PRC Walk for Life : See http://www.prcsfv.org for more information. Pregnancy Resource Center of San Fernando Valley's annual Walk for Life Fundraiser in support of pregnant women needing assistance.

PRC Walk for Life

See http://www.prcsfv.org for more information. Pregnancy Resource Cen ...

Updated: Oct 13, 2007 11:48pm PDT

Crosslit Outdoor Portraits : www.strobist.blogspot.com is a great site for off-camera flash lighting techniques and just plain lots of photo-related knowledge and experience. I read it all the time!

Crosslit Outdoor Portraits

www.strobist.blogspot.com is a great site for off-camera flash lightin ...

Updated: Oct 03, 2007 12:43am PDT

Murry Rozansky : Murry working on the prototype 3-wheeled vehicle he's designed.

Murry Rozansky

Murry working on the prototype 3-wheeled vehicle he's designed.

Updated: Sep 29, 2007 3:11pm PDT

password protected gallery

Private for DT

Updated: Sep 24, 2007 12:44am PDT

Original Talley : Original Talley is furniture made by Dale Talley. It's all made from found objects, and it's all totally whimsical and fun, yet functional and very solidly built. You can see more of his work at http://www.originaltalley.net/index.html - Larry

Original Talley

Original Talley is furniture made by Dale Talley. It's all made from f ...

Updated: Sep 24, 2007 12:34am PDT

Rachael : I asked my 13-year-old daughter Rachael if she would indulge my wish to practice a lighting technique I'm working on, cross-lighting the sun with an off-camera strobe. She willingly came with me to a park that's walking distance from our house (we drove, because I had to shlep some gear), and this series is the result. Rachael's involvement with dance happily just sort of popped out and livened up the session.

Rachael

I asked my 13-year-old daughter Rachael if she would indulge my wish t ...

Updated: Sep 23, 2007 11:40pm PDT

Product Photography :

Product Photography

MWDigital Show : Photos shown in the MWDigital First Annual Photography Exhibition

MWDigital Show

password protected gallery

Fernando and Cherisha

Updated: Sep 10, 2007 1:01am PDT

Total Lunar Eclipse :

Total Lunar Eclipse

Huntington Lake :

Huntington Lake

Updated: Aug 27, 2007 9:54am PDT

password protected gallery

Family Reunion

password protected gallery

Christy Trask

Summer Harvest :

Summer Harvest

Zoo Birds :

Zoo Birds

Updated: Jul 22, 2007 12:57am PDT

CPAC Dance Performance : Christian Performing Arts Center, under the direction of Kimberly Abrams. The 2006-07 season finale performance at Birmingham High School on June 30, 2007 You can purchase prints directly online by clicking on the shopping cart icon, where it says "buy this photo."

CPAC Dance Performance

Fireworks : July 4, 2007 Fireworks display at Shepherd of the Hills, Porter Ranch, CA

Fireworks

July 4, 2007 Fireworks display at Shepherd of the Hills, Porter Ranch, ...

Updated: Jul 12, 2007 9:28am PDT

Weddings :

Weddings

Random Stuff :

Random Stuff

Updated: Jul 02, 2007 11:11am PDT

Peacocks :

Peacocks

Updated: Jun 28, 2007 10:45pm PDT

Top 100 Photo Keywords

4th of july  ·  4th of july fireworks  ·  abrams  ·  agua dulce  ·  baptism  ·  bbkings  ·  beach  ·  boats  ·  bouquet  ·  boy  ·  bride  ·  bride and groom  ·  cadence  ·  cake  ·  california  ·  center  ·  ceremony  ·  chasing  ·  child  ·  church  ·  dance  ·  dancing  ·  dead  ·  dock  ·  dress  ·  early morning  ·  family  ·  family portrait  ·  father  ·  fence  ·  fire  ·  fireworks  ·  flower  ·  flower girl  ·  flowers  ·  fourth of july  ·  fourth of july fireworks  ·  geli  ·  girl  ·  girls  ·  grass  ·  groom  ·  group portrait  ·  guests  ·  hills  ·  independence day  ·  independence day fireworks  ·  india  ·  july  ·  kumar  ·  lake  ·  laughing  ·  laughter  ·  life  ·  light and shadow  ·  man  ·  mari  ·  morning  ·  morning light  ·  mountains  ·  ocean  ·  outdoors  ·  outside  ·  party  ·  peacock  ·  peter  ·  platform  ·  porter ranch  ·  portrait  ·  pregnancy  ·  pregnancy resource center  ·  processional  ·  rachael  ·  reception  ·  resource  ·  revolution  ·  ring bearer  ·  shadow  ·  shepherd  ·  shepherd of the hills  ·  sky  ·  smoke  ·  southern california fires  ·  sunlight  ·  tbbf  ·  team  ·  trees  ·  waiting  ·  walk  ·  walk for life  ·  water  ·  wedding  ·  wedding cake  ·  wedding ceremony  ·  wedding dress  ·  wedding party  ·  wedding reception  ·  woman  ·  women  ·  wood

Your Bio

Email Me at info@lacomstudio.com

I got bitten by the photography bug in high school, but didn't get my own camera or any formal training until I was in my early 20s. At that time I got training from a friend who was a pro and eager to share his knowledge with me. My camera was a fully-manual Canon F1 (this was in the 1970s), with a 50mm f/2.4 lens. You had to line up the meter pointer manually - there was no auto mode on that camera. It was a great start, and an introduction to the technical aspects of the craft.

I studied at Portland State University in the Photo Department, even working in large format (4x5) a little. I've taken other extension classes as well. When the woman who is now my wife of 24 years first met me in 1982, and found out I was into photography, she went out and bought me my first Nikon, an FE. After many years of use, that camera still sits in a cabinet in my house, along with some fine lenses which are of little use and probably even less value now. Since then I've stuck with Nikon all the way.

Over the years I've shot thousands of pictures, but the pace has really picked up since going digital. There’s a wide range of subject matter I like to shoot. Weddings and other special events, portraits, and creative shots. I enjoy shooting nature, but even more than that I enjoy capturing people doing what they do. God put His beauty in people's faces, and it's my passion to bring that out.

My influences range from some of the early photo masters such as Stigleitz, Steichen and Cartier-Bresson, because they all helped define the art of photography. But I also love studying the work of modern photographers who use innovative new techniques using light as a modifier. I began learning to use Photoshop when it first came out in 1992, and since then I've found that the power it gives to enhance an image has few limits - hence the term "digital darkroom."

When shooting events, I prefer shooting candids and a photojournalistic style over formal photos when the situation allows for it, but I've learned a thing or two about posing subjects for the formal shots, too. Getting a good shot is not all about what you know technically - there's a great deal of psychology, pre-visualization, timing and positioning involved. And when working with people, it's the soul of the person expressed in the face and body language that makes a powerful image.

Photography to me has always been about expressing myself through images. I’ve learned a lot about myself and other people by doing it, and it has made me grow as a person. I’ve been passionate about it from the beginning.

I believe we are all God’s children and I strive to serve Him above all. I am convinced that Jesus is the Messiah written about in the Old Testament scriptures, and He is eager for a relationship with you and with me.

If you want to discuss more about my views, send me an email at info@lacomstudio.com. I’d be happy to share them with you.

Email Me

Favorite Links:
http://www.strobist.blogspot.comhttp://www.nikonusa.com/template.php?cat=1&grp=5

Wish List:
(Just in case you're feeling generous and that disposable income is burning a hole in your pocket)

Nikon D3 body
Nikon D700 body
AF-S Zoom-NIKKOR 17-35mm f/2.8D IF-ED
AF-S NIKKOR 14-24mm f/2.8G ED
AF-S NIKKOR 24-70 f/2.8G ED
AF NIKKOR 85mm f/1.4D IF
A set of Radiopoppers (1 TX and 3-4 RX units)