Me and my friend Jake

Nikon D200, 35mm, 1/20 @ f/8, ISO 100 ambient light

Jake and I have been friends for a long time. It's not very often that we've had an opportunity to spend more than fifteen minutes together but, it's always great to see him. We were working at a restaurant together back in the late seventies, while in school, when Jake came up to me and said, "Well, Deke, I'm moving out to San Francisco to be a stand up comic."

I have to admit that I wasn't completely surprised about the moving part but, was skeptical at best about the comic part ... then, he disappeared. It took years ... I finished school, moved to Minneapolis and thought Jake might just be another phantom that I stuck into the file of past acquaintances with all the others. You know what? He made it. And he's been making a living at it for over three decades!

We got a warm fall Saturday afternoon together in November in Minnesota (oxymoron alert) spent the time talking over Chipotle and working some urban portraits in the warehouse district of Minneapolis. It was a great time talking about everything from health to marriage, children, old friends, politics and who's to blame for the monolithic rise of stupidity permeating America. Then, we had coffee.

Nikon D200, 35mm, 1/50 @ f/2.2, ISO 100 ambient light

Nikon D200, 35mm, 1/400 @ f/2.2, ISO 100 ambient light

Nikon D200, 35mm, 1/80 @ f/4.5, ISO 100 ambient light

Nikon D200, 35mm, 1/250 @ f/4, ISO 100 ambient light -- although, highly processed

Sue and I had bought tickets to Jake's 8:00 show and invited a couple friends of ours. Jake was great! Very funny! We all had a fun time. One of the best Saturday's I've had. Thanks Jake. Hope to see you soon. I have a feeling we've still got a lot to talk about.
Check out Jake and his schedule at jakethis.com

Heather

Good friends can really be good friends. Earlier this summer I did a shoot with a couple of friends of mine and asked them to help me find subjects I could photograph and build a portfolio. Well ... they found Heather. I had never met Heather before we arranged to meet at the Como Conservatory for an afternoon shoot on a beautiful fall day. I was very lucky. She was great to work with and we had a nice time getting some really good work done. Thanks Heather! The rest of you enjoy.

Mike & Courtney

Last Sunday was a beautiful autumn day and I was fortunate enough to have arranged a shoot with a couple willing to help me build a portfolio. Mike and Courtney are the daughter and son-in-law of a good friend but, more importantly, they're a delightful couple. They were eager to help and had great fun. Thanks you guys. I had a great time, too ... here's the proof.

Nikon D200, 85mm, 1/80 @ f/2.8, ISO 100 ambient light

A Little in All of Us

Nikon D200, 85mm, 1/80 @ f/2.8, ISO 100 ambient light

There's something inherently photographic about a curious, energetic little boy. They bring so many questions to the table for an aging, curious, energetic photographer. When did I grow up? How is it that these precious times fade so quickly into adulthood? Can I still be curious?

What do I remember about my own energetic childhood? Was I every bit as curious, contemplative and free? All I can do now is be thankful for that time long gone. It was rich and inspiring, fleeting and yet most impressive. Thanks for letting me take these photographs.

Nikon D200, 85mm, 1/250 @ f/2.0, ISO 100 SB800 through 60" umbrella, camera left; CLS

Nikon D200, 230mm, 1/160 @ f/5.3, ISO 320 ambient light

Nikon D200, 85mm, 1/160 @ f/3.2, ISO 200 SB800 through 60" umbrella, camera left; CLS

For those of you interested ... one of the things I've learned over the past few shoots I've done is that I've dramatically improved the sharpness of my images. There are two things that I lend credibility to: Not always relying on auto-focus and stop trying to hold the camera still by choking it to death. If there is little motion in the frame composition I manually focus. If the subject is all over the place I'll opt for auto-focus.

When I hold the camera, I still cradle the lens in my left hand and hold the camera by its grip in my right hand (finger on the trigger) but ... as with a golf swing, I use soft hands. I don't press the viewfinder to my forehead for stability like I'm branding a calf anymore. I found that the body transfers much more movement to the camera the more rigidly you hold your muscles. Just relax.

All the World's a Stage

Nikon D200, 35mm, 1/6 @ f/8.0, ISO 320, one SB800 in a 30" soft-box, one SB600 illuminating kitchen, CLS

Actors are the best. Particularly actors you've known for a while. I've been trying to step up my portrait chops over the last few months and the skill I really needed to hone is directing. Putting together the shot and directing the subject to get the concept you want ... get the subject; not something staged, something honest. And actor's get that. Whether you're taking a portrait or a caricature ... they get the honesty part. They understand that it will all fall apart if you're not honest with the camera and sincere with the moment.

Nikon D200, 30mm, 1/60 @ f/4.0, ISO 100, one SB800 & one SB600 into a 60" shoot-thru umbrella, camera left, CLS

I approached Todd and Robert about doing a shoot, of them, at their house. It's interesting that even your close friends are suspicious about your intent ... maybe it's more like curious, because they're usually pretty game for about anything. Especially, something that points the spotlight in their direction.

The evening was a great time. I brought some good beer, they made dinner and we shot before and after each course. The time we got to spend was really important. We got to talk about the events of the day, events of the recent past, people we know, just chit chat. It was a great way to disarm and establish a more comfortable relationship between photographer and subjects.

Nikon D200, 85mm, 1/60 @ f/3.5, ISO 100, one SB800 into a 60" shoot thru umbrella, camera left, CLS

Nikon D200, 85mm, 1/60 @ f/3.5, ISO 100, one SB800 into a 60" shoot thru umbrella, camera left, one SB600 shooting thru window into the garage behind subject, CLS

Thank you , gentlemen. We'll do this again sometime.