The Munchkin's Notebook

ISO 100, Aperture F9, Shutter 1/250s, Focal Length 29mm This was the first year I attended Once Upon a Con, a fantasy book convention previously held in Pennsylvania.   I had heard good things about the convention and was looking forward to attending it, especially since it had been relocated to the Gaylord in National Harbor, Maryland.  I also liked that, based on their outward-facing websites, you could register to be an approved photographer for the event and receive a special badge.  This is different from a media badge.  So, I was looking forward to attending and photographing lots of fantasy characters (elves, fairies, pretty princesses, etc.) and lots of ball gowns, which really is my sweet spot.  I was also looking forward to some of the panels they were hosting, as well as their vendor area, which was 90 percent authors.   Overall, I thought this convention was going to be a pleasant diversion from the standard anime/comic conventions I h...

On August 23, I attended a DC Cosplay Photoshoot group event at 3Mi Studio in West Virginia.  The group has used this studio before, and it is known for its rain room set, which I believe was the main draw for several people attending this event.   While I like the rain room (not as big a deal since I've made my own), I do appreciate the availability of sets the studio has and try to maximize their use. For this event I used: Canon R6 2 Speed light Trigger 24 - 105mm lens 1 light stand Umbrella Gels Camera Settings: Even though this shot was in a studio, I still varied my camera settings based on the set design, set lighting, and minimizing interference with other photographers.    My ISO varied from ISO 100 to ISO 1600, with ISO 100 being the most common, followed by ISO 1600 for shooting the rain set.  My aperture ranged from f/4.5 to f/9, with f/8 being the most common.  My shutter speed varied from 1/60s to 1/320s, with...

On August 9 th ,   I did a shoot with Kelly , to finally shoot the Cruella dress, which I purchased from Jennifer Suzanne several years ago.   What I like about this dress is that there are three separate parts: the dress, the belt/train combo, and the shrug.   This allows me to mix and match to get different looks during the session, such as combining the belt/train combo with tight pants and a corset top. For these sessions, I used: Photography Equipment Other Equipment Cannon R6 24-105 mm Lens Transmitter/Trigger 2 FJ400 Strobes 1 Photix Strobe 2 soft rectangular boxes 1 Octabox 3 C-stands Sandbags 1 Backdrop stands White Seamless Spyder Color Checker Card A-clamps Star filter 2 posing boxes Black wrapping paper   The setup I went very simple for this setup, while leaning into a high-key fashion look.  My base was a bright white, seamless backdrop, which I lit u...

On July 19th, I drove up to Poughkeepsie, NY to attend the Whispers of Waterhouse photo event held by Everlore Events . This was an all-day event, which included a light lunch, vendors, arts, and crafts areas, and three different styled shooting locations.  I was one of the roaming photographers for this event, which means you work with models who are not currently working with a featured photographer (who have schedules), and can wander between all three shooting locations at your convenience.  For this event I used: Canon R6 1 Speed light Trigger Umbrella Gels 24 - 105mm lens Camera Settings: This was an outside shoot that had sets in heavy forested areas, out on a pond, and sunny meadows; thus, I was adjusting the settings to the lighting conditions.  I used ISO 100 and 400.  My goal was to keep my aperture around f/4 to achieve a nice background blur; however, depending on the conditions, I had to stop down to f/9 and f/11 to manage the light...

On July 12, I did a double session with one of my favorite people to work with, Natalie , who had two different dresses for this session.  The first dress was a green fairy dress, and the second was a continuation of her fruit-themed dresses; in this case, the theme was strawberries. For these sessions, I used: Photography Equipment Other Equipment Cannon R6 24-105 mm Lens Transmitter/Trigger 2 FJ400 Strobes 1 Photix Strobe 1 Bell reflector 1 Snoot 1 strip box 2 soft boxes 2 C-stands 2 light stands Sandbags 1 Backdrop stands Grey Seamless Spyder Color Checker Card A-clamps Gels Clamps Mylar Boom Arms Platypod Fan Small step stool Flowers Jug of wine Fake strawberries Cart/table Wooden crate   The setup For this session, I did two setups, the first for the green fairy dress being the most complicated.   For the first dress, I wanted t...

On July 6 and August 3, I did two rain room sessions in my backyard with MelPool and Anastasia, respectively.   I know rain room sessions are very popular right now, and I don’t want to have to rent a rain room studio for $150+ an hour when, in reality, with a bit of engineering know-how, I can do it myself.   So, after watching a couple of YouTube videos, wandering around the plumbing section of Lowe's, and spending about $40 in parts, I built my own rain room setup.   The only downside is that I can only do these sessions in the summer, as I build the setup to work in my screened-in deck.   However, other than that, I can schedule them at my convenience and pass the savings on to my clients.    For these sessions, I used: Photography Equipment Rain Room Equipment Cannon R6 24-105 mm Lens Transmitter/Trigger 1 Westcott Strobe 1 Bell reflector 2 Cannon Speed lights 1 C-stands Sandbags 2 Backdrop stan...