Tuesday, April 28, 2009

And the EYES have it......


The eyes are the windows to the soul....

Yeah...pretty darn cliche, huh?  lol
It's interesting, though.  I was thinking about it last night, as I was looking at my pictures.  I find the pictures that I like the best...the ones that really Move me...the eyes are always the main focal point of the picture.
Like the one above.  The depth of the child is so highlighted by the intensity of the eyes.
It made me think...ever since I was a teenager...when friends would talk about girls, and...well.. what parts they like "best"....for me it was the eyes.  Yeah....my friends would tease me about it.  But it was true.  Looking back at past girlfriends....they are all so different.  But the one thing they have in common is beautiful eyes.  
Actually....if you look at most of my close friends...female OR male...you will find that the thing most of them have in common is VERY intense eyes and VERY intelligent eyes.
I guess, thinking back, I've always been drawn to people in general that are like that...those people that you say...wow!  They have really intense eyes...or wow...you can see all their emotion, or passion in their eyes.  Or...they have Kind eyes.  Intelligent eyes.

Maybe that's why I tend to like photography's that really show the eyes.  Really a part of my photographic style.  Ok...thats not to say ALL my pictures are focused around the eyes.  That would just be silly.  But the ones that move ME, are.  The ones that I tend to really go WOW at...

I'm curious what other people think....do YOU have that same reaction to the ones with the eyes that I do?  Or this picture above just ANOTHER baby picture... or maybe you like it because of the sunglasses.  I LOVE the sunglasses, by the way...it totally works in the picture.  I just think the Eyes are the most important element, though.

Tell me what you think.................
(ok guys...this is where you stop just READING...and interact..)  :)



Saturday, April 25, 2009

Graffiti Bridge Model Shoot




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Last month I did a photo shoot with up an coming model Shea Short, who is....wait for it...
16
Yes...I know....two things you are thinking right now...
One....she does NOT look 16 to you (part of that is the shooting style)
Two...SEAN!  That's not your Style!  lol.

Yes...those of you who know me, and have seen my work, will tell you that this is a departure from my normal photographic style.  Yes, LEIGH....I know what you are saying right now!  (insert inside joke here)

Anyway...I was asked to do this shoot Shea to help her build her portfolio.  The location is the Graffiti Bridge in Davis (also known as the Stephenson Bridge).  It is a very old bridge in the middle of nowhere...that is covered (obviously!) in Graffiti.  The effect is really cool.  It looks like something out of so many movies I've seen in the past...old concrete bridge, so much graffiti.  
It's fun to walk around and check out the graffiti...read what people wrote.  I actually took some shots of just the graffite...who knows, I may do something with that in the futre.

Anyway....while it was fun doing the shoot...I have to admit that just shooting models...well...not as much fun as you would think.
I LOVE people...and capturing people.  DUH!  That's why I'm a "LIFESTYLE" photographer, right??
I guess the over posed stuff...well...I don't know.  It's just not the same for me.  I love capturing the essence of people in a picture....capturing their soul in motion.  So that when people look at the picture later...they are moved by what they see.
I just don't get that same feeling from the posed shots.

That said...we will see what Art School brings....since I know I will have to do more posed shots during school...so I might learn to love it more.

In the meantime....BRING on the family portraits, the weddings, the photo shoots of little kids, of couples in love, of seniors at the highlight of their life.  Bring me LIFE to photograph.
That is my passion!  :)

Ok...enough ramblings of a crazy photographer for now!

Sean Thomas Bjers

Oh...for those who want to see the rest of the pictures from that shoot that have been finished...