becky high photography blog- covington street

Antique Farm Randomness

2011-04-12T12:09:00.000-07:00

Somewhere along the 99, we made a pit stop and found this old place. I don't know if you can call it a museum, there were antiques everywhere, as well as farm animals to pet and feed if you put a quarter in the pellet vending machine. We just roamed through all this old stuff, no people were around to tell us not to touch stuff. Ancient farm equipments, a 4-story tree house, and a store of home made food stuffs surrounded us. It was a really fun, totally random stop on our drive through the center of CA.

Death Valley, CA

2011-04-06T11:38:00.001-07:00

The Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes of Death Valley, CA

A rest stop along the 395 as we left Death Valley provided breathtaking views of wind-swept, snow-capped mountains on a brisk, sunny day.
This awesome set up reminded me of a vacation we took when I was nine, my Uncle V had a Winnebago from the same era. We met him in Winnemucca, NV and he drove my dad, two of my sisters and I to Yellowstone in one of these. Obviously, this one has some major improvements, noting the solar panels.

The Badlands, lowest place in North America

Even in Death Valley, the flowers grow

Birthday Celebration [Danville Event Photographer]

2011-02-26T15:27:00.000-08:00

This was a great event in the Blackhawk Country Club Ballroom. I had the pleasure of capturing all the fun while friends and family celebrated the life of this lovely lady. There was great food, the Smokin J's band, and lots of great stories from the loved ones of the birthday gal.

Gallery Canvas Wraps are Stunning [Dublin Family Portrait Photographer]

2011-02-21T06:46:00.000-08:00

The latest and greatest product now being offered at Becky High Photography is Gallery Canvas Wraps. These are fantastic! I'm so excited about it. I love seeing a life-sized image of my boys as a beautiful piece of artwork up on my wall. It will last for a lifetime since it's museum quality.

For more info on this and other creative and fun ideas, visit my website at beckyhigh.com

The Smokin' J's [Bay Area Event Photography]

2011-02-19T13:45:00.000-08:00

The Smokin' J's band played at an event I recently photographed. They were great, had a good playlist and they had a bunch of people out on the dance floor having a great time.

I got to eat dinner at the band's table. Dave, Jay and Tim have been playing together for a long time and often play in Danville at Pete's Brass Rail & Car Wash and also at E.J. Phair in Concord.

If you're planning a fun event that needs some good live music, check these guys out.

3 Sweeties [Bay Area Children's Photographer]

2011-02-18T15:11:00.000-08:00

These three are so sweet, they even brought cookies with them! We had fun getting some good shots of M,J and E for their Dad's birthday. I love this family!

Brothers Hug

2011-02-16T06:46:00.000-08:00

These cute little guys were so cooperative. There mom was the perfect coach, and bribes always do wonders for getting kids to smile.

What sweet brothers

Laughter

2011-02-09T11:37:00.000-08:00

Once her mom started ticking, the serious face went away and sweet little Amryn gave us huge smiles and laughter, complete with drool.

Tips for photographing your kids

2011-01-25T13:24:00.000-08:00

I spoke at my local MOPS group a couple weeks ago. MOPS (Mothers of PreSchoolers) is a great organization for moms with young kids ages newborn thru kindergarten. I've been involved for five years and have loved getting to know other moms in the same unique stage of life as I am. It's and encouraging place, they're positive and helpful and there's childcare which is a huge bonus...well, it's a must. So I got to share some photo tips with the MOPS moms. Below are a few tips for taking better photos of your kiddos.

Timing

Time your photo shoot around your kids best moods:
Make sure they’re well fed, well rested and at a time of day that they’re not usually grumpy.
Be quick, shoot quick, - press the shutter button half way down to focus before you click so the camera doesn’t take as long to capture the expression.

2. Location

Take them to a place they can have fun and enjoy while you’re photographing them – Park, Bridge, Beach

. Keep it Natural

Lighting – use natural daylight, on camera flashes are too harsh

note: if your photos are blurry, then you need more light or the camera is focusing on the background instead of on faces, so pay attention to where the focal point is.

Avoid direct sunlight – shoot in the shade or on a cloudy day or inside next to a window

Work at getting a natural smile
Start our by playing and interacting first, before taking any pictures. Set the mood of the photo shoot.
Make it a game- play peek-a-boo, red light green light, have them say funny, silly words like “bubble gum” or “cheeseburger” instead of “cheese”.
Ask questions about what things they are excited about.
Have a funny face contest or play Simon Says
Give them something to play with if they’re really young and have them show it to you then quick take the shot

4. Get down to their eye level

This will help them interact with you and it’s a much more flattering angle

5. Focus on the eyes

-There is a lot of expression and personality in the eyes

6. Shoot them close up, fill them frame with their face

7. Be Creative

Capture who they are in that moment - Don’t interrupt the moment for a picture, just capture what is there
Instead of just trying for a cute smile, look for their fleeting expressions, things that they will soon grow out of,
Show them in action. Take some shots when they don’t know you’re taking a picture or get all set up and them snap a quick one when they look up at you
Shoot your kids interacting with each other, not just sitting there smiling
Set up some fabric in the shade or next to a window to make a little studio.

8. Be Patient

Go at your kid’s pace and with their mood. Don’t force a smile when they’re grumpy. If they’re grumpy and you’re stressed, set down the camera and play with them for a couple minutes, then try again. If that doesn’t work; try the photo shoot later. We don’t want them having a bad experience and dreading the next time you try to take their picture.

9. Take a ton of pictures

-For action shots- take a bunch in succession

-Take a bunch of different angles, poses, keep them moving, you keep moving

10. Post Processing

Use the photo editing tools that are available to you on your computer or from where you order your photos from- cropping, black and white and lots, lots more
Photoshop Elements ($70), iphoto, Lightroom ($170) use these for creating more contrast, brightening eyes, adding more color, making black & whites

and finally...

Finish on a good note

Let them take a picture while you hold the camera then show it to them of the LCD. Let them remember having fun during their photo shoot so they look forward to it the next time.

Headshots for Lucas

2010-07-21T16:29:00.000-07:00

I get to photograph this cutie a lot. He is such a good-natured baby, almost always smiling...except for the first time we tried this. Of course, as soon as we finished his very serious photo shoot, he started cracking up at his cousin. Almost all of those first ones had baby posing "Blue Steal".

We found a great location for this outdoor photo shoot. There were so many great spots to use for backdrops and little Lucas was all smiles and his mommy tossed him in the air. He ate a few leaves which made for some good facial expressions too.

New Backdrop

2010-06-28T21:08:00.001-07:00

Here is a look at my new backdrop and the cuties who came by and try it out. I'm so happy with how bright and clean these images look, perfect for the summer.

Isabella's blue eyes are gorgeous!

Sean had some fun hanging out in the tractor. Chillin.

Sycamore Grove [Bay Area Family Photographer]

2010-06-16T14:32:00.000-07:00

Summer is here! The warm weather is perfect for putting on the pretty sun dresses and looking cute for a photo shoot.
I got to photograph the sweetest family last weekend. These beautiful girls we so much fun to work with.

2010-04-20T08:52:00.000-07:00

Why Choose Custom Photography
www.beckyhigh.com

Custom photography is more of a luxury than your entry level cookie cutter chain experience. Custom photography truly is not for everyone, it requires a level of commitment, investment in time and money, forethought and planning on the part of the subject/client and requires a larger time commitment for the photographer as well.

Clients who enjoy taking a more active role in the creation of their families’ memories have the desire to have portrait art that is truly personalized. These more discerning clients have been known to budget and allot time for a custom photography session. Many clients opt for it to be a once a year special experience, some opt to have custom photography sessions done to record their child's stages in life. Having said this, it is clear that custom photography is not in everyone’s budget, it is something that most families save for to splurge on from time to time to memorialize their children as they really are (not posed and primped in the cookie cutter studio setting).

There is a great deal of time involved in creating high end custom photography sessions for a client. The luxury of great service, better choices and a supberb end product. The result of all this are heirloom quality images. The time invested at the session is only a small portion of time involved in this process.

Custom photography has been likened to purchasing a fine vehicle. To get to point B from A let's face it, even a bus ride would suffice. If you want to luxuriate in a finely appointed vehicle, customizing your own experience by listening to smooth jazz while sitting in a climate controlled setting adjusted purely for your comfort in a body hugging leather interior, perhaps that Lexus you so desire is your cup of tea. Custom photography is much the same cup of tea. It is the Lexus of the photography world. It is where the intangibles make the experience truly wonderful and the images themselves make the investment of money and time truly worthwhile.

Custom photography can be broken down into even more levels. There are on location, studio, mixed studio/on location, specialty location and destination type photographers. The beauty of custom photography is in the choices and in the luxury of thos options. The customized service level you are sure to experience will be amazing. The knowledge that your final images are the result of someone caring about those moments so much that they take extra time ensuring that the artwork you receive is good enough to stand by with their name on it. That level of quality and commitment is all but lost in the age of "mass produced," "mass marketed," corporate "everyone is a number". Custom photography is based on being unique to you. How great an experience would be, to be able to sit back and allow a photographer to do this highly custom work for images that you will most likely cherish for a lifetime?

Keep in mind more than anything that the Lexus will never appreciate in value the way your portraits will. The portrait art you become invested in from your custom photographer will no doubt increase in value and become more priceless as the years pass.

Borrowed with permission from Professional Child Photographer.

2010-01-12T07:46:00.000-08:00

My First Meetup

Last night I attended a meetup organized by Gustavo Fernandez and sponsored by SmugMug. Our speaker was Roberto Valenzuela who is an amazing photographer and offered a ton of helpful information. He discussed how to "see" instead of just look at what you're about to photograph, the different element that will make a beautiful image such as geometric shapes, symmetry, reflections, patterns, balance, color elements and simplicity. Many of these were things I studied as an art major in college. Roberto thinks of the photograph as art and composes it rather than just clicking away and hoping for the best. There is so much thought that goes into setting up each shot, finessing the subject so they look their best and shooting them at the best angle using directional light.
I've got lots to think about and to practice.

2009-12-30T10:52:00.000-08:00

Shooting in the fog is similar to shooting in the snow. They both require a bit of over-exposure in the camera. Otherwise the images all come out muddy and dark. We spent the day in San Francisco at Crissy Field. The fog gives the City even more character than it already has.

In an effort to improve my photography skills and success as a photographer, I've been reading as much as I can about the subject. There is so much helpful information on the internet, but I'm finding my local library to be a wonderful resource too. I'm learning that being a successful photographer is only partly being an awesome photographer, the other part is running the business.I just started a book called Fast Track Photographer by Dane Sanders. In it he talks about selling yourself as the photographer as opposed to just trying to sell good pictures. My first thought was the name of my business which is "Covington Street". This is the street I grew up on, the place where I have so many rich, wonderful childhood memories. Since memories are what I capture with my camera, that's what I named my business. But most photographers go by their own name, so enough of my anonymous web presence. I'm going by my own name now.

If you're interested in reading this helpful book, you can get the ebook for free by using the code "smuglove". This was a special deal through SmugMug, my image hosting company.
This photo is of the temporary memorial set up across from the Lafayette BART station. They display crosses and the total number of soldiers killed since this war began. The hillside started with white crosses scattered across it, but it's now getting crowded, too crowded.

2009-12-27T23:07:00.000-08:00

Might Oak

We are surrounded by the magnificent trees where I live. Beautiful Creation.

2009-12-01T23:55:00.000-08:00

I'm working to turn my little office into a studio. This will require some lights and a backdrop. I've only just begun shopping for this and don't really know what to get yet. But there are so many cute babies that need their picture taken, I must get set up.

2009-12-01T23:37:00.000-08:00

I've been playing around with Photoshop brushes and actions. There is so much out there, actions and brushes...so exciting and fun. Best of all, they are free. There are actions and brushes for purchase, and I will probably buy some one of these days. I need to find out if the ones I must pay for are worth the money.
Photoshop actions are a preset serious of steps that are recorded. They create different effects, such as turning a color photo to black and white, bumping up the contrast, softening the photo or changing the color to some surreal, awesomeness that makes you look like you're working on the set of 300 (the movie). I've gotten some great tips and tricks and free actions from this blog: http://coffeeteaphotography.blogspot.com/
There are also some really cool actions at totallyradactions.com- I haven't bought any yet, but I signed up to get a few freebies which are great.
As for brushes, they are bitmaped images that you stamp onto your project in Photoshop, using the brushes pallet. There seem to be an endless variety of these available. I just type in "free Photoshop brushes" in my new favorite search engine,

and an endless list of options for free brushes is available to download. Fantastic!
I've been renting many books about Photoshop and photography at our local library and it has proved to be a valuable source of useful information. Who knew! The library! Fantastic! You just don't know what you don't know.

2009-12-01T23:33:00.000-08:00

I made this collage for my Grandma who recently passed away. She was a beautiful woman and I loved putting together the old photos of her past.

2009-10-21T14:59:00.000-07:00

New babies!
Little Sean was a week old for this shot which matched the one I took of his big sister at this age.

Little Dominic does not like touching the grass, so we had to improvise. The puzzle piece ended up making a really cute addition to this photo. He was about to get his first haircut.

2009-10-08T13:13:00.000-07:00

Family Portraits and Holiday Photo Card Package

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Call today for more quantities 925.719.2896

2009-09-20T16:50:00.001-07:00

Brenda & Jeremy were married at Valley Community Church and held their reception at Shannon Community Center. It was a fun wedding to shoot since I was friends with sister's of both the bride and groom. My favorite part was the ho-down Brenda and the bridesmaids danced at the reception.
Clicking on the photo above will enable you to see the rest of the photos from this wedding. I was the second shooter for this one so the pressure was off and I could enjoy the event as a guest too.
I rented the 70-200mm F/2.8 Canon lens for this so I could try it out. It was heavy. I loved being able to shoot inside the church from the balcony, zoom in and not need a flash. It worked well, but it was difficult to carry around all day. The first shooter stayed up front with (I think) a 24-105mm. Maybe I can experiment with that one next. I like being as unobtrusive as possible when photographing events. I get totally irritated when photographers run the wedding.

2009-09-20T16:16:00.001-07:00

Brittany's Memorial

I was asked to photograph the funeral of my sister's sister-in-law who passed away suddenly at the age of 18 after a life-long battle with Mitochondrial Disease. It was a beautiful ceremony and Brittany Wilkinson touched a lot of lives in her time here on earth. She worked hard to raise awareness for Mitochondrial Disease. Click here to visit her website.
This was the first funeral I've photographed. It was very emotional being the one clicking the shutter as someone was laid to rest. They released doves at the graveside which was a touching and significant moment.

2009-09-08T21:45:00.000-07:00

Brenda & Jeremy's Wedding at Valley Community Church, Pleasanton, CADuring the reception, the bridal party did a Hoe Down for everyone. It was a lot of fun. The reception was at the new Shannon Park Community Center in Dublin.
I have not yet finished editing this wedding, more to come soon.

2009-09-08T21:22:00.000-07:00

Quarry Lakes in Fremont, CA- July 2009
This wedding was at Quarry Lakes in Fremont, CA. I love shooting outdoor weddings and prefer using natural light whenever possible.
Towards the end of the reception, the newly married couple stepped away for a few moments when the sun was getting low in the sky to shoot these.

This was the first wedding I've shot since 2006. I've been out having babies for awhile. I didn't realize it had been that long. It was a fun day. This was George's cousin's wedding. Jessica was a beautiful bride.
To see more of this wedding, click here.

2009-09-08T21:03:00.000-07:00

2006-09-02T17:29:00.000-07:00

2006-09-02T17:25:00.000-07:00

2006-09-02T17:20:00.000-07:00

2006-05-01T18:21:00.000-07:00