Becki Dickinson :: The Photographer Blog

Playing around with Lightroom Adjustments

November 16, 2008 – 12:24 pm

I am a big fan of the urban grunge look and was playing around with Lightroom this morning trying to develop a preset that would simulate the grungy, moody effect often found in lucas art effects.

Here’s an image straight out of camera:

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Here’s the image after Lightroom adjustments and a couple of texture layers added in photoshop:

Greensboro Wedding Photographer

Adjustments in Lightroom included:
Auto WB
Fill light 63
Blacks 61
Contrast +73
Clarity +100
Vibrance +100
Saturation -70

Try it yourself, start by dragging the Fill Light up to 100 and Blacks up to 50-100. Adjust to suit the image but watch for halos on the edges. You might have to drag the Fill Light down if the amount of haloing is unacceptable. Next drag clarity and vibrance to 100 and decrease Saturation to taste.

Drop me a line and let me know how it works for you or if you have any questions.

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TOO TOO CUTE!

November 13, 2008 – 3:43 pm

This 10 month old is just too cute! Walking, talking and playing, she definitely has her own agenda. I can only imagine her as a teenager, oh her poor mom.

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Michelle + Drew (Nov. 8, 2008)

November 11, 2008 – 11:11 am

I always find it so hard picking which images to blog after a wedding we shoot but Michelle and Drew’s were especially hard. There were just so many I wanted to include. Here is a sneak preview:

Greensboro Wedding Photographer

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See Dylan Run!

November 2, 2008 – 10:49 pm

Dylan @ 2 and a half years old met me for a photo shoot this afternoon at the park. His energy and spunk was amazing. He certainly kept me on my toes, my knees, my belly and any other part I needed to capture him in camera. We had a game we played where he challenge my photography skills by running away whenever I pointed the camera at him. Every so often he let me “Win” by sitting still just a second and if I didn’t get the shot, haha, I LOST.

Here are a couple of shots where Dylan let me “Win” ( thanks, Dylan, cause I definitely needed your help):

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Flash Photography w/Neil Van Niekerk

October 30, 2008 – 10:29 am

On October 20th I, along with another 10 photographers, had the opportunity to study with Neil Van Niekerk. Neil is well known for his flash photography work within the general photography population and especially amounst professional wedding photographers. One visit to his website will show you just how much knowledge he has to share.

The workshop ran all day with the first half of the day devoted to theory and the second half taken up with actual real life model shoots. It should be noted that Neil possesses knowledge of both Nikon and Canon flash systems.

If you’re a photographer struggling the mastery of your on/off camera flash go study with Neil. It will open your eyes to the possibilities.

A couple of important tidbits I took away with me after attending:

The importance of using gels on your flashhead
Just how easy it is to use pocket wizards
The value of sync speed
The flash is NOT your light source
Direct flash-BAD FLASH
sign up for his workshop to learn more

Here are some samples of shots I took following Neil’s methods:

Greensboro Wedding Photographer

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Amy and Jonathan

October 29, 2008 – 9:06 am

Okay, yesterday was a blustery and cold day but Amy, Jonathan, their two “children” and I braved the elements in order to shoot their first real photo session in 14 years. It might have been a good time to do studio shots but then we wouldn’t have gotten the “urban grunge” type images. And we wouldn’t have had the pleasure of being chased off the railroad tracks by an employee of the city.

Here are a few of my favorite shots:

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Jennifer and Jason Engagement Session

October 29, 2008 – 8:21 am

Another beautiful day in North Carolina for a photoshoot. Jennifer, Jason and I drove up to Hanging Rock State Park for their engagement photo session. The weather couldn’t have been better and the colors were spectacular. Here are a few shots taken during our time together:

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Rebekah and Matt’s Engagement Shoot

October 29, 2008 – 7:22 am

I just love the Fall colors and weather we get here in Greensboro. With my assistant, Frances, I met Rebekah and Matt at the Greensboro Arboretum to begin our photo shoot, since this is the place Matt proposed. Afterwards we headed over to UNCG where both Matt and Rebecca are enrolled. Here are just a few of my favorite shots from the day (it was so hard deciding which to post, there were so many). FUN, FUN, FUN!

What a cute couple they are:

Matt and Rebecca

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Amber and Chevy’s E-Session, Oh Yeah, and Stella’s Too

October 12, 2008 – 8:33 pm

I had the absolute pleasure of meeting Amber and Chevy this afternoon to photograph their E-session. They drove up to Greensboro with Chevy’s mom, Pepper and their “baby” Stella. I can’t wait to photograph their wedding next April down near Lake Norman. We captured so many good shots today, I had a hard time deciding which ones to post, but here are a few of my favorites:

Here’s Amber, Chevy and Stella:
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October 11, 2008 Haley and Jeremy Exchange Vows

October 12, 2008 – 1:27 pm

It was another beautiful day for a wedding as Stacy and I were fortunate enough to be a part of Haley and Jeremy’s wedding day celebration. The wedding was held at Hopewell United Methodist Church in Trinity NC followed by the reception at Centennial Station in High Point. Here is just a very small sampling of some of the images we captured during the celebration:

Something old, borrowed and blue, Haley’s Grandma’s garter:

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