For All Seasons

Often one of the disadvantages of being a photographer based in the Pacific Northwest is that my family on the East Coast does not get very many opportunities to interact with my daughter. This is understandable, especially granted the distance and the fact there is pretty much a continent between us. Yet one of the fun things I can take advantage of as a photographer is sending my family photos that I've taken of my daughter. Most of them I tend to tweak. Some more than others. But all of the photos are appreciated by my family when they arrive in the mail.

And then sometimes I end up with a photo that I love, but the picture needs a little something... more. Like this photo, for example.

Shot last month during a barbecue, it captures the exuberance and joy that comes with childhood. However, the dead grass and chain link fence don't make for the most appealing background. Certainly not something that I would feel content to send off in the post.

On top of that, one of the projects that I am working on for my parents is a photo montage that demonstrates my little girl in all of the different seasons that come with this Pacific Northwest weather. And since I like the image of my daughter playing (minus the background and dead grass) I decided to improve it a bit with a little bit of post-production work.

An image from the shoot I did in Point Defiance Park seemed appropriate for a new background. The image I had in mind was this one specifically...

Now I understand that I could simply take my daughter to Point Defiance Park and encourage her to play with her bubbles all over the scenic and beautiful lawn, but I doubt I could capture that same expression on her face. Some things simply can't be re-photographed. Children's expressions are one of them.

So with a little bit of ingenuity -and a lot of post-production effort with Photoshop- I was able to combine the best of both images, get creative with some layer masks and tweak a few elements here and there to achieve an image that I would be thrilled to send away to my family. This is the final image:

Definitely captures the fun of the brief summer season the Pacific Northwest grants us, and I can say this is truly a photograph that I'm more than enthusiastic to send to my parents and grandparents. I may not have too many opportunities for my daughter and family to spend time with each other, but as an accomplished Pacific Northwest photographer and post-production artist I can definitely Photoshop the right image to deliver a dynamic photograph!

Feel free to leave any thoughts or comments below. Cheers!

Gadget Envy

Today I had a successful portrait shoot with a friend to test out some new lighting gear that I purchased from the other side of the world. It amazes me that due to e-commerce so much of the world has opened up as easily as the click of a button. The lighting kit that I purchased is possibly the most exciting thing that I've bought since my first digital lens. A professional 6-in-1 flash set, it comes with a softbox, honeycomb grid, conical snoot, barndoor, mini-reflector and a globe diffuser. Available on gadget.brando.com for less than $90. I've been wanting to play with it since I bought it. Today was the perfect day to do that. Pictures will be up soon.

Mother and Daughter Point Defiance Photo Shoot

Last week I had the wonderful opportunity to photograph a session with a mother and daughter in Point Defiance Park. Working as a family portrait photographer in Tacoma at times yields fun and exciting opportunities like this one. The daughter in this session had recently had her birthday -and believe it or not, within the same week as my little girl's!

The excitement that both mother and daughter brought to the photo shoot was great for me. It allowed me to continue to be creative and utilize all of the fun tools that I bring with me to each shoot. I even got some snaps in with my new Holga lens, plus my complete fav -the Lensbaby Composer. More photos will be on their way soon.

The image I am focusing on tonight has a very simple concept. Mother and daughter, silhouetted while playing under a tree. The photo was quite easy to capture, yet, as always, the more difficult task is to now determine which version of the image I prefer. I enjoy "mixing my own paint," but each shoot is different. I can't rely on the same standard effects each time I crank up the computer to edit my family portrait shoots.

Here it is without any major adjustments. An increase in contrast and vibrance, is all.
Adding some colorization to the shadows, while washing out some highlight detail.
Similar to the first, with a slight hint of extra shadow detail.
Going for a vintage look with the highlights, some shadow detail in the silhouette.
Adding a vignette, along with custom tone colorization to highlights and shadows.

With as much fun as we all had last week, I want to deliver some amazing photos to accompany the fun time we all had shooting a mother and daughter family portrait shoot in Point Defiance park. For now, I'm still in that phase where I'm debating which image adjustment I like best. Comments are appreciated!

Nikon DSLR Bluetooth Controller

This is something that I find very exciting! Within digital photography, there are so many ways to explore and exploit what technology allows us to be capable of. The only thing that truly limits us is what we're able to imagine creating. Much like the personal vision for any photographer's work, the ability to execute what you envision is no longer a limitation anymore.

(via Nikon Rumors)

Zombies Invade Crypticon!

Last night I had an experience with the walking dead as they invaded the 2011 Crypticon expo. Gathered via social media (who would think zombies knew how to use a computer?) the several hundred plus crowd of zombies shuffled their way from the Westlake transit station to the Crypticon expo in SeaTac. Here are a few photos from last night's madness.
Eric Pope, the Zombie General, organizes the horde just outside the Westlake Transit station.
Surprisingly, the undead were as well-behaved on the Light Rail as the living.
For any zombies from last night's Zombie Walk that are interested in purchasing any photos, you can email me for info. I'm offering 5x7 and 6x8 prints screen-printed onto glass, plus standard 5x7 and 8x10 prints. Prices available via email.
Crypticon, the Pacific Northwest's premier horror convention, had a few zombie themed events for the walking dead to enjoy last night. There also was a lot of zombie-themed mayhem.
There are more images on my Picasa and Facebook pages. Captions and descriptions are to come soon! And if you want to visit the Crypticon home page, click on this link.

All images are © Tony Leonhardt, Art by Leonhardt Photography, 2011.

Please don't use images on websites, blogs or other media without consent of the photographer. Use prohibited for commercial purposes without prior written authorization.

Emergency Whistle, Rapture Whistle

Considering that the interwebs are abuzz with the advent of the Rapture -at least, according to Facebook and Twitter updates- I feel that now is a time where one simply cannot leave the house without bringing a trusty ©Rapture Whistle.


What to do when the end of the world is nigh? Do not fear! Frighten away those thieves in the night with a whistle that clamors with the strength of seven trumpets from on high.

This pocket-sized powerhouse packs quite the punch, and also can be handily accessorized with a lanyard. An item to use only in extreme emergencies -like the 2011 Rapture or the imminent Armageddon- the ©Rapture Whistle will ward off avenging angels faster than a fresh coating of lamb's blood on your door mantle.

Remember, this item is for use only in case of Rapture. When it comes to the end of the world as we know it, the best form of self-defense is an angelic whistle meant for offense.

Taking orders via email and Paypal. Items will ship within 4-5 business days.

Mixing Paint II

As a Seattle based wedding photographer, I typically enjoy shooting photos more than the post-production and editing process. There are so many different types of photo editing software available that it can become easy to get lost in the various selections or stuck on a specific program. So this post is a testing phase for which editing program I enjoy using most for the post-production of both my Puget Sound located and destination wedding photography.
The original image, shot at the gorgeous Hidden Meadows -north of Seattle- using a Nikon D80 and a Lensbaby composer. No post-production attempted.
The first revision of the image, using the Apple Aperture program.
The second post-production attempt, this one accomplished using the Nikon Capture NX 2 software program.
The third editing attempt, relying on the standard Adobe RAW editing program.
The last post-production effort, using Adobe Lightroom to modify the image.

While I have the most experience using both Lightroom and Aperture, I found that the software that I loved the most to work with was actually the Capture NX 2 program. This software is very similar to Lightroom, but surpasses much of what Adobe's program offers in terms of image control. I feel the photo yielded by the Nikon program delivers a better, more satisfying image than the results achieved using Lightroom.

The only thing worth noting is that the NX 2 software is probably best used for specific images -portfolio material. When it comes to fast batch edits of hundreds or thousands of photos -which I tend to shoot during a wedding- Lightroom performs much better and more quickly than the other programs tend to do.

Granted, my familiarity with each program will only increase through time. Which in turn will improve my workflow. But if you have a chance to try out the Nikon software, give it a go. I bet you'll be pleased with the results also.