May 01 2012

Honolulu Hawaii Family Photographer | The Denny Family, Bellows Beach

Aloha everyone!  Please meet the Denny family!  

Joanna contacted us soon after we moved out here and asked us to do some family photos for her!  

Joanna heard about us through her sister Jihan, who we had previously done maternity photos and family photos for in Philadelphia, PA.  

We went to Bellows Beach here on Oahu and grabbed these photos.  

Beautiful location + awesome family = one of my favorite photo shoots!  

Thank you Denny family for the opportunity to take your family portraits!  I hope these are photos you will cherish forever!  

–  Jim Baker
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Grandma - Beautiful family and the background is awesome.  Great job as always.

Stefanie from Germany - <3

Rainwater01 - LOVE the location! Beautiful!

Seabee Wife - Great pictures of awesome family

thecompositionof - Great pictures, and what a cute family!

DebJ-Orlando - Those photos are spectacular!  They just took my breath away.  What a great family. 

Apr 24 2012

We LOVE adoption! When you book with us you are helping this family!

Seth, Jamie and Lochard


We LOVE ADOPTION!  Our friends Seth and Jamie Rainwater from Carpe Deim | Photo Video are adopting a little boy from Haiti!  

Seth and Jamie are awesome photographers and awesome people.  They opened up their home to us in 2010 when we were in a really transitional time in our lives. 

We are donating 20% of everything we make on photography to them!  We have been doing this since the beginning of February and will continue until Lochard is home!
Apr 19 2012

The number 1 resource for beginner photographers (imo)

Me with my copy of Scott Kelby’s book in 2008 during my photography school.  
I just recommended one of Scott Kelby’s book to someone that is starting out in photography. 

I also wanted to recommend these books to you as well.  When I looked it up on Amazon I saw that there is now a 4th book in the series.  I own the first two, and have flipped through the 3rd one.  I have yet to see the 4th one.  

Some photography books can be overly technical and dry.  Scott Kelby is straight forward, to the point and entertaining.  Each page is filled with a large photo demonstrating what he is talking about and then a short paragraph explaining what he is doing.  It is a GREAT resource for anyone starting out!  

Below are my Amazon Associate links to the different books. 

You can buy The Complete 4 book set or just buy the 1st book to start out with.   

What photography resource have you found beneficial?  Share with us in the comments!  
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Grandma - Your my resource. 😉

Ashley_A - LOVED these books. They were, and are, so helpful. I second that recommendation! 

Apr 17 2012

Oops, ran out of card space.

Bellows Beach, Oahu 
Yesterday we did a family portrait session for a family and went to Bellows Beach.  During that one hour session I took over 1,000 photos.  I would have taken more but I ran out of card space.  (I’m sure someone has something to say about how that’s way too much and I’ll address that in a future blog post.)  

I ALWAYS carry 40 gigs worth of cards on me when I shoot.  Two 16 gig cards and an 8.  I left one of my 16 gig cards in my card reader, which is in a box, sitting in storage in Maryland.  When I went to switch cards I came to that sobering realization.  

So my practical tip for today is: 
Check how much card space you have before you start shooting.  

I was shooting full size raw when I was using the first 16 gig card and when I changed to the 8, I switched down to small raw.  If I was shooting small raw on the first card I could have gotten a lot more photos.  

How many cards do you have and what size?  What is the total amount of space you carry when you go out to shoot?  
Apr 12 2012

3 reasons why shooting MACRO will get you out of your photographic rut.

Do you ever get in a photo rut where you just don’t know what to take photos of?  


Think about getting a lot CLOSER to your subjects.  


If you have a DSLR and you don’t have a dedicated macro lens you have a couple of options.  I am currently using the EF 12.  The ef12 is an extension tube, which is just a piece of plastic that goes between your lens and camera body that allows you to get a closer focusing distance.  I will write more about other macro options in future posts.  


If you’re using a point and shoot than look for the flower symbol to put your camera into macro mode. Most point and shoots have a really impressive macro mode.  


Are you feeling uninspired?  Here are 3 reasons why shooting macro will get you out of that photo rut.  

2008 | 20d | ef-s 60mm macro



1.  Shooting macro gives you an instant perspective change and gets you looking at things with fresh eyes.

2010 | 5d Mark II | ef 100mm macro 2.8 



2.  Shooting macro gives you a definite SUBJECT for your photo.

2010 | 5d Mark II | ef 100mm macro 2.8 



3.  Shooting macro lets you see details you wouldn’t normally see.


Do you like shooting macro?  What helps you get out of your photo ruts? 

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Joanbn125 - Love the macros….. It’s been awhile since I’ve taken any close-ups.  Your photos inspire me.