Matty Blog

24 May

Posted at 13:26h in Shoots
matty_5.17.11_ 282 This has to be my favorite family portrait shoot to date. It also happened to be the largest yet, with 14 (if you count the bulldog). Where do you effectively prop this many people without it looking boring? You have to find the right location which is a good compromise of lighting everyone well, everyone looking naturally posed, and make a fun looking photograph. After all, if we wanted everyone standing uniform, lacking any kind of creativity, they may as well get their portrait at Sears. To ensure I accomplished all of the above, I went scouting the day prior to the shoot, making sure the location would foster the right kind of fun, natural shots I was after for such a large group. I picked a location in the North end of Tacoma. Within a small area we had lots of options, lots of different props to stand, lean, and sit on. This made my job easier, allowed the family members to situate themselves without much direction from me, and that lead to more natural looking photos. If people sit themselves you get a picture of "them." It made things move much quicker and we got a lot more photos take. Was the posing "picture perfect?" Absolutely not, and that, in my opinion, is what makes them work that much better. It's a half posed, half candid style.

23 May

Posted at 13:21h in Info/News
storeOpening It's finally here. I've been wanting to create an online store for years now, and just finally got around to doing it. What is the online store? Well, it's place where you can purchase my work in any size and quantity you'd like. The prints are produced by BayPhoto, a professional print shop used by the photography professionals. They produce great prints, have great prices, and deliver right to your door. I've made various photos of mine available at the store, however, I will now be using this store as the vessel for my clients to order prints of their photo shoots. You can visit the store anytime by clicking the button at the top of the page. Visit often as I will be consistently adding new content!

23 May

Posted at 10:30h in Just for Fun
matty_12.13.10_ 441 Where to start with this post... Well, let's start with the background story. Last December, I traveled to Maui to photograph a wedding over there. I made the most of out the trip and booked my stay for a week, giving me a couple days of prep for the wedding, then the wedding, and a couple days of pure relaxation on the island after the wedding craziness. These last few days left us seeking fun island activities, and being the adventurous group that we were, we decided on a jungle hike. Now... This hike was located on the eastern tip of the island, we were staying on the west end, so a road trip was in order. For an island, Maui is quite diverse due to the mountains at the center of the islands. Believe it or not, these mountains were large enough to create very extreme differences in climate and landscape on opposite sides of the mountain. It was like experiencing Washington State, but instead of having to drive hundreds of miles, you only had to drive 30 to go from luscious greenery to brown desert landscapes. I would think there may be dryer parts of the island than others, but nothing like this...

22 May

Posted at 12:50h in Behind the Scenes, Info/News
matty_5.20.11_ 007 It's been kind of a crazy week and a half, with all kinds of subject matter in front of my lens. Seven shoots in the last nine days, ranging from fashion to product to aerial photography. It's been a couple days since my last post and just wanted to check-in with you guys. Lots coming your way via the blog here in the days to come. I don't want to try and guess the sheer number of photos that have been imported onto my laptop during this last nine days, I just try to keep pushing on and pumping out photo album for my amazing clients. I think I should have something presentable by this evening or tomorrow, so stay tuned!

15 May

Posted at 16:55h in Events, Shoots
matty_5.13.11_ 364 They are hectic, exciting, sexy, exhausting, exhilarating, and chaotic all at once. I'm talking about fashion shows. Sure, sitting out by the catwalk waiting for the show to start, everything seems normal, maybe even down-right boring, peeking to see when the models will start to strut their stuff. Well, the pre-show catwalk is the ying to the backstage's yang. Ironically, the backstage is where I wanted to be to capture the Fashion Night Out event that London Couture was hosting. It was the busyness, the prep, the inside look into what goes into a fashion show, but at the same time, snag some seemingly calm images of the models before they hit the runway. I spoke with the owner of London Couture, Tina London, a couple days before the event, and was able to snag the backstage access. I knew there was going to be a herd of photographers there to click away on the catwalk, but if you know me, you know I'm always out to get the shots and the look no one else is getting or thinking of.

10 May

Posted at 13:59h in Just for Fun
matty_5.6.11_ 415 Over the years I've been to a lot of beaches, some warm, some cold. I've wiggled my toes in the sands of Mexico and Hawaii, but none of them will ever earn the title of 'The Beach.' That sole title goes to Long Beach, WA. It IS The Beach. It doesn't just describe the actual physical vastness of where the sand meets the water, but the pace and style of life in the town. On the nicer days, this means that we are going non-stop, playing frisbee, hiking, running around on the beach, playing games in the lawn, biking around the simple streets, and late night fires in the backyard. On the yucky days, it means lots of board games in the family room, a crackling fire keeping us warm, hitting up the small theater, and getting dragged to the all the little shops with the girls. Good or bad weather, the beach is the beach, rain or shine, we are having a blast. The town is very much a tourist-based economy, the place is a ghost town in the colder months, and packed in the warmer ones. Walking around during the off-seasons, entering restaurants and stores, you quickly realize a very consistent theme, you are the only one in them. It makes you wonder how they manage to keep the businesses open, but then it makes you realize just how busy they are in the warmer times of the year. Because of the crummy weather we are still experiencing, the town was still very much dead. This meant that we practically had the town to ourselves this last weekend.

04 May

Posted at 23:41h in Shoots
matty_5.3.11_ 015 Mother's Day, it's just around the corner, and what better way to tell your mother you love her than surprising her with a photo she can enjoy for years to come. I ventured down to the Rochester elementary school and photographed three 3rd grade classrooms. Kids are funny, flat-out. It was kind of a harmonious occasion, as I was once on a path to becoming a teacher. As far as college credit goes, I'm about three quarters of classes short of my education degree. I even went through some student teaching experience. I was interested in teaching elementary school, third grade to be more specific. I found that age to be the most fun. You can still have a lot of fun with that age group, they are smart enough to have interesting conversations, maintain wild imaginations, but have not yet hit that "too cool" stage. The questions and topics that pop up with these kids are hilarious. It's the sweet spot if you ask me.

03 May

Posted at 14:50h in Behind the Scenes, Video
matty_4.18.11_ 129 Video cameras are rolling at almost every shoot now. If I see a free hand while we are on set working, I toss that hand a camera. I can never really have enough BTS material. The only downside is the more BTS I have the more time I gotta spend sifting through all of it, compounded with all the time I invested into the actual photographic process and the photos for the client. Love all the material, hate the fact that I can't clone myself at put him strictly on BTS shooting and editing, that would be amazing. So, unfortunately a lot of the BTS material never sees the light of day, which gets tossed into the Matty archives. Every few months I'll go the extra mile and compile a video from a favorite shoot and toss it on the site. Well, today is one of those days. I stayed up late last night cutting together this short, two-minute video. I was lucky enough to have fellow creatives Andy and Jolaina at the recent commercial shoot I did with one of my regular clients, Whatcom Sound. The pair, both armed with cameras, got some fun footage that I couldn't toss into the archives without getting a little attention first. This video will give you a good idea of everything we had going on. A lot of the set and lighting was up and ready to go before the cameras were out to capture anything, but you still get to see the bulk of activities during the shoot.

02 May

Posted at 12:18h in Events, Info/News
matty_4.30.11_-103 Zoom, it passed right by, another workshop completed, another set of legit photographers roaming the landscape. This is a photo I snuck in of Shawna, one of the students from this last weekend. She's been shooting for years, but had been letting the camera call all the shots. She was tired of that, decided to take the workshop so she can nail the photos she wants in life. Still hearing inspiring stories from the first group of beginner workshop students, which is so great to know the benefits of the workshop are still coming for them. For more details on the past workshops, visit the workshop website by clicking on "workshops" at the top of the page.

29 Apr

Posted at 17:40h in Shoots
matty_2.20.11_ 689 Lots of things in the making here at the base of operations for Matty Photography. It's gonna be a really busy next week, so I'm posting a little goodie for you guys while I know I have a chance. Speaking of not getting a chance, I never posted up on the last Upfront shoot that I did a month or two back. Love working with these guys, all I have to do is setup my lights and pull my camera up to my face, the Upfront crew takes care of the rest. I'd really love to actually take the time and setup a concept with them, as we've only shot in and around the theater. The shot above literally taken of Galen (doing the 'thinker') and Morgan (doing the serious face, patent pending) in the recycling dumpster out back. All of the photography with them so far has all been shot from the hip (pardon the pun), and somehow we come out with something that works. I guess that's cause of the sheer amount of character they can stir up from thin air at the word "go." Need one of them to make a face? How about 30 different faces, a new one after each pop of the flash? They can pretty much all do it, and do it well. Over 700 photos, yes, that's right 700 photos, which of that all have the cast expressing something different, whether that be a face or body expression. The variety of our shoots only limited by the amount of time I have to capture it all. The tough part comes down to having to pick your favorites out of 700 photos, all which truly are good. Hence this post's photos are just a blind pick of the bunch, and in no particular order. Enjoy, and be on the lookout for more photos and video productions waiting in the hopper to be presented...

27 Apr

Posted at 18:28h in Just for Fun, Shoots
matty_4.20.11_ 003 Variety, it's a huge perk to a few lucky photographers out there. I'm happy to say that I feel like one of them. It's really fun looking back to see where my camera has taken me. A few places my camera has seen this last year - Alaska, Maui, all over the PNW, and coming this late June, Arizona. But sometimes the fun stuff is right around the corner, or in this case, right down the tracks. Good friend and P-51 Pictures video director, Andy Lahmann, is always helping out my photo biz when he is available and within a reasonable proximity to my photo shoots. So when he asked me if I'd take some photos for his movie poster design, I was happy to answer the call.

23 Apr

Posted at 16:48h in Shoots
matty_4.18.11_ 093 This has been a photo concept that has been floating around in my head for over six months. Seeing it finally come to life was a lot of fun. Whatcom Sound, a DJ services business, is one of my commercial clients in the Bellingham area. They are armed to the teeth with an army of sound equipment. A while back, while visiting Paxton, the owner, I took notice of all of the speakers lining the main office walls. At that moment, the lightbulb popped on, an idea already brewing in my noggin'. The shear number and size of speakers lead to Guitar Hero-like visions in my head, a rocker performing windmill strums along their electric guitar, surrounded by an wall of speakers, colored backlighting striking the scene, and a splash of fog to give just the right recipe for our drama/color smoothie. I got home and drew out the concept, and to my delight, the photograph that followed that drawing months after was identical (I can draw one mean stick figure holding a guitar, I'll tell you that much). Aside from the crudeness of my quick doodle, making it's way to paper simply to prevent forgetting the idea all together, it ended up being exactly what I sought when it came to attempting to bring it to life with a camera months later. Really fun when that happens.

20 Apr

Posted at 11:52h in Shoots
matty_4.15.11_ 067 There is on-location work and then there is on-location work. The bigger the challenge the more I love it, whether that is challenges with the composition, lighting, or time allotted for the shoot. Walking into a never-before-seen situation on top of a very limited time window, all while conducting the shoot in front of a crowd is... fun! This was the situation last week for a packed MMA event in Tacoma. Smokin' Hot Espresso, one of my regular business clients, were one of the sponsors, and some of the baristas were the ring girls. I'll usually attend their events to document the occasion, however, this time I wanted to do something a little more fun. There is an octagon in the middle of this place, and how often to do you get the chance to hold your own personal photo shoot in one of them? This was my thinking anyway, so I had the girls show up an hour early to do a quick shoot.

17 Apr

Posted at 10:59h in Info/News, Video
matty_12.11.10 360 If you can remember back last December, I traveled to Maui to shoot a destination wedding. It was an amazing time, the wedding was beyond beautiful, and the Travel channel was there to document this particular wedding. They were doing a piece on destination weddings, and happened to pick Daymeon and Leeann's event. The video was just released, and I've reposted it here on my site. You'll get a glimpse of me working with the couple on the beach for their formal wedding shots. Enjoy!

12 Apr

Posted at 00:08h in Shoots
matty_2.16.11_ 190 I had the pleasure of working with Sam, a Smokin Hot Espresso barista, completing a photo shoot for her punch card design. Up until just recently, I've had the opportunity of meeting most of the baristas prior to doing a shoot with them, but the business had just brought a few girls on and I hadn't covered any events for the business where I had the opportunity to meet the new girls prior to my first shoot with them. Hence this occasion for Sam, her arrival to my studio being our first formal introduction, so you never know how it's going to go. I like to always meet the girls ahead of time so that they get to know me, to see that I'm down-to-earth, I like to joke around, and I'm not a "creepy guy with a camera" (the photo industry has become so littered with guys who buy cameras just to have an excuse to photograph women in skimpy clothing, that they have an abbreviation for them, CGWC - creepy guy with camera. They are easy to pick out cause their photos are crap, go figure). I am a photo professional, unlike a lot of those jokers out there, and the girls see that upon our first conversation, and it puts them at ease. Most of the girls have never done any professional shoots before, so it can compound the photo anxiety, meeting a person for the first time, while also having to be photographed in... revealing apparel.

10 Apr

Posted at 10:45h in Tips & Techniques, Video
dustSpotVideoImage It's a problem we all eventually have no matter how careful you try and be with your equipment. I'm talking about those annoying dust spots that show up in your DSLR photos. They can be a slight issue or a real problem depending on how bad the situation is. I've seen some very very terribly dirty sensors, like a shovel of dirt was tossed into camera. It's really amazing at how poor some people are in their efforts in camera care and/or cleaning. A little effort goes a long way, and I'll be showing you in the video below. The process of committing to physically touching your sensor to clean it is not a task that should be taken lightly, as you can really damage the sensor, but if you execute with care and use the right tools, it will turn out just fine. We'll be covering how dust gets there, how to look for it, and how to clean it. This is the first of what I hope to be many little video tips I put together. It's nothing fancy, and I really tried to keep it simple. There are too many people trying to sound smart and/or experience when giving advice, using terms or situations that go right over newer photographer's heads. The whole point of this video is education, so I try to make it as easy to follow as possible, and speak English in relative terms. When I think I cover material that is not exactly general knowledge, I step you through it or give you some kind of visual. I was also extremely surprised to see how much misinformation there is floating around out there, especially from folks trying to tell you how to do it, and doing it wrong. Rest assured, the methods I discuss in this video are repeated with other legit professionals that actually know what they are doing.

07 Apr

Posted at 11:06h in Just for Fun
matty_3.25.11_ 005 Sometimes it's the little things in life that deserves some attention. Seriously, like... the literal little things. :) It would be nice to always take moments everyday to stop and smell the roses, but rarely do we. We are all guilty of our priorities not being exactly in the order they should, wrapped up in the business of the day, the getting to and from work, the addictive twitch we start forming if we haven't gotten our facebook fix in the last 15 minutes, the overall obsession to "maximize" our every day. It's less and less I think we all observe the world around us, the one that surrounds us from all angles, yet our noses always pointed into some form of a glowing screen, regardless it's size, has become our world. "Why go walk around in the local woods and check things out when I can just google it!?" People from the PNW bitchin' cause it rains so much... really, as if you aren't going to be consumed by your electronics regardless of the precipitation conditions. You're not foolin' anybody, so shut your yapper and get back to tweetin' your pals about what you just had for lunch. I kid, but seriously... I think we call could use a little less networking and a little more fresh air.

06 Apr

Posted at 10:54h in Info/News
giftbox As a thank you to all my future clients (who ever you may be) who schedule your photo shoot with me any time in the month of April will get 5 free prints of the size of your choosing, all the way up to 18x12. Your shoot does not need to be in April, you just need to schedule it during April to get this complimentary offer. And if you live within a 15 minute drive of either my Tacoma or Bellingham photo studios, I will hand deliver the photos, along with your photo disc myself so that I can shake your hand one more time and tell you thank you for choosing Matty Photography. For those who live outside of those ranges, your disc and photos will be carefully packaged and mailed. My client's satisfaction with their photography experience is so important to me. I want to make sure you get to see your beautiful photos in large print form so that you can see the amazing quality and care that I invested into creating your photos. My photo shoots are fun, the clients always have a good time. It's not a time where you are stuffed into a room with a stranger who doesn't want to make a connection with you. My shoots are spontaneous, anything goes and unique pictures are made. I want to know what you want, so we make pictures that are a culmination of both of our ideas. All of these factors shine through to the final print, which you will now get, free of charge! I can't wait to get to know you guys and take your photograph!

04 Apr

Posted at 18:36h in Gear
VScameras More specifically, what makes a DSLR superior to a point and shoot? That's a loaded question, but lets look at the major factors to consider buying a DSLR if you are serious about photography. A DSLR camera is requirement if you are looking at attending a Matty Photography workshop, and you'll see why next. Control, Quality, and Performance are the three of the many factors we are going to look at today. There are ALL KINDS of bells and whistles on today's cameras, but we are going to specifically concern ourselves with the ones that really truly matter when it comes to making a photograph. Control is pretty basic really, but hard to appreciate/understand if you do not know how cameras capture light in order to make a photograph. In short, the camera has a couple parts that vary their size and speed in order to capture the proper amount of light. Most of your point and shoot cameras to not allow you to control this. In turn, you lose control of your image taking. I mean... how can you control your camera and take the photo you want if you can't control your camera's functions in which determine all this? These mysterious functions that I speak of are aperture, shutter speed, and ISO, all which contribute to making the image. If you do not fully know what these are or how to control them, you are not taking the photograph, your camera is, you are just clicking the button. Now don't you feel special? ;) Learning these functions and how to control them are covered in-depth and practiced in the beginners workshop, so don't sweat not knowing this information, just know that it's important stuff. A lot of students will walk into the beginners class with a camera that they do not know how to use, but by the end of the class, they are all well-skilled in how to take the photos they want with a DSLR and do it great!

02 Apr

Posted at 01:13h in Shoots
matty_3.18.11_ 093 It's usually one of the first things out if my mouth after I've taken the time to carefully configure all my lights and I'm pulling my camera up to my face to start a portrait session, "just be you." Sure, it's a simple request, but I think it's one that passes right over the head of most people. What does it mean telling someone to "be yourself" in a world where most people are trying to be, act, talk, and dress like all the Kens and Barbies gracing every page of every magazine? In other words, they wake up and go to sleep trying to be everything but themselves, so what's the point of asking them to be who they are? Are you asking them to act in truth or a lie at that point?! I'm speaking in gross generalities, but I think you understand what I'm getting to.