A Blast From the Past

Dwayne of The Woodshedders, by Reed A. George

 

It's been a while since Dwayne had his hair short like this - 2009 as far as I know.

 

Just going through some old pictures, getting in the mood for my favorite music festival - Watermelon Park Fest.

 

I am pretty sure I shot this with a Pentax Spotmatic and Vivitar 200mm f3.5 lens. I like the look.

 

DMC-365.blogspot.com

 

My Favorite Concert Shot From Last Weekend

I got out to see one of my favorite bands ever, The Woodshedders, last weekend. Here's my favorite shot from the show.

Dwayne Brooke of the Woodshedders, by Reed A. George

Nikon Df, Nikkor 180mm f2.8 Lens

iso 250, f2.8, 1/250 sec.

 

I took this from backstage. I spot metered Dwayne's face, letting everything else go very dark. Dwayne's a very thoughtful, creative guy, and I think this picture represents him well.

 

I will likely share more from this show, and my pics are going to be featured on the concert blog Cosmic Vibes Live in the coming days.

 

DMC-365.blogspot.com

Dwayne Brooke of The Woodshedders

I had the pleasure of attending just a couple of hours of the Loudoun Bluegrass Festival last Saturday. The main event that I made it to was Dwayne Brooke's "Gypsy Jazz Jam." Dwayne is a friend of mine, a creative force, and guitarist/vocalist/songwriter for The Woodshedders.

 

(Click Here) to get to know The Woodshedders.

 

Well, it was a slightly rainy, overcast day, perfect for portraiture. Looking around outside the barns of the Loudoun Fairgrounds where the festival was held, I saw this incredible tree with a carpet of fallen blossoms at its base. As soon as Dwayne was done with the jam, I asked if he'd let me shoot a few photos of him there. Here's an example:

 

Dwayne Brooke, by Reed A. George

Leica M9, Leica Summilux 35mm f1.4 v. 3 Lens

iso 400, f2.4, 1/250 sec.

 

Normally, I would shoot a longer lens for a portrait. In this case, I wanted a lot of environment in the shot, specifically the tree and fallen blossoms. So, I chose the Summilux 35mm. I attempted to reflect some light into Dwayne's area with some reflective panels designed for keeping your car cool (windshield shades). There just wasn't much to reflect, and I didn't have an assistant to hold them. I would have used a little bit of flash for that purpose, but don't you know my Nikon SB-30 flash battery died during the jam session?

 

(Click Here) to see the full set of several shots I made.

 

Overall, I'm pretty pleased with these. As usual, there are things I'd do to improve them next time. That's why photography continues to be fun and challenging for me.

 

DMC-365.blogspot.com

 

A Shot That I Happen To Like - Portrait Without Catch-Lighted Eyes

 

Dwayne Brooke, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Olympus 75mm f1.8 Lens

iso 3200, f1.8, 1/60 sec

 
I shot an amazing musical performance of the "Greg Ruby Quartet" in Strasburg, Virginia, on October 13. This group of musicians (Greg Ruby, Dwayne Brooke, Nate Leath, Donovan Stokes, and occasional accompanist Jared Pool) is just first rate. I'll be posting a full report sometime soon.
 
But that's not the point. The point is the image above. Shot from quite close up with the Olympus 75mm f1.8 lens, which is an amazingly good lens, this is anything but your conventional shot of a performer. Tightly cropped, with Dwayne's face anchoring one corner, the neck of his guitar and the shadow underneath providing a major dark space and shape, you can even really see Dwayne's eyes. Even so, this picture feels like Dwayne to me. Sublimely accomplished at the guitar, creative as can be.
 
In addition to cropping this tightly (maybe it could even use a little more cropping in the upper right corner?) and converting to black and white, I added some grain effect, which makes the noise of the small Lumix sensor at iso3200 look more like film.
 
I like where my photography is taking me, style-wise.
 
DMC-365.blogspot.com