Photographs

Finite Automata – EPK 2015.

I was approached by Dom and Scott from the Atlanta based band, Finite Automata to shoot some new photos for their new electronic press kit/tour photos. 

I loved the concept they laid before me, and wanted to make sure I was able to capture everything the way they wanted. Before we even finished shooting, and looking only at photos from the back of the camera, I got the thumbs up (and a hug) from both of these guys. 

If you are a fan of Dark Electro Industrial music, please make sure to check out their page and give it a listen. 

It was seriously a hard choice on narrowing down which images to feature on this site, there were so many great ones to post. This was also my first chance trying out a new, smaller, camera rig than I previously have used. These were shot on a Sony a6000, and I am still trying to wrap my head around how a crop frame camera that small is able to crank out files so large. I'll be doing some more playing around with the Sony mirrorless line in the upcoming months.

Week 1 – The Great Dust Bowl – Ilford Delta 100

HAPPY NEW YEAR! Welcome to the first official roll from the year of film project!

Ever want to know the fastest way to see how clean your apartment isn't? I would be willing to say it involves developing a roll of film after a day at work, and with no prior preparation. Then throw in a white fluffy cat who has more fur than I know what to do with (just for good measure). 

I am going to need to figure out a cleaner option for future development cycles. Or basically what I mean is that I have a week to figure this all out. I think I'll need to invest in a lot of canned air. Although Photoshop's automatic dust removal tool is pretty good at doing about 80% of the work in exchange for a little sharpness. I'm going to try and retouch some of these for the sake of the project, hell I may even try to re-scan them. But a fair warning these started out very dusty and covered in a bunch of junk.

Also this roll is also kinda a cheat roll. Since my chemicals haven't been delivered yet I needed a quick way to get something together. I also didn't want to have a roll of unprocessed C41 film just lying around for another week, and its far too early to break out the instant film yet. 

"I'm a fluffy cat, my fur gets on everything...especially negatives". I'm leaving this one specifically to shame both the cat and myself. 

(Not my cat)

Just a heads up, the next two images are NSFW.

I kinda liked this one with the dust.

Development Notes:

Caffenol Developer:
250ml Distilled Water
2.5 tsp Instant Coffee
2 tsp Vitamin C
2 tsp Washing Soda

18 Minute Developing Time @ 70 Degrees F

Standard Fixer 3:1 Dilution 

Negatives were a touch underdeveloped. But my scanner was able to get most of them scanned no problems. I would probably increase my developing time to 20 minutes to insure that everything was solid on the negative. 

 

Gallery below. Tumblr Viewers be sure to check out UNEXPhotography.com/52rolls

Week -1 – First 2 Test Rolls – Fuji Superia X-TRA 400

Hello everyone, so for this week I cheated a little bit. I didn't process these myself because the chemicals haven't been delivered yet. However I was able to pull a few of my favorite images from the last couple of days. 

It occurred to me as I was leaving my family's place and hit home after I got the scans back from the lab but South Georgia just looks very de-saturated this time of year. I did not change any of that in post. 

That also brings up a good point, I will be doing minor edits to the final files that you see. Nothing too wild, but just minor corrections here and there.

I will also include a gallery at the end of each post of the "raw" files for anyone that wants to see both how the negatives look out of camera, as well for anyone that wants to see any outtakes or files that didn't make the cut.

Tumblr users may need to visit the direct blog at UNEXPhotography/52rolls to see the gallery. 

2014: a year in review

Well its about that time again. In 4 more days it'll be 2015 and another year will begin. As always its a good time to look back over the last 365 days and reflect on what this last year has brought. 

All things considered I really didn't get a lot accomplished over the last year. I shot less than in most years previous. But I can say there were more than a few extenuating circumstances. All of that aside here are my top 5 images from the last year. 

 

Shortly after starting my new job I was invited to photograph one of the owners at a show he was performing at. This image was taken as part of a "contest" with him, and even though it didn't win overall he said it was his favorite of the bunch.

It wasn't until 4 months later that I picked up my camera, but when I did it was one of my regular models Nicolette that was the subject. I say it every year but I love shooting with this woman. She always has great ideas and is game for any position that I choose to put her in. 

As a quick aside I should mention that this is actually version 2 of this image. I saw that because until this last year I would have told you that I despised Photoshop. I hated everything about it. But since I have been using it every day for work purposes, I can say that it is a very useful tool that I am eager to learn more about.

My second time working with Hada Pixie came next. Another set for Zivity.com. Pixie is another great model that always comes up with interesting options to work with. This set was ranked "noteworthy" by Zivity staff members, and is another example of an image that I re-worked post photoshop hatred. 

Jason AKA Davinci Black, was a previous co-worker of mine a few years back. He wanted some new photos for an album he was working on. And I was very happy to hear from him and to get the chance to help him out. Keep an ear out for what is coming from this guy. 

Finally one of the many photos of The Imperial Opa that I took at their burlesque show earlier this year. I loved shooting all of the various acts, but I thought this photo of the whole troupe summed up things much better. 

So that's it. That was 2014. Onward to new projects and new photos. If you haven't read recently I have started my 2015 project blog over at UNEXPhotography.com/52rolls where I will be shooting a roll of film a week for the next year. What would you like to see? Let me know below!

Until next time, thanks as always for taking some time to see what I have been up to.

-B

Top 5 Images of 2012

Hello Friends and Followers!

I hope everyone's year has been wonderful. Also I hope to have this post finished before too far into 2013 (but that's a whole different story).

2012 has been a great year for us here at UNDEREXPOSED, a large part of which is due to all of you. And in looking at my body of work for the year, I have done more work in 2012 than I have in any of the years previous. Multiple accolades at Zivity.com, my first legitimate publication, and the winning of the Kink Patrol art show. Lets not forget the website that you are currently reading as well. It's been a long road, but with your help 2013 will be an even better year.

Without further ado, let's get to today's blog post. I was inspired by a thread over at the Something Awful Forums (goon) to post my favorite shots I have taken from 2012. In no particular order...here they are:

Necrosis Synthesis:

Honestly speaking when this gentleman contacted me I didn't know what to think. He was referred to me by some designers that I had worked for in 2011.  Even though I wasn't really in the market to take on new clients at the time, I took the chance to shoot him. This was from our second shoot together and even now "That picture of the 'hand guy'" has become one of my most well known images.

Shadow:

I first met Shadow in early 2011 and almost immediately we stuck off on a path that would become a very stable business relationship. Shadow approached me for a feature in Glam Rock Magazine for her company Soiled Dove Designs, and naturally I jumped at the chance. This was one of the images that came from that shoot, and subsequently was published. One thing that the picture doesn't show is how tall she really is. Combined with her tendency to wear high heels, it makes for an ever fun time for someone who is shorter like me.

Bobby:

Bobby AKA DJ Ghost and I have become close friends during my tenure in Atlanta. 2012 has brought a lot of work my way with this great guy. Shooting his appearances at Atmosphere X in early January, being the go-to guy at his Monthly Fallout Events, and even being the "Secret Agent Photographer" for his engagement are all things that stick out in my mind when looking at what I have accomplished in 2012. This image in particular was actually meant for Shadow or one of her many friends, but when she was not available I called Bobby in for the job. He came running after a long day at his day job and was eager to work with me...until he knew he would be blindfolded. Luckily we got past that pretty quickly, and ended up with an image we both would be proud of. 

The Next Two Images Are Not Safe For Work:

Nicolette Emanuelle:

I met Nicolette originally at one of Bobby's Fallout events. I was immediately enamored with her large back tattoo (not that you can see it in this image). Many months later I was made aware of the Kink Patrol photo and art competition. When it came time to create a new image to submit, I knew Nicolette would be perfect for the part. Taking what I had learned from shooting with Bobby for the image above, we came up with an image that we both were very happy with and that ended up winning me the competition by popular vote.  

Scarlett Quinn:

Miss Quinn was the first friend I ever made in Atlanta (under her given name of course). She came to me mid way through 2012 and asked me to do a series of photographs of her for Zivity.com. I have worked with her several times (making it very hard to select just one image...see below), and if things continue the way they are going now, expect many more great things from this girl.

Honorable Mentions:

Adrienne and Brian:

Generally speaking I don't like working with my own family as a photographer. Honestly what little time I get with my family is usually used for resting or catching up. However when my cousin came to me and asked for me to capture some images of her and her at the time soon to be husband. I took the job like any other. This image came from that series of photos. We took a nice long walk in downtown Valdosta. We settled on a few locations including an old burned out theater, and the picture below of the overgrown tobacco warehouse. Something about this image just stick with me, and even though I don't consider it one of the "5 best" I felt at least it deserved a re-posting.

Scarlett Quinn 2:

This image came completely by accident. When Scarlett and I started shooting for Zivity, we wanted to have a basic set in front of a white backdrop. After shooting and reviewing the images we took, we both just weren't happy with what came from it. It didn't have that extra bit of fire that makes a good image great. While taking a break and standing in her kitchen for a drink I saw just how beautiful and very "girl next door" she looked. After snapping a few frames it became clear to the both of us that this was going to take us both places.

What were your favorites from this last year? Let us know in the comments below, or on our Facebook page. Who knows...there may be something special in it for you.

Here's to a brand new year
-B

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