Issac + Grace Linville Falls Engagement Session
ClaCC
Hey all and welcome to this entry. I would start by admitting that this session was very special for me. I have been photographing Grace for years now so it feels very natural that I had the honor to capture another timeless moment for Grace and her family. I have been lucky to not only photograph her but to meet her family, and her mom specifically. Julz is amazing and I feel very connected to her though our sessions as well, so when she text me a few months ago asking if I would be interested / available to photograph a surprise proposal, I couldn’t say no! ( NOT THAT I WOULD ANYWAY) Isaac, who is now Grace’s fiance had asked Julz to help plan the entire event, and what an event it was. The weather, cars breaking down, and them finding me without letting her know what was going on were all speed bumps we had to navigate on the day but we are resilient. The day was perfect and she said yes and that leads us here. Well it led us to Linville, North Carolina and to chasing waterfalls. Linville Falls is stunning and the weather was fantastic. All of the images in this post of from time together capturing their official engagement photos as we count the days, and Grace knows to the day, until we capture another special moment for these two. The wedding is coming fast!
I know, I know. Thats ALOT of photos for one post right but how do I choose? How would I narrow these down further. Yes further, because I have more still. It was a magical afternoon, recording moments between these two, and watching as they silently connect over and over again. I love adventures like these and I am ready for the next. Who has next??? Email me and lets plan your adventure together.
J
Mitakon 65mm f1.4 for the Fujifilm GFX system
#Squad
I think I have to start by stating a few things. First thing first, I didn’t pick up the GFX or this lens to be quick. That’s not how I shoot nor do I plan to use this camera that way. Secondly, I love to shoot film so the manual focus and “speed” or lack there of is a non issue for me. I am very aware that FujiFilm makes incredible lenses to pair with all of their bodies, and yes I am very interested in the GF 110 f2 but when I picked this camera up I started shooting it right away with adapted lenses. My favorite of which is my Mamiya 80mm 1.9 for my 645 system. I also have adapters for my Minolta 58mm 1.2, my Nikon 50 1.8, and a Leica M adapter. I did have the GF 50mm 3.5 and was very impressed by the quality but found myself always reaching for the any of the manual focus options available to me. So being who I am, and knowing how autofocus doesn’t make me a better photographer, nor does it inspire me to shoot, I went looking for a native mount, fast prime for the GFX system. That’s when I found the Mitakon 65mm 1.4 which in full frame terms, is equivalent to 50mm at f1.1! It’s shallow.
I immediately put the combination to work, and all the images below where shot with the GFX paired with the Mitakon lens only.
My brother - Brandon Watkins- Owner Operator of Freedom Reigns Barber Company
Things I really like-
The color the lens produces
Fast wide open aperture
Native mount
Manual focus
It’s sharp when you nail focus
Things I don’t love-
She’s thick and heavy ( even paired with the wonderful grip of the GFX 50s )
I don’t always nail focus ( to be expected )
Focus throw is pretty long
Ok now that we are past that, lets talk about who this lens could be for. Obviously Fuji makes similar focal lengths in there native glass and those have Autofocus but those also cost about twice as much as the Mitakon. So if you have the GFX in any variation and love to shoot at 50mm and like myself love to shoot wide open with lenses that have character then you should really consider this option. It does flare in direct sunlight, it is heavy, and you will be forced to slow down and really SEE your shot. I don’t find those to be shortcomings personally but its worth noting. This lens creates wonderful portraits, but I also love using it for landscapes and detail shots. The files from the GFX are wonderful. Unless you have edited an image yourself, it is impossible to show how great the files are.
I think we will keep it short and say:
If you love shooting film, love a shallow DOF, like the 50mm focal length, and overlook the weight then its a no brainer to me.
If you want clinically sharp images, with auto focus and plastic lite build then I appreciate you reading this just as much but you are not going to love this lens like I do.
Thank you for taking time to read this and if you are would like more information or see me rambling about it more, please check me out on YouTube HERE
Keep shooting and make something for yourself today.
J
Imagination Mountain and being outnumbered
It is currently Tuesday and we are back from another weekend in nature. This was back to back weekends of camping with friends. The weekend before last was spent in Hot Springs, NC with Wes and his family, and this past weekend was spent in Cosby, TN at Imagination Mountain with the Terry's. We stumbled upon this campground a few years ago and Natasha and I loaded up our 2 boys at the time for the weekend. It rained most of the time then but we still had a great time. Since then our family dynamic has changed for lack of a better word. We are foster parents if you didn't know and currently are only days away from adopting Austin who is 17 and currently annoying me by playing Fortnight. Garbage game in my opinion LOL. We also have a 10-year-old girl and I know nadda about raising a girl.
But this isn't about that. This is about spending every second of the weekend with friends and cramming as many activities as physically possible into 3 days. We have known Brittney forever, and Derek and their boys are more like family than friends. I could probably write an entire blog about knowing Brittany but I'll save that for another time maybe. Between our groups, we were 4 adults vs 6 kids plus we ran into one of Atlas' best pals from school, Aiden. He was allowed to hang out with us most of the day as well. So the kids played in the creek, made friends with neighbors, terrorized the playgrounds, heated up the b-ball court, played putt putt, watched a movie, played chess, swam, had ice cream, and even visited the arcade. I'm still tired. So tired in fact that I will stop writing and do what I do. Tell our story via imagery. Hope you enjoy and as always feel free to comment below your thoughts. All images below shot with my Fuji Xpro 2, my xf16mm, xf 90mm, and vintage Minolta lenses.
As always, I also took the film cameras but those will be shared another time. :)
First experience shooting 35 mm and I'M SOLD!
Today as I was working and hanging with the kids, my inbox alerted me that one of my best friends, Wes had written a new blog post. This is cool for several reasons. To see what I mean you will simply have to go check it out for yourself, HERE. He is much better at writing regularly and at writing in general. It reminded me, I haven't written all week. While I love sharing my work with you, I also love expressing my thought's and such just as much. I have said it in the past, but for me, writing is also a release and therapeutic in nature. I have been rambling about my new fascination with shooting film, and this week when I received my scans from The DarkRoom Lab that took on a whole new meaning for me. I was so damn excited to see if my cameras were actually working, but to see those images that I cant flip through on the back of my camera. They were all brand new to me once more, and man that is a lot of fun. They are also tangible, as my negatives are being mailed back to me now. They also required little, if any work in post-processing after getting them. Are they perfect? Only in the way they make me feel, and how they let me relive those small moments in our life together. Because isn't that what we as photographers are supposed to be doing? We provide this for everyone else, so it was refreshing to be on the receiving end of an online gallery. Even though I took every shot, it was still amazing to get. I felt like I had finally found a meaning and purpose. So I am going to run with it. I'm going to shoot lots more film. I am also offering prints of past work and specific prints of my film work. It needs to be held, admired and displayed. Ok so in keeping this short, all images below were shot on 35mm film, with my Minolta Dynax 5 ( thank you Robin Collins ) and processed at The DarkRoom. The black and white is either Kodak tri-x 400 or Ilford HP5, and the color shots are Fujifilm Superia 400. If you are interested in prints, there is a new tab located on the top of my home page.
As always, I am grateful you stopped by. I always appreciate comments and suggestions. So until the next one, #filmsnotdead
Hungry Mother State Park and Love!
I have had the pleasure of speaking to Sarah for months, planning her wedding to Leonard and getting to know them along the way. I was actually blessed to be referred to them by my friend Jeremy, who was unavailable on the big day. They live over an hour away from me and we had never met, that is until Sunday before last! We tried several times to plan the engagement session, and with the crazy weather we have had here in the South, it was harder than it should have been to put into works. We finally found a day that worked for us both and in the books, it went. I started the day at Church, followed by a meeting also at the church by our media director to plan some volunteer opportunities. My family went their separate ways, so I headed on toward Virginia, en route to my session. I had a little time on my hands, so I swung by one of my favorite places and took a few photos for myself. Those can be seen here.
After a short relaxing walk in the woods, off to Chilhowie, I went. This is exciting for several reasons for me. I was meeting them both for the first time, and hoping to visit Hungry Mother State Park for the first time as well. All the first's! I was pleased to drive up to Sarah's parent's house and there were jeep's everywhere. My kind of people. Leonard even had an axe mounted on his roof rack, and I took this as a good sign. A good sign it was as we talked music and the park and they really are like minded people and enjoyed being outdoors as much as I do. At one point during the shoot, Leonard's son ran his hand across the bridge and ended up with a nasty splinter. Leonard was quick to pull out his trusty pocket knife and free the debris caught in his son's hand. This may seem like a silly detail to include but, if you know me at all you know I have a passion for knives myself and have done this same thing for my own children ( and clumsy self ) multiple times, so the moment resonated with me on a deep level.
We easily got lost in our journey and our mission to capture the love between them while exploring the beautiful park that it is. We overlooked the lake, waited patiently for the wind to work with us and not against us, and then ducked in behind a wall of kayaks and canoes. I truly enjoyed meeting and working with them both and look forward to capturing their wedding in a few short weeks.
CLICK THE IMAGE TO SEE MORE
She said YES!
Its not often than I get the privilege to capture a proposal, but I am beyond grateful that I was able to capture a new one this past weekend! Funny story actually--as Brittany's mother had a different photographer hired to capture this special day, but due to the flu she was left looking for someone to procure the milestone. I was referred to her by a past client/friend and was happy to be available so the planning ensued. We discussed the location, and the plan, but even feeling prepared, I found myself nervous. I rarely get nervous but I always feel out of place, almost stalking my clients as they do not know me ( yet ) and I don't know them either.Their families came together to create a wall to hide Jacob as he was prepared with his own special way to ask for her hand. I prefer to let the images tell the rest of the story for me as its the best way I know how. So congratulations to Jacob and Brittany, and here is how the story goes!
She said YES!! I told you earlier lol
The emotion is so genuine here.
"Let The Adventure Begin",,,,,,,
Surrounded by Family is the perfect end to a beautiful day in downtown Kingsport, Tennessee,
Buffalo Mountain and across the Blue Ridge Parkway
Hiking and Driving. Buffalo Mountain to The Blue Ridge Parkway with the Fujifilm Xpro2 in hand!
Some long exposure with the Fuji Xpro 2 and 16mm lens!
I love everything outdoors. I also love where I live, so I thought I would take some time and write about one of my favorite local hikes. By local this time, I mean in the city where I live. So if you are in or coming to Johnson City, TN anytime and want to experience some of our areas views, and hikes then Buffalo Mountain is a great place to start. Its located near ETSU and close to Interstate 26 so very accessible. The signage is pretty good once you get to the trail heads but GPS may be used to ease the navigation.
I plan to do some short blogs highlighting my community and its outdoor lifestyle over the summer so if your reading this and have a certain area in mind that you would like to know more about, comment below and I will add it to the list!
Ive taken photos of this tree more than any other tree and it still catches my attention on the drive in. ( Obviously )
I have been to and waked Buffalo a few times. Some days with my family, some days with just the kids, some days just myself, and every time I leave satisfied! This time in particular though things were different. I went walking to clear my head, to pray and have a conversation and found everything I needed. I also took a path I had never seen before and do not recommend said path. Stay on the marked paths for your safety and that of nature as well please.
I wont ramble any further but will leave you with photos from my hike, followed by a few I grabbed on our drive in North Carolina, over the Blue Ridge Parkway as well. Thanks for reading! Get Outside!
