Holy Hot Chicks Batman!!!

With the end of Summer fast approaching, we here at Alter Ego Studio and The Viewfinders realized we had not paid proper homage to our Bikini clad finer gender.  Las Vegas, of late, has enjoyed a resurgence of Summer Pool goers.  Ladies and gentleman from across the nation flock to the cathedrals of decadence to soak in the rays and bask in the glow of the of the LasVegas pools.

The V Crew here at Alter Ego Studio has the pleasure, throughout the season, to have unfettered access to the pool areas for a variety of shoots.  We know how lucky we are to see the sights and sounds that we do.  That is why we wanted to reserve just a small space on our Blog to say thank you to the beautiful ladies and celebrity skin that graces the front of our lenses.

 

So…from Kim Kardashian to our tan and tone ladies visiting from across the globe…We Salute you!!!

 

Stellar Fashion Week & Alter Egos

I know… a shameless plug for our studio.  but, The Viewfinders having just returned from New York and having worked there during the prep week for Fashion Week, we had to give a nod to one of the most exciting and visually stimulating events of the our industries year.

The Viewfinders and Fashion Week

The models wafted across the runway this year with a marked confidence placed there seemingly by the designers themselves.  With a slightly strengthening economy, the veil of decadence was indeed again in place.  The heavy-weights of the industry were again awash with ideas and colors were again welcomed into their idea sets.  The interesting dichotomy however, was the appearance of the runway models themselves.  It was noticed that the presentation of the new fashions was marked often by the covering of the models with bold and transforming make up…often illuminating on them what could be their Alter Ego.

Thank you to the designers, models, MUA’s, stylists and all who produce fashion week.  The colors, the tones, the geometry and brashness of the event make artists like The Viewfinders realize we are definitely not alone.

The Exposure Triangle

Bryan Peterson has written a book titled Understanding Exposure which is a highly recommended read if you’re wanting to venture out of the Auto mode on your digital camera and experiment with it’s manual settings.

In it Bryan illustrates the three main elements that need to be considered when playing around with exposure by calling them ‘the exposure triangle’.

 

Each of the three aspects of the triangle relate to light and how it enters and interacts with the camera.

The three elements are:

1. ISO – the measure of a digital camera sensor’s sensitivity to light
2. Aperture – the size of the opening in the lens when a picture is taken
3. Shutter Speed – the amount of time that the shutter is open

It is at the intersection of these three elements that an image’s exposure is worked out.

Most importantly – a change in one of the elements will impact the others. This means that you can never really isolate just one of the elements alone but always need to have the others in the back of your mind.

Many people describe the relationship between ISO, Aperture and Shutter Speed using different metaphors to help us get our heads around it. Let me share three. A quick word of warning first though – like most metaphors – these are far from perfect and are just for illustrative purposes:

 

Photo by Liisa

The Window

Imagine your camera is like a window with shutters that open and close.

Aperture is the size of the window. If it’s bigger more light gets through and the room is brighter.

Shutter Speed is the amount of time that the shutters of the window are open. The longer you leave them open the more that comes in.

Now imagine that you’re inside the room and are wearing sunglasses (hopefully this isn’t too much of a stretch). Your eyes become desensitized to the light that comes in (it’s like a low ISO).

There are a number of ways of increasing the amount of light in the room (or at least how much it seems that there is. You could increase the time that the shutters are open (decrease shutter speed), you could increase the size of the window (increase aperture) or you could take off your sunglasses (make the ISO larger).

Read more: http://digital-photography-school.com/

Alter Ego Studio – Salutes (Edgy and Outspoken)

http://youtu.be/MqfwI1TvCBE

We at Alter Ego Studio always support the new, the outspoken and those on the edge.  Too often we in the artist community become complacent with our art and the enjoyment of others creativity.  Artists also forget to give the nod to those who put themselves in the limelight to be judged by the thousands and possibly millions who will see their work within the social networking arenas. 

All of us at Alter Ego love to see envelopes pushed and boundries crossed, if even by only inches.  As you can see from the video above of the Fashion Show presented by www.metacafe.com.  Clothing boundries have been crossed and, if you will pardon the pun, removed.  It shows how fashion truly centers on the design and even with a minimalist design the fashion still shines through.

We also applaud artists like Sophia Vergara.  When are artists goes against the mainstream and places herself squarely on the opposite side of what is accepted in Hollywood they get our biggest salute.  Not only is Sophia a truly stunning woman, superb comedic actress but also one who wears her badge of individuality with pride.

Sophia, fashionsitas and artists alike…who all stand tall in their worlds…We salute you!!