Church Hill Photography

IP Super Hero

2009-03-10T14:47:00.005-04:00

This is Katie Horvath, an attorney who specializes in intellectual property and patent law. The field of law we image creators really dig. I've photographed her before, for the XDL website.

Whenever I see Katie, I always ask her about her work protecting clients' intellectual property. I can't help it, other areas of law just don't mean as much to me. Occupational hazard, I guess.

Now, about the picture. We made her portrait in downtown Richmond a couple weeks ago. Since Katie is based in Michigan, I was a little concerned about how her wardrobe would travel in a carry-on bag. Thank goodness she favored a soft-fabric suit. If she'd had one of those man-tailored structured suits, we would have spent 30 minutes steaming out the wrinkles.

We were at the offices of Durrette Bradshaw, where I've shot in nearly every office, conference room and the law library at least twice. It was time to do something new (for my own sanity and out of respect for our subject).

After cruzin the D-B offices for someplace new, we went down to the lobby and looked around. There it was, the arch, the flag, the office buildings. The only drawbacks were all the glass windows to reflect my lights back at the camera. I just kept moving light stands around till I could stop seeing them in the windows behind her. Winifred got Katie ready for the camera upstairs in the D-B offices while I worked out the lighting.

We were going for a "Federal Court House" look with this composition. Getting access to a Federal Court House to shoot a portrait is unrealistic these days. It's about as easy as getting access to the Federal Reserve Bank--imagine airport clearance only ten-times more invasive. The other goal we achieved was giving Katie a "could be any big city" shot. Since she travels a lot for her work, we didn't want to place her with any identifiable landmarks or natural scenery that would confine her to a specific region.

I love the way this turned out.

The Messy Desk Rules

2009-02-24T09:13:00.004-05:00

For years, whenever we made environmental portraits, we'd buzz around and clean up/rearrange the office, reception area or conference room where we were shooting. The idea was to create a calm vista where the subject of the portrait (typically a human) would dominate the field of view. The environment was supposed to be evocative, but not overpowering or too distracting.

Well, that approach worked sometimes, and other times, we'd end up taking all the personality out of the subjects' environment. Nearly "de-saturating" the environment, if you will.

Last week, we were invited back to Durrette Bradshaw to update portraits for a few of their attorneys.

This is Chris Hill, in his office...at his desk. Looks like the real thing, and it certainly is. Chris has developed a specialty construction law. He blogs about it at http://constructionlawva.com

There certainly is a lot of stuff in the image frame, but hopefully, through thoughtful composition (using the rule of thirds, and the natural triangle of the human head-torso,) we've made it easy for the viewer to focus on the person first, and then take a cue (or two) from the environment surrounding him. From a functional standpoint, we were able to set up the lights (there were 2 in the room--a smallish office about 8x12) and allow Chris to continue working at his desk.

One of the bonuses of Chris's office were the downtown buildings, including one under construction, just outside his window. This made it even easier for us (Winifred and I) to leave him at his desk. Our client, Amy Kimon Smith-Pike, agreed that the busy exterior environment balanced the cluttered interior environment, while adding yet another visual cue about Chris's professional expertise.

All images and text copyright 2009, Elaine Odell, Church Hill Photography, LLC.

Standford Financial Group -- who'd a thunk?

2009-02-22T10:51:00.013-05:00

Its a weird feeling, and that's probably putting it mildly for the folks who work in the Richmond, Virginia, office of the Stanford Financial Group.

Late last year, we were hired to make portraits of the folks who had just opened the local office of this international company. Just yesterday, I heard the story on NPR about their founder Allen Standford: how he was served papers by the FBI (up the road in Fredericksburg) and is now under investigation for securities fraud.

This morning when went to the Stanford Group website, I was greeted with a receivership page. Wow.

Now, I can't stop thinking about those folks I met in the Richmond office last December. Can you imagine being a financial adviser, who's reputation and integrity is everything, having to field calls from your anxious clients who have just learned the company who they've invested with is in receivership?

What must if feel like to wonder whether your boss, the founder of your company, your "fearless leader" who inspires you and your coworkers to work hard and believe in your products/services, may have duped you? And duped your hard-earned clients? Pretty depressing.

Of course, if you or I were in this position, we'd probably try to calm our clients, and remind them it's only an investigation, and no criminal charges have been filed, and everything will be ok when the dust settles. Hoping that this is just all a big mistake.

Now this may sound odd, but when I make someone's portrait, I chat them up...ask em questions about their lives and get to know them. There have been times when I got a weird vibe from someone and would think "no way could I ever do business with this person".

But that didn't happen in the Richmond office of the Stanford Financial Group. My goodness radar was on, and these folks all achieved the "good guy" rating.

One of the folks we met is Bobby Long. He's well known in Richmond, and has been in the financial services industry for over 35 years. He's active in the community and volunteers for several Richmond area non-profits.

Ironically, the Stanford Financial Group offices in Richmond occupy old Wachovia office space in the Riverfront Plaza (West Tower). One of the folks we met, Chris Long, had worked for Wachovia. I'm pretty sure he was happy to continue his career in financial services here in Richmond. Joining the Standford Group must have seemed like a great opportunity back in 2008.

And next is Dave Innes. Smart, trustworthy, a veteran of USB-Paine Webber. We chatted about cameras, as he was thinking of getting a new one for the Christmas holidays.

These are all decent hardworking folks. I can't help but think that no one deserves to go through the kinda stress they might be going through now. I feel for them, and their families, and I wish them the best of luck getting through this.

I also hope their client's assets are safe and sound.

Aquarium Shoot for Dominion Power

2009-02-14T10:39:00.002-05:00

This was one of my favorite commercial shoots all year. Dominion Power is overhauling its website in the next few months, and wanted some new imagery.

Everyday uses of electricity was kind of the theme...and an aquarium certainly relies on a dependable energy source.

This concept of kids looking through a fish tank was something Dominion had tried to create a few years ago, but unsuccessfully. If you stop and think about it, a fish tank is a reflective surface nightmare, not to mention the issue of water clarity (murky faces is typically what you see when you shoot through an aquarium.)

Fortunately, I learned how to "shoot fish" a few years ago doing some work for Tetra (aquatic habitat supplies). My fish images were used in pet store displays and still appear on their website. Eliminating reflections of our studio lights, yet still finding a way to illuminate the set and subjects was the technical challenge photographically. Once you figure that out, you just gotta have a squeeky clean tank, clear water, and fish that swim "prettily" for the camera.

This shoot took about 2 weeks of advance studio preparation. Dave Thomas of Thomas Aquatics (804) 355-0455 was our official fish wrangler and aquatic environment wizard. He and his assistant, Ryan, set up two 50 gallon tanks in the studio. One for photography and the other as a "holding tank" for extra fish.

Fin and Feather supplied the set tank and all the decorations along with a selection of fresh-water exotic fish. To get the water perfectly clear, Dave & Ryan must have replaced the water in the set tank at least 6 times over the 2 week period. We also added lots of water treatment chemicals to knock out the chlorine.

Spending 2 weeks with the fish, I got to see that they really do have "personalities". My favorites were Dave's hybrid African Cichlid's. They are the 3 big orange fish swimming in the foreground of the tank. They didn't have any of the aggressiveness associated with the species and they'd swim to the top and "kiss" your fingers or, nibble on our hands/arms whenever we had to move something inside the tank. I also have a sweet spot for Gouramis of all kinds (they tend to be shy).

Jessica Kantor did a terrific job of casting and "kid wrangling" for the two afternoons we shot. She and Winifred Halliday found 2nd graders at their respective public elementary schools willing to spend a few hours modeling with the tank...between snack and game breaks.

Electricity uses: the fish were fresh water exotic species in a water temp about 75-degrees maintained by an electric heater with thermometer. Lots of filtration needed, especially with a bunch of fish in the tank; another use of electricity. Bubble fountains are just for looks, tho some fish like to play in them, again more electricity. Lastly, the strobe lights and digital camera all powered by Dominion.

Recliners Band Portrait

2009-01-27T22:28:00.004-05:00

So here they are, from the galaxy of cool, via satellite for your lounging pleasure: the Recliners. Check out their website to hear their "post modern power lounge" sound.

We made this portrait in a local theater here in Richmond, VA, the band's east coast home. They'd been filming their new video since 6am that day, and had just enough time to do a still shoot before wrapping. Damn, they look good in tuxes after 6 hours of filming, don't they? Of course, they were doing what they love, playing music together.

The tux shot is their "formal" portrait for folks who might like to see how the band looks all dressed up for a fancy gig (weddings, corporate events, etc.). We also captured this more informal look for the folks who book them in night clubs when they're go more casual-hip look.

Russell Young is the founder of the group (he's the guy with the trumpet.) He also arranges all the music for the group. I'll never forget the first time I heard them, Capital Ale House, I recall. We had a blast dancing all night. According to this week's Style Weekly, they're playing on Valentine's Day 2009 at Capital Ale in downtown Richmond.

The singer, Joseph, sounds like a husky Frank Sinatra on some tunes...and he can really belt it out. All the band mates are swell musicians in their own right. Super cool, martini-infused lounge rock. Oh, and you can dance to it, too!

Why I shoot so much.

2009-01-06T22:54:00.008-05:00

The reason is, I'm an artist. And the pictures I like are not always the ones my clients select. So I have to over-shoot. This started with photo editors of magazines never choosing my favorite shots for publication (I'd even stack the deck with my faves up front in a web gallery of previews.)

Now it happens with my portrait clients, too. Like it did with this family shoot.

We had blocks stacked under the backdrop to create seating. Mom & dad were comfy but junior was having none of it...he just kept wriggling his way down off the set to run around and play (exerting his independence!) We managed to get this shot where everyone looks reasonably good. And this is the one they selected for prints.

Since junior was happiest being chased around the studio, I suggested we shoot something more physically active. So, I moved the blocks and

let them "swing". This only works cause mom & dad are in good shape, and the kid is still small. And this was my favorite shot from the session. But did they chose it for their prints? Nope. I like it because it shows energy and youthfulness. And that belly!!! Love the fact you can see the kid's tummy. Just like real life.

So, that's it...after years of shooting, I still can't say for sure which poses my clients are going to select for their favorites until after they see the proofs. So, I'll continue to shoot what looks good and try different things, hoping that in all those hundreds of frames, there will be something that pleases my clients' tastes. Fortunately, my clients forgive this "creative process" I have to go thru to come up with images they ultimately chose for prints. Whew!

Growing Up 2

2008-12-05T18:42:00.004-05:00

This is Luke, 2 years old. His mom and dad brought him to the studio before Thanksgiving for a family portrait session.

What made this special was that it's the 3rd time he's visited the studio which means I'm getting to watch him grow up!

It's funny, but the first two times he came to the studio, he was super easy going and could have made pictures all day. But this time...now that he's mobile and curious...was a different story. He simply didn't want to stay in one place for very long.

I worked hard, and so did his mom and dad. So here he is with the nice train his granddad gave him...you'd think he'd stay there and look cute for a few frames. Not at all. He was more interested in handing us blocks from the train. At least he's looking at the camera in this frame. I do like this image, though. The composition works for me, and I like that the train is a meaningful gift from a family member. It's an action shot...which reminds us that he's 2 and in action all the time.

Election Day, 2008

2008-11-04T09:18:00.004-05:00

This is my nephew, Peter with his running mate Hoagie. We made this picture before a client's family portrait session a couple weeks ago. It's a test shot really.

Note the Obama button on Peter's shirt. His mom made that for him.

Now, it's time to stand in the rain at my local precinct. My husband, John Gerner, is serving as an election official for the first time. We joked that his background in theme park ride line management might come in handy today.

I did my patriotic duty and made sandwiches for John to take with him on what will likely be a 16+ hour day. Think I'll try to slip him a couple granola bars when I go vote.

Up on the roof...

2008-10-06T17:07:00.003-04:00

I've been waiting to post this image for over two months! We shot this in July, but I had to wait because the magazine that commissioned the shoot has "first publication rights." Now that the October issue of Research Magazine is on the streets, the embargo has been lifted.

This is Peter Kaufman. He lives in here the Richmond area and is a well known writer, lecturer and an all-around marketing guru. These days, he focuses on the financial services sector of the economy (stress, anyone?). But Peter's insight on marketing and communications strategy is wide ranging--you got a question about how to position a product? He's got the answer.

Anyone who knows Peter will agree that he's one of those "glass half-full" kinda guys. Peter and his partner, Heidi Workman, formed the The Hoople Group after Wachovia Securities left town last summer. Like a lot of folks, they really wanted to stay here in Richmond, and not relocate to St. Louis (nice town, just that folks have roots here).

Peter is a frequent contributer to magazines and webzines, and Research was doing a story on him for this month's issue. We needed to shoot Peter in the classic modern "financial district" environment. Since he serves clients throughout the nation, I wanted his portrait to look as if it could have been shot in L.A, Atlanta, or New York. So, that's what we did...found the best darn parking deck roof-top view in Richmond and persuaded (really, we asked very, very nicely and produced a copy of our insurance certificate) the building management to let us up there.

Hassan and Winifred both worked with me on this shoot.

All images and text Copyright Elaine Odell, Church Hill Photography, LLC, 2008.

Albert Hill Middle School PTA Honored for Earth Day Eco-Fair

2008-09-29T14:02:00.007-04:00

This past summer, Parent Teacher Organization Magazine called and asked if we'd photograph leaders of the Albert Hill Middle School PTA. Seems they'd had a really successful Eco-Fair during the in Spring of 2008, around Earth Day, and they were getting national recognition for the event. Click here for the full story.

The magazine photoeditor asked us to do our best to reenact some elements of the event, so parents graciously volunteered to bring a couple of the games they built for the fair.

This was the first shoot in which Hassan Pitts and I worked together. Wow, did I ever do the right thing by hiring him! Hassan is an emerging photographer and professional photo-assistant. He's inventive, enthusisastic and so far, up for any challenge. He's helped me on a lot of shoots this summer and into the fall. Hassan is at VCU, getting his Masters Degree in Fine Art.

The boy on the left hand side of the frame is tossing tennis balls at the targets. One of the things Hassan had to do was run around and collect the balls, returning them for the student to throw. We probably shot 25-30 takes, and we had only 3 balls to work with. Hassan got a little work out that day.

..and he was just a twinkle in his daddy's eye.

2008-09-15T11:48:00.007-04:00

This was a portrait session like no other. A SUPER baby at the classic 6-months, doing everything right on schedule.

Ironically, this shoot was close to the mom & dad's 2nd wedding anniversary. I'll always remember that steamy hot day in July '06 when I photographed Monica and Brad's wedding. In spite of the heat, they were a perfectly beautiful couple. Loving families, great friends with a wonderful future ahead.

I was bummed when they moved to Staunton, VA. Worried I'd never see them again. But we stayed in touch and low and behold little Everett came into their lives earlier this year. I was so thrilled to meet him, and awesomely honored to be his "baby portrait photographer."

Now, Monica & Brad have a perfectly beautiful family. I'm sure there will more to add to the story as the years unfold. I can't wait to watch Everett grow up!

All images and text Copyright 2008 Elaine Odell for Church Hill Photography, LLC.

Oh, baby!

2008-09-06T11:36:00.006-04:00

Just makes you wanna run right out an get one, doesn't it?
This little bugger is about 6 months old. His grandmother said she wanted some nude pictures of her little sweetie, so we happly obliged.
We have tons more images of "mr. e" thanks to a mom and dad on-set who kept him happy (silly songs, hugs, kisses, bottles, diaper changes, etc). I'll share some more images of him in the next few posts.
All images and content Copyright 2008 Elaine Odell for Church Hill Photography, LLC.

Best Lawyers Shoot

2008-08-27T11:07:00.005-04:00

Here's an example of a great team effort with the client, ad agency, subjects and crew.

We shot this over a 2-day period at the studio. Before that, I was involved in the concept development (a rare treat). Amy Smith Pike, Marketing Director for Durrette Bradshaw PLC, got us all on a conference call to toss around some ideas with the "creative ninjas" at Prototype Advertising.

We liked the idea of shooting from a "heroic" angle so the fellows would appear to tower above us mere mortals. After a round of test shots, we settled on cropping just below the hips and keeping the camera just below the knees of the subject.

Each of the attorneys came to the studio separately so we could capture different angles and body positions for each fellow. Stylist, Winifred, got the guys ready for the camera and helped us get relaxed, natural looking poses. Assistant, Hassan Pitts, ran the computer so Amy could keep tabs on what we were capturing thru the camrea.

Following the shoot we posted proofs for the client, subject and art director to select from.

Once folks settled on their favorite images, we uploaded the high resolution files to our server so Keith Poole at Prototype could download and compose the layout. And here's the finished product. From concept to publication within 3 weeks.

The Nubian Queen

2008-08-19T14:14:00.010-04:00

This the prettiest expectant mommy I photographed all summer. I love her confidence and beauty. Can you believe she had her baby boy the very next week? This pose was definitely a collaboration with the subject. I was thinking more vertical in composition, and she asked to "recline like a Nubian queen". It's always a joy to improvise like this on a shoot. Kinda like playing jazz.
The other unexpected thing was how much I liked the color images. We had agreed to "think black and white" going into the session, since that's what she was really aiming for: an elegant black and white portrait of her with her 2-year old son. This is image she chose to have us print for her home.

Image and text Copyright 2008, Elaine Odell, Church Hill Photography, LLC.

The Commishes of VA-ABC

2008-07-02T18:12:00.007-04:00

Meet the mighty triumvirate at the Virginia Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control. The three commissioners were appointed by Governor Tim Kaine.

I got to photograph them for a beverage industry trade journal that focuses on the "control" states, as they call them in the biz. This image is the cover of the July/Aug issue of the magazine.

This was a fun shoot, and we set it up in the Carytown ABC store. The staff was terrific, and super helpful. The manager was so careful about making sure every bottle was perfectly placed.

One really cool thing about the VA ABC, is that stores will be open on July 4th. And just last week, stores in the Richmond area are now open on Sundays! I'm revving the blender now for the Independence Day 'smoothie with a kick.'

Image and text Copyright 2008, Elaine Odell, Church Hill Photography, LLC.

So in love.

2008-06-18T22:06:00.006-04:00

This couple just surprised the hell out of me. Susan and Adam...married at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden last month.

So they show up at the studio last Fall, and are super casual, laid back...no preacher, no plans, thinking about wearing flip-flops to the wedding. Just wanting to get hitched in a beautiful setting.

True to their laid back form, the bride didn't even find her dress till 2 weeks before the wedding! But what a dress it was. Her mom said it came from Franco's...who'd have thought? She looked like a goddess.

But what a treat they were to work with. And who could ask for a more beautiful location for photography? We shot their engagement session in the garden in early March and had lots of fun getting to know each other.

By the time we got to the wedding day, they were steaming up the lens. So passionate, so in love, so beautiful.

See their entire wedding day by clicking here, or go to the proofs/events link on our website and type in "adam" for the password.

All images and text Copyright 2008 Elaine Odell for Church Hill Photography, LLC.

Crazy Cool House

2008-05-19T08:19:00.005-04:00

Last week, we photographed an unusual home (unusual for Richmond, that is). My assistant called it a "Brady Bunch house, just way cooler". But the owners, Andy and Greg, call the home "Riversong".

This is the living room looking out toward the Newfound Falls River in Hanover County.

What I liked about the home is that it had this mod-Los Angeles/Miami look, yet it's in the Virginia countryside. We heard the rushing sound of the water falls whenever we stepped outside, and in the early morning, we heard cows mooing in the distance.

The current owners really made the most of the floor to ceiling windows. Each room is oriented toward the view. And they embraced the modern architecture with goovy interior decorating choices.

As we set up each shot, I imagined the first floor full of beautiful people in chic attire sipping martinis--this seemed like the perfect house for a glamorous event.

But my favorite room was the master bedroom. I just wanted to lie down and take a nap...open the glass doors and fall asleep to the sound of birds singing and water rushing.

What's amazing about the house is the consistency of interior design and decorating throughout. Also, the level of comfort in the furnishings impressed me. I'm a latecomer to the discovery that modern design and furnishings don't have to be hard-edged or rigid. Even the kitchen table chairs were soft and inviting. And no matter where you were in the house, there was always a good view out the window into the soft spring-green trees.

Carter Ritchie has the listing on this home, which is going on the market soon. You can reach him via http://www.carterritchie.com

XDL Intellectual Property Law

2008-04-17T22:26:00.007-04:00

XDL is one of the coolest clients I've had the pleasure to work with. The XDL firm is comprised of attorneys with various specialties in my favorite area of law: intellectual property ;-).

When they first called me for a shoot, we focused on full length high-key portraits of each attorney, for the "who we are" page on their website. That was a lot of fun, and I got to know each of the attorneys personally during those sessions.

But the images I like the most are the black and white environmental, available light images you see here.

The attorneys live all over the US, from Seattle to Minneapolis to Richmond, which doesn't poses any apparent obstacles to the ability to litigate effectively on behalf of their clients. When they do get together in one room, it's amazing.

All that brainpower in one location...all focused on protecting intellectual property rights...it's enough to make any creator swoon. Talk of copyright protection, patent and trademark litigation...ooooh, ahhh.

So my client, Amy Smith Pike, Marketing Director for the XDL group, says, "lets get some action shots of these guys all together hashing things out". So I got my trusty monopod, locked in the long lens, and stabilized the camera for some high ISO/low light/no flash/low shutter speed images of the group in one of their bull sessions.

Normally, when I'm asked to shoot meetings, I like to place off-camera strobes in the room to bring up the light level. This enables us to get low ISO, and thus low noise color images.

But something about this meeting was different...perhaps it was the intimacy of the room and the time pressure these folks were under to keep the agenda rolling (half of them had to catch flights home in the afternoon.) I felt it would be too much of a distraction to have strobes popping, plus, the room had so much stuff in it (flip charts, coffee pots, laptops, luggage sodas and snacks) I don't know where I would have found the room for light stands.

When converted to gray-scale, the low light/high noise images looked like good old fashioned grainy T-Max film. Didn't hurt that my client, Amy, used to work in media herself...she's an old news-hound and "gets it" on the photo-journalistic concept for her firm.

In the end, I was surprised at how much I liked the images, and I love how the design firm, Prototype Advertising, used them on the XDL website. Nice to know I have clients in high places, should I ever need to go to court to defend a copyright infringement.
All images Copyright 2007, Elaine Odell, Church Hill Photography, LLC.

Lovers in the garden

2008-04-02T19:46:00.008-04:00

This is Adam and Susan...to be wed May 10, 2008, at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden here in Richmond, VA. They both live and work in Northern Virginia now, but the bride hails from nearby Mechanicsville.

Last week, we went over to the Asian Garden (their reception will be in the Tea House) and walked around with a camera to get a feel for the site. I've photographed several weddings at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden, but this will be my first using the Asian Garden as a reception/photography area.

An engagement portrait session with the bride & groom is a great warm up for the wedding day. The couple gets comfy smooching in front of a camera and we usually get lots of romantic images of 'young luv'.

The couple probably won't choose this image of her kissing his nose ...but I absolutely love it! It's the only frame like it, and shows how playful they are. I can't wait for the wedding day.

All images and content Copyright Elaine Odell/Church Hill Photography, LLC, 2008.

Pardon Our Dust...

2008-03-29T10:57:00.001-04:00

If you've made it to this location on the World Wide Web...forgive us as we overhaul our website this weekend and republish our blog. If you've ever been through this process, you'll understand that things never work the way you anticipate...just gotta keep moving things around on the server till we get it right. Everything should be in order by Monday, March 31, 2008.

My Hero: Sandra Day O'Connor

2008-03-25T14:36:00.003-04:00

One of the institutions I have the pleasure of working with is the College of William & Mary, in Williamsburg, VA.

These days, former Supreme Court Associate Justice, Sandra Day O'Connor is the serving as Chancellor for W&M.

She attended the annual Charter Day festivities this year, and I was asked to cover the celebratory, black-tie dinner at the end of the day. This was the second time I'd had the opportunity to photograph her on the college campus. And this time, just like before, I was totally star-struck.

The image above is my favorite picture of her from that night. We have lots of shots of her delivering a speech and doing the formal things on the agenda...but those look as you would expect. At this point, former W&M President, Gene Nichol was at the lectern, and he must have made some jovial remark which made her laugh. Lovely.

She really was the classiest dame in the room...and fell for her. When the event was over, I saw her talking with Harriet Mayor Fulbright (president of the J. William & Harriett Fulbright Center).

Seeing these two amazing women together was really powerful; the Supreme Court Judge and the world peace advocate. I just had to document what appeared to be a warm friendship. With my photojournalist hat on, I followed O'Connor and Fulbright out of the banquet hall, got ahead of them, turned around and walked backwards hoping I wouldn't knock down one of the other guests as I made pictures.

Just after I got this shot, O'Connor said "That's quite enough now." Her words were like a laser beam: delivered with a smile and complete seriousness. It was a little taste of what it might have been like to argue a case before her.

Instantly, I stopped shooting, and scooted back into the ballroom to photograph the other guests.

Eat In Kitchen

2008-03-17T23:07:00.004-04:00

Here's another one of Perry DesJardins' killer kitchens. This was shot during a day and half of image capture at a custom-built DesJardin home in Goochland County, VA.

Deciding what to leave in was the challenge in this shot. The home owner, like most of us, had all sorts of tchotchkes around the kitchen (with all that counter space, wouldn't you?)

But since I was shooting for the builder, we needed minimal distractions. The marble counter tops, custom cabinets, tile back splashes, lighting, etc., needed to be the stars of the show.

So I set up the tripod, framed the shot, and asked my assistant, Karin, to start removing items one by one. The challenge was for her to remove the cookbooks, decorative plates, potted plants, etc., and stow them in such a way that she could put them back just as she found them, so the homeowner would find the kitchen just as she left it.

The lighting is a combination of window light (provided by floor to ceiling french doors) in the out-of-the-frame family room to the right of the camera, and the tungsten lighting within the kitchen. Several bracketed exposures were sandwiched together in post-production to achieve this final image.

We're pleased with the final result...there are just enough decorative details in this kitchen to make it pretty, without being distracting to the overall design.

All images & text copyright 2008 Elaine Odell/Church Hill Photography, LLC.

Protesting High Gas Prices

2008-03-12T09:39:00.008-04:00

Last week, while driving through rural Nelson County, we blew past this gas station on Rt. 664 in the hamlet of Beech Grove, a few miles down the mountain from the Wintergreen Resort.

We turned around and went back to photograph this sign. According to the manager on duty, the owner of Hickman's Exxon has gotten fed up with rapidly escalating gas prices and the all too frequent climb to change the numbers on this sign (about 20-25 feet up).

This was shot on Thursday March 6, 2008, when a gallon of regular was $3.34. Below, is the wide shot of Andy Hickman's gas station, which is just a short drive from the Blue Ridge Parkway, Skyline Drive and the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia.

The Artist's Space

2008-02-29T19:30:00.006-05:00

Jennifer Young's Vibrant Landscapes are favorites among fine art collectors, interior designers and decorators. Although she creates a lot of work in the plein air mode, Jennifer's indoor space is where she finishes the canvases (varnishing, touchups, framing, etc,) and does indoor painting when the weather doesn't cooperate.

Jennifer moved to a gorgeous gallery/studio in Downtown Richmond over a year ago, and we'd yet to create a portrait of the artist in her gallery. Finally, on a rainy, cold January afternoon, we did it. Luckily, the sunny yellow walls in the interior gallery more than made up for the miserable weather outdoors.

What I really like about Jennifer's gallery is that it feels like a real home, instead of a sterile white-walled gallery. The row house has a large front room with lots of natural window light (easy to imagine as your home living/family room) as well as an interior room with decorator lighting (like your dining room). You see the paintings displayed this way and can envision them hanging on your own walls.

This shoot is a good example of collaboration and give-and-take with the client. Jennifer was more interested in showing the gallery expanse and the paintings on display. While she realized she needed to be in the picture, she wasn't really interested in being the central focus. Like most artists, she prefers that her art be the "hero".

Well, I saw things a little differently...I was more interested in creating a portrait of the artist, with the work & the environment accompanying her, telling her story.

So, to achieve both our goals, we set up a wide shot and placed paintings strategically within the camera's view. Stylist Winifred Halliday was very instrumental in helping set up this portrait.

One benefit of shooting wide and seeing a tighter crop within it, is the flexibility it gives graphic designers. It's especially helpful for magazine or newspaper folks who often don't know the layout of a page till the last minute because images and text blocks are coming from multiple sources. If you're a client submitting an image with a press release, having an image that crops easily as a horizontal or a vertical makes designers really happy, and increases your chances of prominent page placement.

So here is the wide shot. It tells you more about the gallery space and lets your eye move about the frame. The artist is still central to the image...if a newspaper is writing a story about galleries, then this image would likely get used in publication because of the extra visual information.
All images and text Copyright 2008 Elaine Odell, Church Hill Photography, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Pet Doctors

2008-02-19T23:08:00.006-05:00

This is Dr. Key. She works at Lakeside Animal Hospital in Richmond, VA. Earlier last month, we spent the morning working with the staff to create images for their new website redesign. It was a fast paced few hours with great teamwork on the part of staff and their pets.

The cool thing about Lakeside Animal Hospital is that they work with birds and reptiles, too. Below is Dr. Gonzales, with one of the pet birds who lives at the animal hospital. Photographing someone with a bird was new to me. I was a little concerned. I've done lots of shoots with people and their dogs. But a parrot? I didn't know how he'd like the flash. We placed the strobe head behind the bird so the vet would be looking into the light, the bird would have his back to it. I think that helped, because it was a small exam room and we were flashing away. But what probably made the most impact on keeping the bird relaxed was the comfort and attention from Dr. Gonzales. The parrot and her are old friends. The two of them just chatted and cooed the whole time we were shooting.

All images and text Copyright 2008 Elaine Odell, Church Hill Photography, LLC. All Rights Reserved.