Making a New Promo

I have been having a lot of fun with photography and will continue to. I am also having fun with video, and part of that is learning Adobe Premiere and After Effects. Between my camera and iPhone, I have been learning a alot. One of the projects i wanted to do for a long time was a promo of my business. Finally got at it and had a great time learning Adobe After Effect. Here is what I came up with, and it is now my main page as you enter my website.

I have other ideas, and I continue playing and learning videos. Stay tuned for more videos. Today, they say video is hotter but hanging a video on your family room wall is not possible, at least not today. Being a Freelance photographer is fun you can do just about anything.

Making this year Christmas Message

It’s been some time since my last blog, but I have been fighting an illness, and now I am back. I thought I would end 2023 with how I made this year's Christmas message from my wife Lisa and me.

Iphone picture at Bronner’s in Frankenmuth,MI

It all starts with an idea. As I wandered the store, I liked this ornament of the two snow people. This may be this year's message. Out came my iPhone, and I took a few pictures. Next, I went into Photoshop to start the magic. First, I needed to cut it out; next was to pick a background that would work for this image. This is again done in Photoshop. Once I had the two, I had time to make a composite. After making the composite, I made some minor cleanups and color changes. Finally, I added the text. After all, it was a ready product, or at least I thought. :)

I started looking at it, and I thought, why not an animation? Once again, Adobe is to the rescue. I went into After Effect and thought I would add some animation of snow. I don’t know about you, but I think it makes it much more alive.

Now you know how I did it and what my mind thinks. Just think, it all started with an idea and a picture from the iPhone. Here is a quick look at the steps I did.

Merry Christmas, and I hope you have a great New Year. Stay tuned for 2024, for Paul J Zeinert Photography will be changing. It will be a different business model for 2024. (Stay tuned)

Commercial Work

What is commercial work when it comes to photography? For me, it means anytime the work is used for advertising something. This may be a magazine, billboard, or maybe a web page. Since my start in photography, this is an area I have enjoyed. My style is more of a photojournalist like I do for weddings. I guess I like things that appear natural.

I was recently hired to take pictures for a company website. We sit down, and they tell me what they are interested in or have in mind. This could be done verbally, using Instagram pictures they have in mind. After I hear or see, I do what I think they are looking for. Let’s face it, competition is everywhere, and trying to get someone to buy from you may come from on professional picture. Your company is only as good as it looks, and I am sorry, the selfie will most likely not do it. Look at the picture below; what are they trying to sell?

Yes, if you said she was trying to sell her podcast, you would be correct, and I did my job by taking the vision of the podcast. She is not a professional actor, but by having her do what she was comfortable with (podcasting), I waited for moments and then took the pictures.

The reward (other than getting paid) is seeing your work in a magazine or on their web page. Maybe when you are driving and seeing your image on a billboard. That's the reward for me. I did my job, and hopefully, they are making money with the pictures they used. Over the years, I have done a lot of commercial work. I have done Medical, teaching, many products, Political campaigns, and companies. What's next? I don't know, but I look forward to whatever it will be. A boating campaign would be one that I would like to do sometime on my bucket list. I love water and boats or possibly do a vacation spot.

Playing with Color

Yes, when we were young, we played with a crayon in school and learned color. What colors look good together, and what colors do not? Who knew that I would play with color again? Not crayon’s but with flashes with gels. We heard the term RGB but what does it mean? Red, Green, and Blue. With these colors, we see all colors. Like your TV or computer is RGB. But what happens when I combine all three? If you said white, you are correct. I saw this setup in the book Studio Anywhere, and I always wanted to do it. In my family room with a white wall, I set up 3 flashes equal in power and in-line with the subject. I placed a filer on each (red, green, and blue). Next, I took the shot and got this.

Remember, RGB equals white. Noted on the subject, but what happens in the background or shadows? You see Red and Green = Yellow, Green and Blue = Cyan, and Red and Blue = Magenta. This is what you see in the background. Now I know what you are saying. Why? Well, maybe a picture of something different? Plus, the understanding color will help your photography and what you can do with flash if needed. Last I wanted to do it, and I did it. Ok, what makes black? Combine the cyan, magenta, and yellow, and you have black. When we print, we print in CMYK and see our TV or Computer Screen in RGB.

New Year new Changes

Well, it's 2023, and like everyone else, new changes always occur. No different for me, also. I am excited about this year. I will spend more time with my photography on Products, Headshots, Events, Travel, and Commercial. I am also looking at doing more videos. I started enjoying playing with this in 2022 and look forward to doing more in 2023. Life is a Journey

I had fun with this one in Photoshop. All of this, but the sun background is fake. When I say fake, all of the blacks are done with shapes or the use of brushes. Yes, even the backpack person is a brush. The ground is a brush. The trees were rendered in Photoshop. Photography continues to be a journey, but I love every moment. I have been so fortunate to take what started to be a hobby into a business and stay alive with even all of the photographers out there. I continue to learn about color and what makes good art, and I have used this information in my processing. I continue to educate and practice with the Adobe program and become better. You can't do it all in one day, so you might as well enjoy the trip.

2023 will be exciting for me. I plan on still posting some of the things I have been up to, but I plan on making more videos, especially some of the trips I plan for this year. So again, thank you for your following, and I hope your Journey this year is a good one.