I have taken my skills in lighting, composition and mise-en-scene and applied them to the continuous narrative that is video. I first sought out video editors to learn what was needed to join clips together to tell a flowing story. If you know where you want to end up, it is much easier to get there. As I learned editing, it allowed me to understand what needs to be shot and how it needs to edit together. From there it has been practice, shooting for clients and watching the trends in films, commercials and on the web. It has come to a point where I teach a college course for professional photographers who want to learn video.

I’m using a Canon 5d Mark II on a rig by Redrock Mirco. Photo by the well known retoucher Dennis Dunbar.

Lee White using Canon 5d in video mode with Redrock Micro gear.

California surfer showing healthy lifestyle

Combining great locations with my lighting style allows for some stunning advertising or editorial photography.  Casting of models and/or locations is easy for California photographers and clients in the place where the healthy lifestyle trend was started.  Being on the west coast means wide sandy beaches, vast deserts and majestic mountains for striking images.

Corporate imaging here is great too!  New facilities in open green areas are ideal for portraying the new face of greener corporations.

Photo hint:  Even when shooting at golden hour be ready to use supplemental lighting techniques like strobes or reflectors.  You might find the perfect shot is towards the sun which can add real life to an image as well as extra depth.  Photography is a craft.  Photographed with Canon camera and strobe.

Lee White filming the exciting conclusion of a scene.

In the future, I hope to see more interaction between the image making and non-image making classes so image-making students can learn how to deal with situations they will face out of school. Almost all image-makers, except a few fine art creators, have to learn how to communicate with non-image making people and become team players while not losing their individual identity. As image-makers, we are usually part of a collaboration in creating something more than just images, our images are combined with text, spoken language and music to convey a total message that communicates information and emotions about an idea, an event, a service, or a product. The sooner students can enjoy the interaction and creativity that comes with collaboration, the sooner they will be comfortable with the world after school.

Self Portrait

As an advertising photographer in Los Angeles, California, I have photographed everyone from Hollywood celebrities for international ads to stockholders for corporate annual reports. Being a people photographer, I find it interesting that there is a common belief that one needs a celebrity or at least a model to make a good commercial photo. New photographers sometimes don’t realize celebrities and models are just real people too. Admittedly they have more experience in front of a camera and sometimes the support of professional makeup artist, hair stylist and wardrobe people so are more comfortable being photographed. It’s our jobs as photographers to create a situation where all our subjects response in the way we want.

Creating and controlling a photo session takes practice, I still practice all the time. This brings me to the above self-portrait. Although, I love the interaction with my subjects and find willing people to photograph almost everywhere I go, even if I don’t find a subject, I always have myself. I set my Canon 5d on self timer to capture this shot.

It is good practice being in front of the camera. If you want willing photographic subjects then you should be willing yourself and as a side benefit, you only have to quit shooting when you get tire. Never fear, in the coming posts the pictures I show and discuss will be of models, celebrities, and “real” people, just don’t forget you always have a subject in you.