Taina B. Photography News

Taste for more

Wow. Putting up an expo is hard, hard work…

In April 2012 I visited Istanbul with another 30 or so (!!) photographers, where we all shot our series. The results can be seen in the expo “Istanbul Metropolis”, currently on display at De Fotovakschool in Amsterdam.

From making a selection from all the possible series I shot (in the end I had a decent 5) to the finalisation of the two last series…it is thinking, asking advice, cutting, switching and cutting again. Less *really* is more and I now know that killng your darlings is gruesome but a must.

But then…postprocessing! It didn’t stop at tweaking in Photoshop. Sample-prints, back materials, sizes…but I loved making all the decisions. In the end you get full control over your work. Unless you don’t stick the photo’s to the wall properly of course….(Well, you live, you learn) And for sure I won’t make the same mistakes again. 

The opening of the expo was great and quite exciting. I felt very supported by my lovely friends and family but the real excitement was at this very moment: me walking into the room where my work was. Twenty-plus people looking at my photo’s, reading the info, discussing the work…Instantly I knew: this is why I photograph. A big taste for more. Bon appétit!

Istanbul Metropolis is part of the OFF GRID Festival 2012

Mon-Sat 10.00-16.00 till 30th of June at the Fotovakschool

Nieuwe Spiegelstraat 10, Amsterdam

Music was my first love.

My love for music is big. It’s huge. It’s massive. And I secretly have always wanted to be able to sing really well, whilst playing piano at the same time. Or be the sexy, mysterious female bass-player in an obscure band with a vile name. But, alas, my talent lies not here. 

But this exact love for music and visiting many a concert gave me something else: my love for photography. 

When I look back at my photography-career and how it started, I truly can say that music helped me find my way to photography. At first I carried and smuggled my point and shoots in a bag with me, decoy on top for the security check. It was the time that mobile phone photography was still non-existent.

But times changed. As did my camera’s. I wanted better quality photo’s and started to buy nicer camera’s to bring with me, until at one point I decided to buy a SLR-camera. And from then on I started to develop my other, non-concert photography skills too.

Nowadays I usually try to get on the press-list, since my camera is too big to hide somewhere in the bottom a a bag. Some venues, luckily, are still easy to get into without press-accreditation and a serious camera dangling off my shoulder. But it has become more of a hassle. And  to think that many a mobile phone nowadays have a better cam than my first point and shoots!

I guess my experience with concert photography gives me some bonus points in other areas as well. I’m able to shoot from the hand at 1/60 and get a decent focus. I’m used to working in hectic surroundings (mosh pit at my back, beer flying through the room, enthusiastic fans all over the place and a subject that really does not wait for me to get a nice shot). And I have to decide fast to make a photo.

Of course with the SLR you can get as many shots your memory card allows you to, but shooting ‘till infinity isn’t my style. I’d like to weigh the situation and decide to click only on the right moments.

To help me develop recognizing the decisive moment (Oh, hello Cartier-Bresson!) I just recently started to take an analogue SLR to concerts with me as well. Just 36 shots…so I’d better make them count!

My first film is at the developer now, and I am very curious to see whether I produced blurry pics I’ll file under “artistic motion” or if I got a decent shot…or maybe two.

Anyway, I could go on forever on music and photography, let alone the two combined….so just keep an eye on my concert section, as I have many gig’s planned the next two months. Hope you enjoy my pics as much as I do making them!

Taina

Pretty Petite

I am developing a passion for portrait photography. To work with people and get them to relax in front of your camera is great fun and sometimes a bigger challenge than other times….especially when the model in question is a petit 6 week old baby girl!

Fiene, mummy & dad took the time to do a photoshoot in their lovely home. As you can guess, an itty bitty baby will not be directed. So it’s just relaxing, waiting and looking carefully for the right moments. 

It was a great experience for me and it’s very special to be so close to a family that isn’t yours.

And now the fun part in the post-processing starts: mum and dad requested a slightly retro feel to the photo’s. I hope Fiene will look back one day at her first photoshoot in amazement and wonder how it’s possible that the pretty petite is really her, way back in september 2011.

Ink, smiles and inspiration.

Oh boy, the excitement of a print publication! My photo’s for the LIRA-scenariopijs were published in the newspaper NRC Handelsblad and the grin on my face was just as big as it was stupid. A big surprise which made me very happy indeed. Check out the photo’s (originals and scans of the printjob) in the album here.

This weekend I will be working on a project of my own: it’s so exciting and fun to execute an idea. Most of the times the idea develops in the shoot and the end result might not reflect the original idea. But I do find that a strong concept is a must for a fruitful shoot. You just need the outlines, so you can stray from that point on. I was heavily inspired by a gorgeous shoot of Scarlett Johanson, so only good and prettiness can come from this, no?

Taina

P.S. If you are interested in more of my sources of inspiration, check out Photophantom: it’s my Tumblr-blog where I keep track of all that inspires my photography.

The magic of photography

Despite I am an absolute techdiva, in photography I seem to be a bit oldskool. All the hard work, the whole creative process boils down to 1 thing…the photo in print. 

That’s why I am very much looking forward to a printpublication next month. I did the photo shoot for the nominees of the LIRA 2011 scenarioprijs. The photos will be published in a special booklet, which is distributed with Vrij Nederland.

I’ll have to bite my tongue just a little longer, for the nominees are not yet public info. Stay posted for more info, very very soon.

Taina