Catherine and I along with my friend and assistant Jeff, blocked out a whole afternoon for Catherine’s session. She wanted some location photography so we could create some images that she could use on her new website that showcases her design and marketing work and skills. She also took one of her designs and turned it into a really awesome banner and as soon as I saw it I knew it was going to be excellent to photograph her in front of it.

Our first location was easy and simple. We set up a chair along a path near the Nashua River. It was a gorgeous day outside and I wanted to keep things simple as we started. Catherine had these really excellent shoes on and I loved the angle her legs kinda fell into as she sat down and we were chatting.

We kept the lighting simple: a light inside a medium sized softbox that would illuminate her face and most of her upper body. It gave a nice shadow under her jawline and really brings you to her face.

From there we moved a few feet behind us and we used one of the sculptures that is part of the Nashua International Sculpture Symposium:

I liked the technical and sculptural feel of this image. To me it represents the world, and how someone like Catherine, with the power of the web, can work with any client, anywhere in the world through technology.

From there we moved over to an open field close by so we could get a few headshots in as well as a full length shot that could be used for banners on her social media pages:

The whole session I was thinking about the banner she had made and where we were going to set it up and how we were going to use some more of Nashua’s fantastic sculpture.

Finally we found a fantastic location that used the Nashua River and one of Nashua’s old mill buildings behind it. We used a fantastic sculpture and integrated it into the flow of the banner.

We hung Catherine’s banner off a backdrop roll and spent a little time making sure it was lined up and balanced as well as could be. The wind started to pick up so there are a lot of shots we had to toss out because the banner would blow to and fro.

I kept walking backwards trying to frame up my shot. I almost fell backwards a few times, but then, suddenly, there was the composition. I loved the foreground elements of the tree off to the right side. I loved that you could see a little of the mill building behind her. I liked that you could see the light and light-stand in the frame. It was this glorious pull-back shot and everything in the frame complimented everything else. We placed Catherine right in the middle and everything just came together perfectly:

I love this shot. I love everything about it. I love the colors of the banner and I love the colors of all the nature on the fringes of the frame. I love how on the right side the trees and bushes go from brown to green, the same way the mill building on the left side transitions down to the greens of the shrubs. I love that the banner and the sculpture compliment each other. I love that the light stand blends in with the design. I even love that the yellow sand bag holding the backdrop frame features some of the same color as Catherine’s banner.

To me, this is the shot of the day. This image could easily be a double-truck lead image in a magazine just as it will be an excellent image on her website. It’s powerful. It’s making the outside into a studio. It has so many elements and there is so much going on, yet Catherine is what your eyes go directly to first. All these elements of design and shape and color and tone and texture and there she is in the center of it. Controlling it. Powered by it. I really love this photograph.

I absolutely love working with Catherine. She’s confident enough in my work that she wants to start working with me and using me with some of her design clients that need fresh visual content. How awesome is that? And my tribe grows larger still.

Head on over to Catherine’s website and check out her work. If you are looking for new design services, consider reaching out to her and chatting. She is a most awesome person.