Linda Stahr Photography

The Many Sides of a Wedding

lindastahrphotography — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 08:00:24 +0000

One of the things that I love about weddings is that there are so many different textures to photograph. The bride’s dress, the flowers, the wine glasses, the tables, and the list goes on… I love the textures in this picture. The light reflecting off of the glasses… the smoothness of the liquid in the glasses – and the combination of them all.

Wedding Season!

lindastahrphotography — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 17:14:45 +0000

It’s summer here in Oregon, and wedding season is well under way. Many photographers don’t like to take wedding photos primarily because of all the work involved. You have parents to try to get in the same location at the same time. Brides who are sometimes extremely stressed and taking out their emotions on whomever happens to get in the way. Coordinating families is a feat that takes talent, skill, and a lot of luck. And then there’s the worry of “did I get all the shots that the bride and groom want?”

I enjoy taking wedding pictures. I love seeing the brides (and their families) dressed in their finest. Seeing a groom in a nice tuxedo or a well fitting suit takes me back to my own wedding day and my handsome husband… And I love being able to bring families together. In my opinion, one of the best things about weddings is that family gets together to celebrate the joining of two people into one family.

I will readily admit that taking wedding pictures is a lot of work. After the hundreds of photos and the end of the reception, the real work begins. Editing. It was a lot easier when people used film all of the time instead of using digital cameras… You got what you got, and if it didn’t turn out… well, you still got what you got. With the dawning of the digital media, things can be manipulated. Colors can be changed, shadows can be added, people can be deleted… (and don’t tell me you haven’t been tempted at one point or another to delete someone you didn’t get along with…) it’s a lot of work for a photographer. It’s work that I’m willing to do, and work that I love.

Here at Linda Stahr Photography, we encourage you to browse through our portfolio; call us to discuss your wedding needs. We can always put together a custom package for that will fit all of your wedding photography needs.

And may the bride and groom live happily ever after…

How it all began…

lindastahrphotography — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 19:59:54 +0000

I first got interested in Photography as a Senior in High School. I was bored. I was looking for classes to fill my day, and, after taking multiple language classes and all of the required classes, I still had some credits and hours to fill. Since I really admired the photography teacher and had taken classes from her previously, I decided to see if photography was something I enjoyed.

Borrowing my parent’s camera (which, if you ever read this, I would really like to inherit someday), I headed to class to see what I could learn. I learned a lot. One of the most important things I learned was that I needed to wear my glasses when focusing a photo. It may look totally in focus to me, but no one else has my terrible eye sight, and to the rest of the world, each and every photo was terribly out of focus. Swallowing my pride and my vanity, I wore my glasses. It was that, or fail photography.

Mrs. Sara Arno taught me about the rule of thirds, how to find subjects that were interesting to more than one person, and that it’s o.k. to not get the perfect shot on the first try. She also taught me how to gracefully accept criticism from someone who knows more than I do, and how to not be offended by people who know just as much as I do. She taught me by her example to critique my own work before showing other people, and she taught me to love photography.

After graduating from High School, I took a photography class in college where I learned how to further develop my pictures (something I haven’t done since, unfortunately – but would eventually love to delve into more), how to use my parent’s camera to the best of its capabilities (yes, I have since returned the camera to my parents… however reluctantly…) and how to drive my roommates crazy by taking pictures of anything that moved or didn’t move. I also learned how to focus my camera so that everyone else saw what I saw as clearly as I saw it by visiting the local optometrist and getting contacts.

Years went by and I did nothing with photography. I hadn’t been all that impressed with my skills – or lack thereof – and returned the camera. In 2002, a series of life events put me back behind the camera – a different one this time, and I discovered not just a love, but a more practiced and skilled eye. I found that I was able to capture the true colors of things and that, while not 100% of my pictures are perfect, I can still find many that turn out exactly the way I want them to. I found a talent that I thought had been hidden.

I have been taking pictures voraciously ever since. Incidentally, because my family is good friends with my original photography teacher’s family, at Christmas when we went for our annual visit, I mentioned that I had formed a photography business and shared with Mrs. Arno some of my photos. She congratulated me and offered support and praise – telling me that she had known in high school that I had talent… I just needed time on my own to find it. I thank her for her support and teaching – without her I may never have had the desire to try.

Today’s featured photo was taken at the Oregon Coast Aquarium. The colors on the anemone have not been altered or changed. As before, what you see is what I got. Prints of most featured photos are available for purchase - please send an e-mail through the comments page if interested.

Micro vs Macro

lindastahrphotography — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 21:01:27 +0000

Many years ago when I FIRST got into photography, I became extremely interested in looking at things up close. The nearer I could get to something, the more detail I would find. I discovered that little things like Dandelion flowers had the most exquisite details. Pansies became one of my favorite things to photograph. The lens I used was a special lens purchased for far more than I am willing to admit – and allowed me to get “up close and personal” with these flowers. My beloved Macro Lens. It picked up all of the little details and nuances of seemingly simple things. And then, in some bizarre and wrong twist of fate, I had all of my equipment stolen. I lost my macro lens. I am still working to replace it.

Now, I find some minor solace in Micro photography – getting as close to a subject as possible without using a macro lens. I don’t get the same details, and the backgrounds aren’t as blurred when focusing on the subject, but until I replace the lost lenses, it will have to do.

Later, I’ll post some of my “Macro” pictures so that you, too, can appreciate the beauty of the super small. For now, this picture of the day will have to suffice. It was taken at the zoo in Portland, Oregon during “butterfly week”. The colors have not been changed or manipulated by any outside program – what you see is what I got with the camera.

The Beauty of It All

lindastahrphotography — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 16:01:04 +0000

One of the good things about living in Oregon is that people think it rains all the time here. It doesn’t, but we perpetuate that rumor so that we can have exclusive rights to wonderful scenery and the beautiful spring days. I personally like the fact that living in Oregon means that the flowers bloom almost year round, and I can get pictures like THIS, and the natural lighting allows me to publish it the way it is. Most of the time when I take pictures, I use as much of the natural light as possible. On those rare occasions that the lighting is terrible, I try to maneuver my way around the awfulness of it, and still use what Nature provides. This allows me to photograph just about anywhere, without having to carry the excess gear that I would need to fabricate my own lighting. If the picture doesn’t turn out the way that I like it, I have discovered the beauty of “photoshopping” things out of the picture. My current favorite filter is the “Antique” filter, which turns my pictures “Ancient” complete with the scratches and faded color. My favorite “fix” button is the “backlight” button which has allowed me to pop some background into pictures where it wasn’t before.

Today’s featured photo…

lindastahrphotography — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 03:24:09 +0000

The "eyes" have it

They say that the eyes are the windows to the soul. I love eyes. I love the different designs that we find in the iris and how descriptive eyes can be.