Photo Lesson With Jennifer Henry
Thank you for all the kind comments about my photographs with Jennifer Henry. I have been getting a lot of questions about how we did this shoot so I thought I would show you. It was actually very simple.
First starting with a gorgeous woman is a big step ahead! Thank You Jennifer! Originally my plan was to do this shoot on my outdoor studio set but the humidity was unusually high so it would have been really uncomfortable. So we set up inside, hey I have 8 tons of air conditioning so why not!
Lighting as you see, strobes by Profoto USA. I believe in high quality lighting systems putting out really great light. There are only a few brands of lighting equipment I would consider. The light coming in from the sliding glass doors on the right is irrelevant because it is over powered by the strobes. And then as you can see I have a lot of room and can even create much more inside if needed.
The details that make the photographs work are good exposure, sharp focus, good posing. A big point that people miss all the time is skin tone. Go through photographs from so many and you see skin that is orange in color. Yes sometime the tanning products does throw it off but it is really bad for the photographer to not adjusting the “white balance” in post processing to get real life skin tones. There are times when artistic expression might change that. But basically if you get orange skin you have photographs that are not acceptable. It is not real and contributes to a blurry look.
Another point to remember is that photographs are easy to make look good for Facebook or Instagram because they are so small. Take them up to full size and high resolution for something like a magazine and often times they fail. Blurry and no detail in fabrics, white or dark spaces that look like they were painted on also with no detail. Those are also not acceptable.
So there you have my photo lesson for the day. Just wanted to answer a few questions. And Thank You!
I Love Selfies! Jumping Off The Roof Like Superman…
I Love Selfies! And Eddie Medeiros did one that I think came out really cool. Working out, he set up his cellphone on timer and it is really fun! Eddie took to muscle building like many of us kids, regardless of what age or decade. Just like me many years before, he watched Superman and then tied a towel around his neck and jumped off things. I used to jump off the roof of our house! Then at 13 Eddie picked up weights and it has become his passion and his life. Reading and watching everything he could find. Coupled with his interest in art, Eddie has a different look on bodybuilding and it’s esthetics. But to best quote Eddie today, “Each Person is Different but we all have our Special Gifts and Talents to offer to help others to be what we are Meant to be in this Life!”. Be sure to visit Eddie on his Facebook page and see where he is going next!
I invite you to send me your selfies and I will show you off on my Blog and all of my Social Media as well as my Facebook pages. You will be seen by so very many! Girls and guys, whatever you want to send. In the gym, showing off the hard work you have put in, at the pool, or just having fun. You don’t have to have ever done a photo shoot with me or even met me in person. It will also be a great way for me to see you and talk about photo shoots. Let’s do this, it’s all fun!
You must send me the selfie to my e-mail at SecondFocus@mac.com or as a message on Facebook. I will say that I might have to pick and choose to make it manageable and hold some or change when I decide to post them for one reason or another. Thanks!
I Can Hear Her Saying…
I can hear her saying to me “Just sit right down here and we will have a little breakfast”. Yes that was it, I recall distinctly. From my photo shoot with one of the most beautiful women I have ever photographed Ashley Owens Gulina. Makeup and Hair styling by the ever incredible Natalie Lyle. 
I Have This Urge…
Why do I have this urge to go pump some iron at the workout pit at Muscle Beach/Venice? Because sometimes you get to see Lisa Marino Sandersworking out there too. Plenty of reason for me! A great day for a photo shoot with Makeup and Hair styling by Natalie Lyle! — with Lisa Marino Sanders.
Yes I Do…
Yes I do get to photograph some of the most beautiful women on the planet. Sasha Brown in front of my camera at Bombay Beach at the Salton Sea. Sasha is next off to Rome to do fitness workshops. How great is that!
Sneak Peek…
Want a sneak peek at the photograph I will be posting here and on all of my Social Media in the morning? The photograph is one of my favorite models and yes she is just gorgeous! Click on the link to my website where photographs are as big as your screen and much better quality. http://tinyurl.com/onh2pkb
AND CONTACT!
“GAS ON, SWITCH OFF, THROTTLE CLOSED, BRAKES SET AND CONTACT!” Get ready you are flying with Sharon Lim out of the Palm Springs Air Museum. Buckle up, she is taking all the turns and looking good! From our photo shoot with Makeup and Hair Styling by Natalie Lyle.
Take Your Abs With You!
Doubtfully the same weather in the UK for Tina Sansom that she had here in Palm Springs just a few weeks ago. However likely her abs are just as good. So the lesson is, take your abs wherever you go and you will always be hot! From our photo shoot, with Makeup and Hair Styling by Natalie Lyle!
You Can Be A Star Where You Are!
I met Jennifer Henry when she did one of the shows at Muscle Beach/Venice, and over the months following, learned more about her. The more I learned the more impressed. You never know the path one follows. But I do know that we all can be inspired by those near us. And being inspired by Jennifer Henry is in that category. But for now I will say, look her up on her Facebook page and I am sure she will be telling her story to many more.
Jennifer is doing exactly what I tell and have told to many of you who want to be stars in our world of bodybuilding and fitness. Everyone wants to be on the cover of the magazines and have a big time contract. It can happen but it just does not happen for everyone. Luck, time. place, whatever. But you can be a star where you are right now! That will take you a very long way. And Jennifer is doing exactly that. And that is the right path to those next big opportunities and dreams! Good job Jennifer!
She Found The Gym!
I just love my best buddy Natalie Lyle. Some years ago, she started out as my Makeup Artist on my photo shoots and has been steadily with me ever since. The entire world of bodybuilding and fitness was new to her back then. Not the case any more! She lives and has fun with it and is doing more and more everyday. Over the last four months she has gone from beautiful with a rocking body and amazingly long legs to putting on some muscle to start sculpting down to her same self but solid with definition and the lines of an athlete. What an amazing women, you have to picture that she is 6 ft tall in her bare feet and just stunning. Loving her journey and looking forward to seeing more of the journey of Natalie Lyle!
It Started With Way More Than A Bang!
I was going to talk about Summer highlights starting with a bang with Lisa Marino Sanders. But that was no bang, that was an explosion! Our photo shoot at Muscle Beach/Venice getting to use a United States Air Force F-16 and shooting along the famous Venice Beach boardwalk. We were often mobbed and stopped every inch of the way by tourists wanting photos of Lisa or selfies with her. It was too fun and Lisa is nothing but incredible! A big Thanks to Natalie Lyle for makeup and hair styling that gave her that star quality all day! Outstanding!! 
“The Best Shape Of My Life”
In front of my camera here at the windmills in Palm Springs with Makeup and Hair Styling by Natalie Lyle.
And Then 52 Years Later…
Over 52 years after the photograph I posted yesterday (below) and I am still photographing beautiful women in front of water falls. Although photographingAshley Owens Gulina anywhere works just fine! But she does make a wonderful water feature!
Makeup and Hair Styling by the wonderfully talented Natalie Lyle. Thank You!
Photographing Beautiful Girls
Yes I have been photographing beautiful girls in exotic locations for over 50 years! Are you next?
Pick You Plane For Your Photo Shoot
Thank You to so many of you for your notes and e-mails about shooting with me. I just want to be clear that we cannot just run over to the Palm Springs Air Museum with lights and cameras and wardrobe and a makeup artist, set up and start shooting photographs on the tarmac with a P-51 Mustang or the four engine bomber of your choice. This is well arranged ahead of time and there are costs involved. Sharon Lim and I had discussed this early on, and with some bumps in the road, I was able to make this happen. So I would love to shoot with you with that P-51 or maybe a helicopter but send me a note and we can chat about it. Thanks!
Rule #1
Rule #1 in my photo shoots is have fun. Rule #2 in my photo shoots is see Rule #1. And having fun with Sharon Lim at the Palm Springs Air Museum was what we did. Looking outstanding in that fit body hugging dress with our airplane du jour, a 1946 Boeing Stearman is just too perfect! Big Thanks to Natalie Lyle for our outstanding Makeup and Hair Styling.
More Of A Fit Lifestyle
Everybody loved Tina Sansom from her photograph I posted last week, So I thought you needed to see more of her from her photo shoot with me! Loving her fit lifestyle, her vacationing means being at the gym everyday and then off to the Olympia this week to take in more fit lifestyle! And the fit lifestyle sure fits Tina Sansom! Thanks!
A great day of Makeup and Hair Styling by Natalie Lyle!
Traveling Hot!
Making another part of the world her stage. Tina Sansom having fun standing in front of my cameras at the wind farms here. A fitness devotee she will be sitting in the front rows of the Olympia next week as well. Outstanding Makeup and Hair Styling by Natalie Lyle and the 106 degree weather courtesy of our Palm Springs Sun!
Take Off With Us…
“Take off with us! Take off with us!”
“Up there where the clouds are pillowy…”
“What’s you’re answer, chum?
Are you gonna come on the coolest, hottest
Coolest, hottest, coolest, hottest trip that’s ever been?”
Sharon Lim and her Boeing Stearman adventure.
Fly Her To A Gym!
Fly her halfway around the world, put her in a gym and she is at home.Sharon Lim from Singapore at Power Of Fitness in Palm Desert. And even better, in front of my cameras! With Makeup and Hair Styling by Natalie Lyle. Thank You!
An Aviatrix Of Fitness
Let’s get those seat backs and tray tables up and your seat belts snug. Your pilot is Sharon Lim and it is going to be a bumpy ride! From Singapore to the NPC True Strength Games in Irving Texas, then to Palm Springs, we thought Sharon needed a different plane this time. A 1946 Boeing PT-17 A75N1 Stearman. U.S. Navy 555 at the Palm Springs Air Museum.
She Turned Her Back On Me!
Leave it to my best buddy Hannah Gordon Etherson to turn her back on me! Ok I will admit it was worth the view. On stage today at Muscle Beach/Veniceshe took home a Second Place Trophy! Yes!
It Is Ava Time!
My best buddy Ava Cowan from our photo shoot at Muscle Beach/Venice some time back. You know Ava Cowan from so many magazine features, on stage at the biggest shows, her magazine columns, videos, appearances and much more. Truly one of the most respected and beautiful women in our sport of fitness.
I know that many of you are evaluating your direction in fitness and competition. So now is the time. Ava just re-launced her website and is offering a 25% discount on customized programs that will get you where you want to go. And Ava knows what she is doing and is the person who will save you years of mis-direction and can indeed find tune you. So go to her Facebook page and her website. The discount code is 25_off but don’t wait. It is only good through Tuesday at midnight! Go take a look!http://www.avacowan.com/




















