Matthew Smith

University Center Hilarity

admin — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 14:33:07 +0000

Congrats to the Mercer Bears Basketball team on winning the CIT Tournament! Apparently overnight, some revelers decided to “decorate” the University Center.

Sunday Funday

admin — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 03:06:28 +0000

This past Sunday, we decided to have a “Family Day” in our backyard. I smoked some ribs and we just hung out all day outside in the beautiful weather. Since i had just recently purchased a new lens (Nikon 35mm 1.8), I figured this was the perfect opportunity to run it through its paces. After using it all day, i can honestly say i’m going to be using this one a lot!

You can see all of the photos from Sunday here.

First Birthday

admin — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 19:25:20 +0000

Here are a couple of photos from my last session. It was for a 1st birthday party. The first one was taken outside in the client’s backyard. The second was taken inside. I’m still learning a lot about indoor lighting…with a lot more still to learn!

Law School Boxer

admin — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 15:56:31 +0000

This is a quick shot from a photo shoot I did yesterday. The photo is for a story in the upcoming Mercer Law Magazine. My subject moonlights as a boxer in her spare time, so I had her stand on the front lawn of the Law School while holding her gloves. I hope she likes the story and accompanying photos…i don’t want to get on her bad side!

Aiden’s 5th Birthday Party

admin — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 20:28:33 +0000

I can’t believe my niece, Aiden, is turning 5 years old! As they say, time certainly flies. Once again, i was “hired” (hehe) to photograph the events of her party. As you can see, the color pink and bright sparkles abounded. It was a “Princess Party” and all guests had an absolute blast. I’ve got a hunch that Maddie’s next party is going to be very similar.

For all of the photos from the party, click here.

Christmas Holidays

admin — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 18:36:13 +0000

The Christmas Holidays have come and gone and we’re all trying to get back into a normal routine. I was off for almost 2 weeks and loved it! I had a great time spending it with family and friends. As usual, i carried my camera to all of the festivities. The full gallery can be seen here.

Cookies With Santa

admin — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 14:19:28 +0000

Recently, I was asked to shoot the “Cookies With Santa” event for Tattnall Square Academy. We had a great turnout, with over 40 children getting the chance to tell Santa what they wanted for Christmas this year. It was a great experience for me, because it was my first real “studio” shoot. On my end, i considered it a great success! No stands knocked over and no equipment broken. Win!

The above photo is one of my favorite images that came out of the event. During a break in the action, i was showing Santa how I had been wirelessly sending the images to my iPad, via Shuttersnitch. This allowed for the parents to view the photos almost immediately after they were taken, which they loved. He was quite intrigued, so i took a quick shot while he was having a look at it.

DIY Light Tent

admin — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 19:19:03 +0000

I can’t take original credit for this. My cousin, Mark, showed me this awesome DIY project and i knew I had to give it a try! As a poor, fledgling freelance photographer on the side, I can appreciate the value of saving a few bucks. In this case, I saved a TON! I’ve been meaning to complete this project for a while, and I figured I could use it for the occasional ebay product shot. If anything, It doesn’t hurt to add a new member to my ever-growing photography gadget collection. Luckily, we ran across some old Mercer memorabilia at the office that we wanted to document, so I was given the perfect opportunity to give it a try.

I’ll save you the details of exactly how I built this. (If you really want to know, i’m happy to describe in further detail. Just send me a message or email and i’ll give you the lowdown.) The only materials I used were:

1 cardboard box (mine was approximately 13 x 17)
1 Sheet foamcore board
1 sheet of thin, white paper for the “windows”
1 sheet of poster board

That’s it! And to top it off, the only thing I actually had to purchase was the sheet of poster board. I was able to “borrow” everything else from my around my office. So all in all, this project cost me less than $1! Seriously, you can’t buy ANYTHING for less than a dollar these days. As far as tools used, all i needed was an exacto knife, a metal ruler and a pencil. I think all in all, it ended up taking me around 45 minutes to finish.

Using the light tent is super simple. You simply take your off-camera flash (I have a Nikon SB-600) and place it on either side of the box, facing through the “window”. Then, setup your camera however you normally would using an off-camera flash and shoot. That’s it. Very, very easy.

A couple of small examples of the results are available after the break.

Cutting Down a Christmas Tree

admin — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 14:12:04 +0000

Here are a few photos from our “Annual Christmas Tree Cutting”. As is our tradition, we headed out to Sandy Creek Farm on the Sunday after Thanksgiving.

This year, in addition the the Frazier Fir we usually get, we selected a small tree for my office to give Maddie the experience of picking it out and cutting it down. She had a ball and did her best to “help” me cut it down.

Here’s a link to all of the photos.

The Big House

admin — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 02:55:25 +0000

Here’s a cool photo of the Big House (home of the Allman Brothers Band Museum) that I took on request for a client. I really like how this came out and i might have to get a print made of it myself! To view or purchase this photo and to see a few others like it, go here. It would make a great Christmas gift for the ABB fan in your family (hint, hint)!