Last week, while working down in Louisiana, I had the opportunity to explore the French Quarter of New Orleans. If you ever get the chance to go there I highly recommend it. The French Quarter is alive with live music, colorful people, and great food. As any photographer would, I had a camera along side me. Here are some of my favorite photos I shot. Thanks for looking.
Matt
A few months back a good friend of mine, and fellow photographer, Mike Roemer approached me asking if I would be willing to help him put together a multimedia video for a local no kill animal shelter in the area called Happily Ever After. I have been wanting to build up my video portfolio and looked at this as a great way to add a new piece to it. Not only would it be something I could walk away with, showing off what I could do with video, but also more importantly it would help the Happily Ever After organization to promote them selves which can be hard to do for a non-profit organization.
Going into the project I knew a little about what the organization was all about. As we dove deeper into the project, I grew to understand why it was important to help promote the Happily Ever After organization. The organization’s mission states: “Through the work of the sanctuary and its education, adoption, and spay/neuter programs, the mission of Happily Ever After is to provide both temporary and lifetime care to animals and bring about a time when all the companion animals born in to this world will be guaranteed a quality of life in a loving home.”
Amanda Reitz, who started HEA, and her team of volunteers put all their love and care into taking care of companion animals in need. This was made evident to me right away the first day of shooting. It also became clear why the project was so important to Mike since he and his wife adopted their dog Chica from the sanctuary.
This was a great project to work on with Mike and the folks at HEA, Especially Amanda and Erin. I’m looking forward to helping them out again in the future. For more information about Happily Ever After check out their website. www.happilyeverafterinfo.org. Thanks for looking.
Matt
This has been a shot I have wanted to create for a long time. Being a fan of TV shows like The Walking Dead and Doomsday Preppers, I thought it would be cool to create a portrait of a survivor of the end of the world. Since we haven’t gotten to the end of the world yet, creating a composite was the only way to pull off the vision I had for this image. I used much of the same techniques that I had blogged about before in my motorcycle composite post. I gathered up some props, shot my backgrounds, and finally shot the portrait and put it all together. Thanks for looking.
Matt
This past Saturday the UW-Green Bay Phoenix mens basketball team rolled over Cleveland St., 77-50, winning their 7th home game in a row. I had the pleasure of shooting the game for the UW-Green Bay sports information department. Here are some of my favorite shots from the game. Thanks again for looking.
Matt
It’s always cool when you randomly see photos you shot being used in advertisements out in the world. I’ve seen images I shot commercially for clients used in various places but I had not seen many of my NFL football photos being used in anything other than editorial publications. Last year during a preseason Packer game I was congratulated by a fellow photographer for a photo I shot of Clay Matthews that was being used in an ad campaign for Verizon. Truth be told I had not known that an image I shot was being used in a Verizon ad until that photographer told me. Shortly after that I started to see the ad being used in various locations. It was very cool and rewarding to see your images that you worked hard to get being used on such a big stage.
A similar surprise came to me this past fall as I was shopping with my family at our local grocery store. Just as I was grabbing a loaf of bread off the shelf I hear my wife say, “hey is that your photo?” Turing around to see what the heck she was talking about, I noticed a Gatorade ad on a display with a picture I had taken from a Packer game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Again it was a pleasant surprise to see.
Seeing your work being used definitely helps to motivate you especially when you question your existence as a photographer. It helps to reinforce that what you do is, at some level, appreciated and it pushes you to work harder and get better in hopes that down the road, seeing your work out in the world will be a more common occurrence.
Matt
This past Saturday the Packers took on the Vikings in a Wild Card playoff game at Lambeau Field. I think everyone going into this game thought it would be a tough, very evenly matched game since the week before the Vikings beat the Packers by a field goal. As it turned out, the Packers had a pretty easy time rolling over the Vikings in the first round of the playoffs. Although the Packers didn’t play perfect football, they managed to play well enough to advance on to San Francisco to play the 49ers this Saturday. Let’s hope they keep their winning streak going all the way to the Superbowl. Here are some of my favorite shots. Thanks for looking.
Matt
Green Bay Packers inside linebacker A.J. Hawk.
Minnesota Vikings quarterback Joe Webb passes against the Green Bay Packers.
Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson.
Green Bay Packers running back DuJuan Harris scores a touchdown against the Minnesota Vikings.
Minnesota Vikings quarterback Joe Webb is hit while scrambling with the ball by Green Bay Packers defensive end C.J. Wilson.
Green Bay Packers wide receiver James Jones is hit after making a catch by Minnesota Vikings free safety Harrison Smith.
Green Bay Packers wide receiver Greg Jennings.
Green Bay Packers fullback John Kuhn rushes for a touchdown against the Minnesota Vikings.
Green Bay Packers fullback John Kuhn spikes the ball after scoring a touchdown against the Minnesota Vikings.
Green Bay Packers fullback John Kuhn spikes the ball after scoring a touchdown against the Minnesota Vikings.
Green Bay Packers fullback John Kuhn performs a Lambeau leap after scoring a touchdown against the Minnesota Vikings.
Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Jarius Wright stretches for extra yards while being hit by Green Bay Packers free safety M.D. Jennings.
Green Bay Packers fullback John Kuhn scores a touchdown after being hit by Minnesota Vikings strong safety Jamarca Sanford.
Green Bay Packers fullback John Kuhn yells after scoring a touchdown against the Minnesota Vikings.
Green Bay Packers outside linebacker Clay Matthews hits Minnesota Vikings quarterback Joe Webb after throwing a pass.
For those of you keeping tabs on this blog, you may have noticed that I didn’t post any photos from the Packers vs Lions Sunday Night Football game a few weeks back. Well it turns out I was at the game, but I wasn’t there shooting the game. About a week before the game I got a call from an entertainment photo agency out of LA called Invision. The folks at Invision had been asked to hire a photographer to tag along with and shoot Larry The Cable Guy that Sunday before the game in Green Bay. Larry is traveling around the country to different venues for Prilosec to promote the new Wildberry flavor of Prilosec OTC. At each venue he shoots a quick video spot for a webisode on the internet and hangs out with folks tailgating. He usually teams up with an area celebrity each place he stops. This time around he was teamed up with Packer great Gilbert Brown. The two hung out in the parking lot of Brett Favre’s Steak House and did their thing. Both guys were very cool to work with. About an hour before the start of the game, we went over to Lambeau so Larry could take a walk down around the field prior to kickoff. Needles to say, the whole experience was cool to be a part of. Thanks to all the folks at Invision, MSL Group out of New York and Prilosec. Oh, and if you are wondering, Dan Whitney (aka Larry the Cable Guy) is very down to earth, hard working, professional and even behind closed doors is funny has hell.
Here are some quick snaps from the night, Thanks for looking.
Matt
Frequent heartburn sufferer and comedian Larry the Cable Guy shows off his signature sleeveless shirt to fans at a tailgate party in Green Bay to promote new Prilosec OTC Wildberry.
Frequent heartburn sufferer and comedian Larry the Cable Guy, left, and former nose tackle Gilbert Brown, right, tailgate with fans in Green Bay to promote new Prilosec OTC Wildberry.
Frequent heartburn sufferer and comedian Larry the Cable Guy, left, and former nose tackle Gilbert Brown, right, tailgate with fans in Green Bay to promote new Prilosec OTC Wildberry.
Frequent heartburn sufferer and comedian Larry the Cable Guy tailgates with fans in Green Bay to promote new Prilosec OTC Wildberry.
Frequent heartburn sufferer and comedian Larry the Cable Guy, right, tailgates with fans in Green Bay to promote new Prilosec OTC Wildberry.
Larry the Cable Guy between takes of the video shoot.
Frequent heartburn sufferer and comedian Larry the Cable Guy throws promotional materials to fans in Green Bay to promote new Prilosec OTC Wildberry.
Frequent heartburn sufferer and comedian Larry the Cable Guy, left, and former nose tackle Gilbert Brown, right, tailgate with fans in Green Bay to promote new Prilosec OTC Wildberry.
Frequent heartburn sufferer and comedian Larry the Cable Guy jokes around with cheerleaders in Green Bay while promoting new Prilosec OTC Wildberry.
Frequent heartburn sufferer and comedian Larry the Cable Guy greets a fan in Green Bay while promoting new Prilosec OTC Wildberry .
Frequent heartburn sufferer and comedian Larry the Cable Guy energizes the crowd prior to kickoff in Green Bay while promoting new Prilosec OTC Wildberry.
Frequent heartburn sufferer and comedian Larry the Cable Guy, right, shakes hands with Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, left, while in Green Bay to promote new Prilosec OTC Wildberry.
Technical Note: Boys and girls, this is what happens when you aren’t paying attention and move from a brightly lit area to a dimly lit area and don’t change the settings on your camera to compensate for the new environment. Thankfully I had a little fill flash working to help create a little motion freeze to a great spontaneous moment that was almost lost due to stupidity . Not great but salvageable.
Last weekend the Packers looked impressive when they dominated a struggling Tennessee Titans team. The Packers seem to be firing on all cylinders which is good to seen since the playoffs are only a couple of weeks away. Hopefully today they can beat a tough Minnesota Vikings team and grab the second spot in the NFC playoffs. I can’t wait to shoot some playoff football. Here are my favorite shots from the Packers vs Titans. Thanks for looking.
Matt
Two Coast Guard helicopters fly over Lambeau Field prior to an NFL football game between the Green Bay Packers and Tennessee Titans.
Green Bay Packers wide receiver Randall Cobb breaks the tackle of Tennessee Titans cornerback Coty Sensabaugh.
Green Bay Packers running back Ryan Grant rushes against the Tennessee Titans.
Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers in action against the Tennessee Titans.
Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers rushes for a touchdown against the Tennessee Titans.
Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers rushes for a touchdown against the Tennessee Titans.
Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers spikes the ball after scoring a touchdown against the Tennessee Titans .
Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers is chased by photographers as he makes his way to the stands to celebrate a touchdown scored against the Tennessee Titans.
Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers jumps into the stands to celebrate a touchdown against theTennessee Titans.
Green Bay Packers wide receiver Randall Cobb scores a touchdown while being covered by Tennessee Titans cornerback Coty Sensabaugh.
Green Bay Packers wide receiver Randall Cobb performs a Lambeau Leap after scoring a touchdown against the Tennessee Titans.
Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers looks to pass against the Tennessee Titans.
Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers is hit during a play by Tennessee Titans outside linebacker Zach Brown.
Green Bay Packers running back Ryan Grant is hit during a play by Tennessee Titans middle linebacker Tim Shaw.
Green Bay Packers wide receiver James Jones has the back of his jersey pulled during a play by Tennessee Titans Jason McCourty.
Green Bay Packers running back Ryan Grant scores a touchdown against the Tennessee Titans.
Tennessee Titans quarterback Matt Hasselbeck looks out onto the field after the Green Bay Packers scored a touchdown against the Tennessee Titans.
Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers looks to the sidelines in-between plays against the Tennessee Titans.
Last night the Marquette mens basketball team played a non conference game against UW-Green Bay here in Green Bay. Needless to say, it was one of the most exciting college basketball games I have ever shot. The UW-Green Bay Phoenix were a big under-dog going into the game. The Phoenix consistently kept pace score wise with Marquette by playing some great defense. In the end were able to come away with a 49-47 point victory over the Golden Eagles. Being a UWGB alumni, it was very exciting. Here are ten of my favorite shots of the game. Thanks for looking.
Matt
Wisconsin-Green Bay’s Keifer Sykes shoots over Marquette’s Chris Otule (42) and Derrick Wilson (12) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Wednesday, Dec. 19, 2012, in Green Bay, Wis.
Wisconsin-Green Bay’s Alec Brown (21) and Jordan Fouse (4) fight for possession of a loose ball with Marquette’s Juan Anderson during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Wednesday, Dec. 19, 2012, in Green Bay, Wis.
Marquette’s head coach Buzz Williams yells to his team during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game against Wisconsin-Green Bay Wednesday, Dec. 19, 2012, in Green Bay, Wis.
Marquette’s Junior Cadougan drives for a lay up past Wisconsin-Green Bay’s Keifer Sykes during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Wednesday, Dec. 19, 2012, in Green Bay, Wis.
Marquette’s Vander Blue dunks the ball unguarded during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game against Wisconsin-Green Bay Wednesday, Dec. 19, 2012, in Green Bay, Wis.
Wisconsin-Green Bay’s head coach Brian Wardle yells at a official during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game against Marquette Wednesday, Dec. 19, 2012, in Green Bay, Wis.
Wisconsin-Green Bay’s Jordan Fouse blocks a shot taken by Marquette’s Junior Cadougan during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game Wednesday, Dec. 19, 2012, in Green Bay, Wis.
Wisconsin-Green Bay’s Sultan Muhammad right and Marquette’s Davante Gardner fight for a loose ball during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game Wednesday, Dec. 19, 2012, in Green Bay, Wis.
Wisconsin-Green Bay’s Keifer Sykes (24) and assistant coach Chrys Cornelius celebrate a last second win against Marquette during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game Wednesday, Dec. 19, 2012, in Green Bay, Wis.
Wisconsin-Green Bay’s Greg Mays (15) and Keifer Sykes (24) congratulate each other after a last second win against Marquette during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game Wednesday, Dec. 19, 2012, in Green Bay, Wis. Wisconsin-Green Bay defeats Marquette 49 – 47.
Recently I started experimenting with building composite images in Photoshop. I always have been drawn to the great composite work of photographers like Joel Grimes and Dave Hill just to name a couple. I’ve been intrigued with the thought of being able to come up with a photo in my head and being able to execute it fully without being limited by things like time of day, location, budget, weather along with the many other factors that can complicate the creation of a photo. Building composites allows you total control over your final image. Not everyone is a fan of this type of work though and it may not render the right type of photo that a client may be looking for in certain situations. But I think when a client knows you have the ability to create something different like a composite image in your photography arsenal, you become just a little bit more valuable.
Now by no means do I think the two images I have created are perfect examples of composite images. Lets just say I jumped in the pool with out really knowing how to swim. The two images are a couple of shots I had bouncing around in my head for a while. I wanted to shoot some cool sort of edgy shots of my buddy Jon and his motorcycle for my portfolio. I wanted something with a little bit different, a little bit more surreal feel to the final image than just your run of the mill environmental portrait. I got some books, watched some demos on the internet and thought building a composite would be a great way to execute these images. So I gave my buddy Jon a call and he was all on board to help me out by donating his time and bike in exchange for some nice pics of him and his ride.
The images of Jon and his motorcycle were all shot on a white seamless in order to easily extract him and the bike from the image. Below are a couple of lighting diagrams showing how I lit him and the bike.
This was the set up to for the shot of Jon holding his helmet as well as him on his motorcycle.
Shot of Jon straight out of camera unedited.
Jon on his motorcycle straight out of camera unedited.
This was the set up for the motorcycle by its self.
Motorcycle straight out of camera unedited.
The next task at hand was to go shoot some backgrounds. The background for the portrait shot of Jon walking from the bike was shot on the top level of a parking ramp in downtown Green Bay. The Background for the shot of Jon riding was actually taken not to far from my house. Taking a page out of the Joel Grimes book of composite creation (I don’t believe Joel has an actual book on creating composites) I decided to shoot HDRs of my background to help get as much dynamic range as possible since both shots were heavily backlit. The HDRs were then quickly processed in Photomatix Pro before being taken into Photoshop to put together.
Six exposure HDR combined in Photomatix Pro unedited.
I didn’t think the sky was interesting enough for what I wanted so I went into my library of sky photos and created this HDR to use.
The background for the riding shot. Six exposure HDR combined in Photomatix Pro unedited.
Then after a great deal of extracting parts, adjusting layers, dodging and burning, creating shadows and a bunch of other Photoshop magic, I finally churned out a couple of images. Thanks again for looking.
Matt
Matt Ludtke | Photography Blog 