PIXELCHATTERKevin Brown, Photographer

Issue #42 WINTER 2013

Fun & Games

TM

Some shoots are just a walk in the park.

2013. Drink it UpMusings on what lies ahead.

What? No headshot?Is the corporate headshot dead?

ThunderboltMac upgrade is, uh, fast.

Kevin Brown, Photographer WINTER 2013

ello Two thousand Thirteen. I’m Kevin. I’ll just call you Thirteen. Nice to meet you. Come on in and sit a spell and tell me about yourself. Let’s take some time

and get acquainted.”Yep, our 2012 calendars have gone the way of the Mayans.Perhaps we dodged asteroids we didn’t know existed or a

plague that didn’t come to pass. Most of us even survived the death of the Twinkie.

I still wonder if the Mayans might have been predicting the end of the world based on the U.S. economy doing a not-so-pretty swan dive off a fiscal cliff. Where are the Fiscal Cliffs anyway? Near Acapulco I presume; they have cliff divers there.

But with all the clarity that we have looking back on the year that was, there are many questions about the year that is yet to be. It’s the same sort of feeling you get before your favorite football team’s first game of the season. Are we going 16-0 or are we gonna stink it up?

For some, a new year is a welcome turning of the page. For others it may be looked upon with dread.

Each new year seems to take on its own personality and brand itself on each of us in different ways. We may look back on previous years as good or bad like some may remember the vintage of a bottle of wine.

“Ah, ’83 was a good year.”I’m prepared for unknown challenges, optimistic about new

opportunities, and ready to taste whatever it is that good ol’ Thirteen has bottled up for me. I hope it tastes like ’12.

I have many questions about what lies ahead, but the answers will come in Thirteen’s time. Month by month. Day by day. Drop by drop.

Here’s hoping that Thirteen treats you well and pours your glass very full. Cheers.

H

A recent bio photo for a corporate client that wanted to depart from the traditional.

ON THE COVER

2013. Drink it up.Sc

ott

An

de

rso

n

Kevin Brown KBKevin Brown, Photographer and Chief Chatterer

kevinbrownphoto.com

“

For the best viewing experience, click on the two arrows at the top of the screen that look like this:

HNY

D R I N K R E S P O N S I B L Y

2013 is already upon us and no doubt you’ve already rang in the new year, but Happy New

Year just the same.

This image is just one of about 400 I shot for an e-book project that my father

put together in 2012.

I created a table-top studio in my dining room for the shoot. My kitchen was wall to wall with wine bottles and spirits of all types. (I even managed to swipe a couple of bottles when dad wasn’t looking. Okay, so he gave them to me.)

Check out the shots and the book “Wine Toasts for Lovers” in the

iTunes Book Store.

FOCUS:PEOPLE

Opposite: Bennet Benner Pettit Architects + Planners

Clockwise from top left: SKSW and Beta Land Services, Pegasus Ablon, The Big E Sports Show, Oncor

kevinbrownphoto.com

n early 2012 I made some new camera and lens purchases. (See PixelChatter #41). But I wasn’t finished. Next on my radar was to

upgrade my Mac and external drives.When I’m not shooting photos, I’m

processing files. And the faster the equipment, the quicker I can accomplish tasks.

Importing. Uploading. Downloading. These are things I’m doing every single day. And the files can be big. A RAW file from my Nikon D800 is 78 MB.

The hard drive on my first Mac was 40 MB. Astonishing to think my entire hard drive back in the late 80s wouldn’t hold one single photograph shot today.

The centerpiece of my workstation is a new 27” iMac. The specs are pretty amazing.

In addition to being just 5mm thin at its edge, the new Mac boasts a 3.4 GHz Quad-core Intel Core i7 processor with Turbo Boost for speeds up to 3.9 GHz, 32 GB of RAM, and a 3 TB Fusion Drive (Hard Drive + Flash Storage.)

I use two displays, so sitting just to the right of my iMac is a 27” Thunderbolt display.

Just what is Thunderbolt?Well, according to Apple, “Thunderbolt is a

revolutionary I/O technology that supports high-resolution displays and high-performance data devices through a single, compact port.”

Okay, fine. But how fast is it...really?It’s 10 gigabytes per second. Really.

Sold.But to put Thunderbolt to work you need

Thunderbolt drives. I’ve employed the Promise Pegasus 12TB R6 Raid System.

These are robust, quiet, and fast.I’m now able to transfer data 12 times

faster than with my previous FireWire 800 drives.

Another big increase in efficiency was introduced when I said goodbye to AT&T

DSL and switched over to Time Warner’s high-speed internet. My old DSL

download speeds poked along at about 5 MB/sec. A big download might take hours.

The new service has blazing speeds of up to 50 MB/sec.

I can’t imagine going back to the (slow) speeds I used before.

And streaming HD video to Apple TV via Wi-Fi is instantaneous. Zero wait time to begin watching an HD movie. Zero.

So I’m geared up for 2013 and loving it.If you’re on the fence about a new Mac and

Thunderbolt...or upgrading to faster internet, I say go for it. You’ll love the speed.

I

Ultra thin 27” iMac

Thunderbolt. Is. Fast...

Promise Pegasus R6 12 terabyte drive

...so is 50MB/sec internet download.

For techno-geeks only. You know who you are...

High-Speed I/O Performance

Thunderbolt connector

Kevin Brown, Photographer WINTER 2013

“Like,����������� ������������������  Follow����������� ������������������  me����������� ������������������  and����������� ������������������  we’ll����������� ������������������  Connect...”

kevinbrownphoto.com

Click����������� ������������������  each����������� ������������������  logo����������� ������������������  for����������� ������������������  a����������� ������������������  link����������� ������������������  to����������� ������������������  my����������� ������������������  page

tw twtw tw tw

Follow����������� ������������������  me����������� ������������������  on����������� ������������������  instagram����������� ������������������  at:����������� ������������������   KBROPHOTO

FOCUS:INDUSTRY

Opposite: Creative Magma and Lamb-Star Engineering

Clockwise from left: BearCom, Creative Magma / Lamb-Star Engineering

Bottom: Balfour Beatty Construction

Shootingoutside the b x

Is the (boring) corporate headshot dead?

photograph hundreds of people each year. (I’ve vowed to keep count of just how many in 2013). If I’m not shooting an environmental or editorial portrait of some kind, then most companies have historically wanted a basic and very traditional headshot against a gray or blue background.

Insert yawn here.Don’t get me wrong, I understand that in

many instances there is a need for a traditional headshot....and I’m happy to accommodate in creating that for dozens of clients each year.

But there’s an increasing trend that has companies moving away from the ho-hum and steering towards the daring. In circus terms I suppose you could say we’re shooting without a net. We’re stripping away the stuffy-say-cheese-and-bore-us pose for something more organic.

The shots are REAL.And they’re fun. And there’s no such thing

as a bad shot or a bad idea.I like to crank up some dance music during

a session like this and do everything I can to get that subject to shed the traditional facade and coax that little kid that resides in all of us to come out to play.

Whether a subject strikes a Mick Jagger inspired pose (right) or struggles to imitate Madonna’s Vogue dance moves (opposite bottom middle), the results are fun shots that, in the right context, can really make for a strong image to accompany that person’s corporate bio.

I

The folks at Property Solutions channel their fun side at a recent shoot at their new Frisco, TX offices in a studio created on-site.

More

Shootingoutside the b x

This client wanted to create shots that had the same feel as the Saturday Night Live bumper shots that feature an offbeat photo of the show’s host and the SNL logo, and are aired when going to commercial.

An assortment of simple props and creative poses made for some great results.

These are finished samples with blank space left intentionally to one side to accommodate the person’s name or the company logo for use on the company’s website.

1) For this particular shoot, all shots were made against gray seamless paper.

2) Then, select images were retouched and the background was knocked out, leaving only the subject.

3) A color gradient was added to the background and a shadow is added behind the subject.

4) A textured background is selected from a library of textures.

5) The texture is blended with the color background layer to complete the process.

1 2

3

5

4

Next page: Another subject shoots outside the box.

FOCUS:ACTORSMODELS

MUSICIANS

FOCUS:ARCHITECTURAL

Opposite: SKSW and Beta Land Services

Right: First ChoiceEmergency Rooms

Bottom: Corbet Group Construction

Fun&GamesSome assignments are nothing more than a walk in the park.

ot every assignment finds me walking among happy fairgoers, rubbing elbows with Bugs Bunny, or shooting photos of families enjoying

the thrills of an amusement ride. But with clients like The State Fair of Texas and Six Flags Theme Parks, those opportunities come along several times a year.

2012 saw numerous shoots for Six Flags and marked the tenth consecutive year that I’ve done work for The State Fair of Texas.

N

A couple cools off on a hot summer day at Six Flags Over Texas (opposite), and friends of Bugs Bunny enjoy a hot chocolate during Holiday in the Park, also at Six Flags Over Texas (above.)

Big TexThe State Fair of Texas

Top: A Texas Longhorn steer readies for show at The State Fair of Texas.

Right: Art deco sculpture...and the 212 foot Texas Star ferris wheel, both at The State Fair of Texas.

Clockwise: Enjoying a nut-covered candied apple, coming down the slide, and Disney Channel star Bridgit Mendler, all at The State Fair of Texas.

Left: A young bald eagle at the Birds of the World Show at The State Fair of Texas.

Below: A fisheye view from atop the Texas Star.

Various livestock and more at The State Fair of Texas.

Left: A young boy at Six Flags Hurricane Harbor.....riders zip backwards as Mr. Freeze launches at top speed.

Below: A group of guests at Six Flags Over Texas.

Top: The Texas Chute Out is demolished to make room for a new ride at Six Flags Over Texas.

Right: A group of guests on Titan at Six Flags Over Texas.

y kids crack me up. Kids really do say the darnedest things, don’t

they. Something was said the other day - I don’t remember what exactly - but it got us laughing about some of the funny stuff our kids said when they were little. My kids are 12 and 10 now, but here are a few funny things they said when they were much younger:

At a baseball game, Matthew - about age 4 or 5 - was hungry and said, “Dad, can we go to the confession stand?”

My daughter Lauren’s favorite movie as a little kid was The Lizard of Oz.

It wasn’t until we got our kids the video game Guitar Hero that my son finally realized the name of the Foreigner song was Juke Box Hero and not Juice Box Hero.

• • • • • Dallas Cowboys QB Tony Romo is 1 for 6

on make-or-break games to advance to or thru the playoffs since he started playing. He’s a polarizing figure in Dallas and I think it has little to do with his skills as a QB. He’s the quarterback of one of the biggest sports franchises in the world and is consistently named an ‘elite’ player by his peers. Some

would argue Romo is indeed a great player, destined to go on to break many of the Dallas Cowboys QB records. Others disagree. I’m one of them; I’d love to see Romo gone.

Playing ability aside, I think Tony Romo doesn’t need as much coaching on the field

as he needs coaching off the field. Please, Mr. Jones, hire a PR firm to teach Romo how to be interviewed and how to be likable, because he’s not.

• • • • • I finished second in the Fantasy Football League I play in. I drafted well and was in 1st or 2nd place all season long. I’m already longing for the beginning of the 2013 NFL season, and the current season is just entering the playoffs.

• • • • • One of the most anticipated

movies of 2012, for me at least, was released on Christmas Day. Django Unchained is the latest from Quentin Tarantino and stars Jamie Foxx and the brilliant Christoph Walz. Walz was simply amazing in Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds. (Yep, that’s how you spell it.) So, the day after Christmas we went to see the movie.

Extremely disappointing. It had the Tarantino B-movie flavor

including an old “Columbia Pictures” logo opening straight out of the 1960s.

And the soundtrack was completely all over the map. One minute you hear Jim Croce’s I Got a Name in its entirety as Foxx and Walz ride across the plains, and five minutes later you’re hearing a rap song called 100 Black Coffins.

Those are intermixed with previously-released music by famed film composers Jerry Goldsmith and Ennio Morricone (of The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly fame.)

And don’t forget James Brown and John Legend.

Did I mention this is a western?Tarantino calls it a southern.Like it’s soundtrack, Django couldn’t

decide what kind of movie it wanted to be. It had an identity crisis. At times it was funny, always brutal and violent (never seen so much blood from a gunshot, but hey, it’s Tarantino), and sometimes it was totally cheesy and almost campy.

But for everything it did have, what it didn’t have was a nice tight story. The story wasn’t bad, but wasn’t great. And if you don’t have a good story, you don’t have a good movie.

The tension wasn’t there either as it was in so many great scenes in Basterds.

The most fitting part of the movie [spoiler alert] is when Tarantino himself, playing a bit part at the end of the film, gets blown to smithereens by dynamite.

He got just what he deserved for making me want something so bad and then failing so miserably to deliver.

OFFSHOOTSRAMBLINGS, RANTS, AND RAVES ABOUT STUFF, AND OTHER STUFF...

Kevin Brown

kevinbrownphoto.com

M

Django should’ve stayed chained.

Twitter link Twitter link Twitter link Twitter link Twitter link Twitter link Twitter link Twitter link Twitter link Twitter link Twitter link Twitter link Twitter link Twitter link Twitter link Twitter link Twitter link Twitter link Twitter link Twitter link Twitter link Twitter link Twitter link Twitter link

What’s On My Feed?It’s surprising to me that Django has made so many

(any) ‘Best Movies of 2012’ lists.• • • • •

Another movie I’m looking forward to is Zero Dark Thirty. Can’t wait for that and was really disappointed when the broad release opening date was moved from December 19 to January 11. I’ll be there.

Did you see Rock Center with Brian Williams on Dec. 27? It was about the mission to get Bin Laden and took viewers inside the Situation Room at the White House. Pretty cool. It originally aired back in May, but I missed it. It’s currently available on-line.

• • • • • Normally this time of year I’d really be looking

forward to American Idol, but have to admit that I have no plans on watching it this year. It’s become all about the judges more than ever and I have no desire to see a cat fight between Mariah Carey and Nicki no-talent Minaj.

• • • • • If you haven’t been to the downtown area of

Arlington, Texas in a while, it’s worth a visit. The past year or so have seen some nice additions in restaurant and entertainment offerings. For you foodies, you can dive into a burger at The Twisted Root Burger Company and belly up to the Winnebago bar inside. But if you want a better burger, go down the street to The Grease Monkey Burger Shop and Social Club.

For pizza there’s the Mellow Mushroom, and comfort food fans can walk down the sidewalk to Babe’s Chicken Dinner House.

Don’t forget The Flying Fish, and of course there are the old classics like J. Gilligan’s Bar and Grill and more recently Fuzzy’s Taco Shop.

The Levitt Pavilion is a really nice outdoor amphitheater and just a block or two away is the Arlington Music Hall. Willie Nelson played there in November. Last night I drove by and saw Sara Evans name on the marquee.

• • • • • So that’s about it for this one. Thanks for reading

and a sincere Happy New Year to you!

- Kevin Brown

If this is the first PixelChatter you’ve received and you’re hungry for more,you can read the previous issue here: PixelChatter Issue No. 41

kevinbrownphoto.com

Thank you!A very sincere thank you to all the clients that played a role in making 2012 a great year. With over 165 shoots, it was my busiest year ever and I appreciate each and every one of you. Hope to see you again this year!

Alerian

ArgoArlington , TX CVB

Arlington TrolleyAshley Prewett

Balfour Beatty ConstructionBearCom

The Beck GroupBehan Group

BenncheBilly Bob’s TexasBNC Construction

BNSF Railway CompanyBoster Gourmet Catering

BrightwingBrockette Davis Drake, Inc.

Camden Property TrustCelanese

Central Park ENTCentral Texas Title

Corporate Finance AssociatesCLA USA and CLA Estate ServicesColeman-Rayner

CopartCorbet Group, Inc.

Core 24Creative Magma, Inc.

Crescent Real Estate EquitiesDallas Institute of Funeral Service

Dupree DanceEar Nose and Throat Centers of Texas

Electronic Security Association

Emdeon

Evos FinancialFarah Padamsee

Financial Advisor MagazineFirst Choice Emergency Rooms

Fleet AdvantageFreese and Nichols, Inc.

Good Sam ClubHammerhead Offroad

Hannah Claire MusicHarrison & Hull, LLPHome Advisor

House of ShineinTEST Corporation

Julie SassKeller Williams Realty

Kemper SpecialtyKen Brown Studio

Kubota Tractor CorporationLamb-Star Engineering, LP

LDG DevelopmentLifeScience LogisticsMeeting Professionals International

Michael Dallas Wealth ManagementMonica Comeaux

NexCourtNike

NTT AmericaOncor

Pegasus AblonPeinado Construction

Phoenix Health Systems

The Pivot Group

Property SolutionsPublic Strategies, Inc.

RCG Global ServicesRespario, LP

RobotixRosenberger CDS

Six Flags Over TexasSix Flags Theme Parks

SKDKnickerbockerSKSWSonal Desai, DDS

Stan StamperThe State Fair of Texas

Surface Armor, LLCTD Ameritrade

TM SolutionsTenet Healthcare

Todd WhitthorneTexas Pacific Group Creative Capital

Trader’s VillageTransplaceUnion Pacific Railroad

Wagon Yard FurnitureWeb-TPA

Weir Oil and GasWeir SPM

Wendy Davis CampaignWoodard Insurance

WWII MagazineZAK Products

It’s a new year. Time for a new headshot.

Put your best face forward.Your headshot says a lot about you. Make sure it says the right thing.

It may be the first impression that people have of you and you know the old saying,“you only have one chance at a first impression.”

Don’t blow it.

My headshot business is geared towards bringing the studio to you.I’ll set up a studio environment at your offices and can photograph

you and your colleagues in a half-day or full-day session.

So, whether you want to go with a classic headshot style, or a natural light portrait, or if you want to be more daring and ‘shoot outside the box’, let me help.

We’ll get you some great shots.

Email or call to book a session.kevin@kevinbrownphoto.com

817-454-6252

FINALFRAME

A GTS 250 by Hammerhead Offroad. Shot for their new website, currently in development.

Subscribe to PixelChatter

Kevin Brown, Photographer, LLC817-454-6252

©2013 Kevin Brown, Photographer, LLC.