We've moved!!

The Tony Richards Photoblog that you know and love has a new address.  You can either go to www.tonyrichardsphoto.com and click on the 'blog' link or go straight to the blog at www.tonyrichardsphoto.com/blog. 

Portaits and concrete

One of the buildings in Georgetown has a fantastic undeveloped space full of exposed wires, concrete floors, and randomly painted pillars that was just begging for a portrait session.  Melissa was generous enough to pose for the camera in a couple of outfits to create some different moods and attitudes for me.  Isaac even jumped in at the end to create a "cool, casual" type of photo.  We had lots of fun and I definitely want to shoot up there again.  

The Great Outdoors

I spent a couple days taking in some sunshine and just enjoying some time outside.  One of those days was spent at Great Falls National Park photographing some kayakers.  One of my goals is to photograph people being active and this was the first step on my journey...

The second day was spent at the Mall.  I was there to photograph the joggers who run around the museums and the monuments.  Unfortunately none of those photos really came out.  But I did shoot the reflection of the Washington Monument in my sunglasses as I was leaving... 

Studio Portraits

Spent some time with photographer Gaston Lacombe in the studio last week photographing Juan Luis and Fabien. 

Baseball photo featured in Pixcetera

This post is only about three months late but that's ok.  My baseball photo that won for best student advertising at FotoWeek DC 2009 is part of a featured gallery at Pixcetera.  If you haven't visited their site before now is your chance.  They have a great selection of galleries ranging from fashion to food to lifestyle:

http://www.pixcetera.com/pixcetera/fotoweek-dc-2009-award-winners/70776

Dancing With Light

Last week Melissa was kind enough to come into the studio for some dancing photos.  Her graceful dancing motions were crying out for some lighting accents.  Enter the two flashlights - one in red and one in white.  This "painting with light" technique allows a flash to freeze Melissa at the start of her routine while the remaining 29 seconds of exposure only captures the flashlight motion. (click on photo for larger version)

Beauty in nature

It was warm and sunny today so I decided to grab the old camera and spend the afternoon at Glen Echo Park near Bethesda, Maryland.  The area was originally a giant amusement park in the early 1900's and has since been converted to an arts educational center.  Many of the original buildings are still being used for offices and classrooms.  There is a small creek that runs along the side of the park and feeds into the Potomac River.  This is where I spent much of the afternoon - precariously balancing on rocks in the creek trying to get the perfect shot without falling in the water and destroying my ankles or my precious equipment. 

This is the first time that I feel my nature photos actually do justice to the real thing.  Normally I photograph some pretty trees or water and it comes out looking flat and boring.  Somehow everything came together today to produce something that might even make Mother Nature proud.

DC Rollergirls Bout

Here are a few photos from the DC Rollergirls bout at the Armory on January 16.  I had spent a couple weeks photographing the rollergirls during their practices back in November so I was familiar with the league and the action on the track.  But I was not prepared for intensity of an actual bout.  The skating was fast and the blocking was furious as the two teams battled it out on the track.  At the end of the day it was Cherry Blossom Bombshells over the visiting Harrisonburg Rocktown Rollers while the DC DemonCats fell to Scare Force One.

I am currently working on a multimedia piece showcasing the DC Rollergirls and the craziness that is a rollerderby bout.  Stay tuned.

(click on photo for larger version)

Washington Wizards

I am now on month three of my Washington Wizards photo internship.  It's been an interesting experience.  These large sports arenas are like little cities, and just like any new city it takes a while to get used to the layout.   There are places I can go where no one pays attention to me, there are places I can go where I get a stern warning, and then there are places I go where someone immediately escorts me away under threat of violence.  Guess which places produce the best photos??  That's probably true for a lot of photography.  You gotta have thick skin for this business.

Anyway, my actual internship consists of photographing the scoreboard but I occasionally point my camera toward the court for a little variety.  Here are some samples... (click on photo for larger version)