Lancaster PA Portrait Photographer - Blog

New Danville Fire Company Model Shoot

Doug Hilton — Sat, 15 Oct 2011 18:17:25 +0000

Each year, the Lancaster Camera Club hosts a "Model Shoot" somewhere in Lancaster County. The last one I went to was two years ago at County Park in the Garden of the Five Senses (photos here), and I had a great time. It was a great way to work with other photographers and willing models in a great location. I've since used that location for other portrait shoots. I wasn't able to make it last year, but this year I made it a point to go. This year, the event was held at the New Danville Fire Company.

The evening started out well weather wise, but then turned to storms. We were able to shoot for a while outside before the storms came in, and that's where the real drama came from. Shooting with off-camera lights, I was able to balance the background (the great stormy sky) with the model and got some great shots!

Take a look at some of my favorites and special thanks to the volunteer firefighters and models that were so gracious with their time and talents!

Newborn Twins!

Doug Hilton — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 00:31:40 +0000

What a pleasure to work with these two adorable newborns! They took turns being awake and sleeping, allowing me to do whatever I wanted with them and gave me some incredible shots! They are fraternal twins, one girl and one boy.

October First Friday Showing/Studio Grand Opening

Doug Hilton — Sun, 02 Oct 2011 20:06:10 +0000

A few months ago, I was approached by a local photographer who had some studio space in the Keppel Building in Lancaster. He was looking to move into a bigger space, and was looking for some other photographers to go in on the project. We have been working to get the new space in order for the past month, and this Friday (October 7th) is our Grand Opening!

I will be showing some of my recent work, along with some of the other photographers sharing the space. It's First Friday in Lancaster, so stop by the Keppel Building on the 300 block of N. Queen St from 5:00 to 10:00. We are on the second floor, suite 210. Hope to see you all there!

Images For A Cure 2011

Doug Hilton — Sun, 18 Sep 2011 23:09:59 +0000

For the third year running I will be a participating photographer in the Images For A Cure event to raise money for The Breast Cancer Research Foundation®. Last year was an amazing year, with great participation, and I'm hoping to surpass that level of excitement and participation in 2011.

Having seen cancer effect the lives of loved ones, and being a cancer survivor myself, I understand the need for continued research, and the funding necessary to carry out that research. By participating in this fundraiser, I am able to offer portrait sessions on select dates in November with 100% of the session fee donated to the fundraiser.

Sessions will be offered November 5, 6, 12 or 13 2011, in plenty of time to get family or kid photos taken for inclusion in holiday greetings. Holiday photo cards as well as traditional prints are available, and will be processed in time for the holidays with orders placed by Nov 25. All other portrait session types are available as well. Please ask for details.

Spots are limited. If you are interesting in more information, or to book a session, please contact me by using the "Contact Me" link at the top of the website or call 717.615.2557. Sessions must be booked and the donations made by October 31 to qualify for this amazing event.

Bekah's 1 Year Photos

Doug Hilton — Sat, 05 Mar 2011 21:18:01 +0000

Mom is due with her second child and wanted to get some early 1 year photos of her first child before things got hectic with the new baby. Given that it's been cold and dreary out here in Lancaster lately, we decided to do some quick photos inside, studio style in front of a white seamless. Once we get some nice weather, we will finish the shoot outside to get some more variety. Below are a couple of my favorites as a sneak peek for Mom and Dad!

PCAD Portrait and Event Photography Class

Doug Hilton — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 01:21:00 +0000

For the past 5 weeks, I've been immersed in photography for 3 hours a day, two nights a week taking the "Portrait and Event Photography" course at the Pennsylvania College of Art and Design in Lancaster. It's been a great experience, working with other photographers as closely as we did, and getting to know some great people. The class consisted of a lot of shooting, both in class and outside, and then critique. The critique was by far, the most valuable part of taking the class. Getting the opinions of everyone else on my images, and giving my opinions of their images reinforced what works and what doesn't, as well as gave me some great ideas for posing and locations on upcoming shoots.

It was during the final portfolio critique that I discovered the style that I've had all along. All of the images chosen for the final, and now displayed in the portfolio section of my website, have the same punchy, vibrant, fun flare to them, including the shot shown to the right, which I shot of one of the other photographers attending the class.

Regardless of where you are in your career, taking a class such as this one, attending a workshop, or being active with local photography groups gives you a great opportunity to see what others are doing, and share what you are doing. It's through the sharing of information, locations, poses, gear reviews and all other things photographic that we all become better at our art, and achieve greater results in our final images.

Newborn!

Doug Hilton — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 01:55:38 +0000

I was lucky enough to photograph this 9 day old cutie born to a good friend of mine from work. He was great to work with, and so were his parents! I went into the shoot with a few "must grabs" in mind, but went knowing that Bhodi would dictate the direction of the shoot. Flexibility is the name of the game when shooting someone that is still getting used to the world, and we worked with that without issue. We tried a few poses, took a few breaks for feedings and then went back for a few more poses. All in all, we got what I was hoping for, and what the parents were looking for. Below are a couple of my favorites from the shoot.

Images For A Cure

Doug Hilton — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 12:00:49 +0000

2010 marks the second year for the Images for a Cure fundraiser, and the second year that Doug Hilton Photography will be a participating photographer. This is a great non-profit organization where photographers from all across the United States get together to raise money for the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. Having seen cancer effect the lives of loved ones, and being a cancer patient myself, I understand the need for continued research, and the funding necessary to carry out that research. By participating in this fundraiser, I am able to offer portrait sessions on select dates in November with 100% of the session fee donated to the fundraiser.

Sessions will be offered November 13, 14, 20 or 21 2010, in plenty of time to get family or kid photos taken for inclusion in holiday greetings. Holiday photo cards as well as traditional prints are available, and will be processed in time for the holidays with orders placed by Nov 26. All other portrait session types are available, prices vary. Please ask for details.

J & A Couples Session

Doug Hilton — Tue, 11 May 2010 01:20:07 +0000

Friends of mine contacted me a few days ago asking if I would be willing to make some photos of them as a couple as they never had formal photos taken, and have very few photos of them together. I was much abliged to do so. We met after work in Millersville at the pond (they both went to school there) and quickly got to work as there were few precious hours of daylight left.

I went into the shoot with two different photos in mind, one being a shot of them on the bridge, and another of A on J's back. We worked through three different locations around the pond and several poses in about an hours time, getting several that I and, more importantly, they are happy with.

All photos were shot in the strobist style, using a single light into a white reflective umbrella to make the subjects pop from the background.

Here is one of my favorites from the shoot as a sneak peek for them.

Stuart's Guest Board Photo

Doug Hilton — Sun, 18 Apr 2010 22:20:46 +0000

I was contacted by my upcoming Bar Mitzvah client to shoot a photo they could use for a guest board at the reception, a place for guests to sign, much like a guest book. They were looking for something quick and simple, just showing Stuart in his New York Yankees jersey; his Bar Mitzvah will carry a baseball theme.

Rather than a basic portrait in front of my backgrounds or a wall, we decided to take Stuart outside and make it a bit more of an environmental shoot. I quickly found a corner of their yard with dark green foliage. I stood Stuart about 20 feet in front of the shrubs and used my 70-200 racked out to 200 to turn the background into a swatch of color, rather than the pronounced greens that it was. The sun was high and to camera right, so I set my light up camera left to cross light and began the shoot. Within a few minutes, we had a setup that mom was happy with, so now onto the portraits.

I took several of Stuart with his glove, some with a bat, both standing and bunting, and a few of him pitching as he is a pitcher in the little leagues.

With the photos done, we headed inside to let the parents see the photos and pick the one they were going to use for the Guest Board. They were so happy with the photos that they ended up deciding on two, and will have them both at the reception for guests to sign.

With a little extra work and vision from their photographer, they got two photos that they love. I look forward to working with them at the upcoming Bar Mitzvah!