Instagram images and prints

With millions of users, I know it's not just me that likes Instagram.  I've seen some amazing images and found great inspiration through the app.  One of my problems with the app is that I'll see an image I like and then forget which account posted it so I can't find it later to further enjoy it.  There are some accounts I wish would offer an option to purchase prints.  I doubt I'm the only one to think of this idea.  Maybe people are thinking the same thing about my Instagram.  In case you are, I created an album on my website, www.JohnShippeePhotography.com, that will share and sell prints of images I upload to Instagram.  In keeping with the spirit of Instagram, they will be offered in square format only.



Are you on Instagram?  If so, follow me.  I'm @JohnShippee.

Soul Asylum at Freebird Live

I honestly had no idea that Soul Asylum was still together, let alone touring, or even better, coming to my city!  The downside, it was on a night where I already had plans.  :(  Everything turned out ok, though.  (well, almost, there were some downsides, but they are on the personal side of things.)  The plus side, I GOT TO SEE ( and photograph) SOUL ASYLUM!

The show was in the middle of the week, so the crowd was not as big as I expected.  While I feel bad for the bands when the crowd is small, but from a photography point of view, it's nice to be able to move about without worrying about people bumping into the camera or getting in the way of a shot.

Here are some of the photos from the show.

Awesome burlesque performance in Jacksonville

Hello, Readers!

I'm testing out a new way of showing photos to you.  Do you prefer this way, or the way I have been doing it where I just post a few, larger images?

The rest of the images can be viewed under the events section of the albums here on my site.

Fetish, Burlesque, Concert, and Fun

On Friday night, an assorted group of Burlesque and Fetish groups and performers joined together to put on a great set of performances at Brewster's Megaplex in Jacksonville, FL.  While I did not have a photopass, nor did I have any specific magazine in mind for the photos, I'm always excited to shoot a live show.

I also came up with a few ideas for future posts.  In the meantime, here are a few of my favorite images from the night.

Live burlesque image by John Shippee Photography

Live burlesque image by John Shippee Photography

Live burlesque / fetish image by John Shippee Photography

Fetish / Suspension image by John Shippee Photography

The rest of the images can be seen at my site, John Shippee Photography.

Concert Photography: Why I like it...

While many photographers shoot a wide range of subjects, myself included, they all have one particular subject that they consider to be their favorite.  Whether is landscapes, weddings, cars, boudoir, etc..., we all tend to gravitate towards a specific subject for one reason for another.  For me, it's concerts.

You never know what you're going to get as far as lighting.  Even if you see the same band over and over, their lighting is never the same.  I'll use a set of images from a Lucky Costello show that I shot at 1904 Music Hall in Jacksonville, Florida, to demonstrate what I mean.  The venue may have crazy lights sitting on the stage, as in this image:

This is Gerry, the guitarist for Lucky Costello.

Other times, or in the case of this show, a few moments later, the lighting will be almost non-existant, as shown in this photo of the drummer:

Adam, the drummer for Lucky Costello

But, just because the lighting isn't crazy and look super-exciting, don't stop shooting.  This photo of Adam is one of my favorites from that show.

And it's not just lighting.  Some venues really like their fog machines and will use them to the point where there's no point in photographing anything because all you're getting is images of fog.  It would be like holding a white sheet in front of your camera and just taking photos of that for an hour.  :(  Other times, though, the fog can produce some cool images, such as this:

Lucky Costello at 1904 Music Hall

The other great thing about shooting concerts is that if the band doesn't move around too much and you find you're getting a lot of repetitive looking images, you can turn around and shoot the crowd.  Lucky Costello is famous for drawing a fun, eclectic crowd.  There will also usually be a few people with LED hula-hoops.

Stephanie watching Taylor hoop

Part of the crowd watching Lucky Costello

I've also learned not to put my camera away until I'm back in my car after the show.  Had I put it away before I left the venue, I would have missed out on this awesome shot of Taylor hooping in the alleyway next to the venue.

Taylor hooping outside

The rest of the photos from this show can be seen here on my site.

These are just a few of the reasons why I love photographing concerts.  What do you love to photograph?  Leave me a comment and let me know.

Burlesque in Jacksonville, FL

November brought another great show to Club TSI in Jacksonville, FL.  The rest of the images can be viewed on my site, John Shippee Photography.

HDR Storm Clouds

Storm clouds in South Jacksonville, FL.

More can be seen at www.johnshippeephotography.com

Fourth of July Fireworks

Fireworks from the Fourth of July, in Jacksonville, FL, over the St. John's River.

To see more from this set, click here.

Hooter's Bikini Contest

An image from Hooter's annual St. Patrick's Day bikini contest.  More can be seen at www.JohnShippeePhotography.com