Rya Duncklee, of Rya Duncklee Studios, photographs fellow NAPCP member, and 2017 NAPCP Photographer of the Year, Ashley Berrie …

Inspiration – When Ashley reached out to me to document portraits of her family enjoying time in one of their favorite places, of course I knew I wanted to do the best job I possibly could. That in and of itself is always inspiration, on every client session. Knowing the area and shooting on the coast often, I knew that I wanted to shoot wide for most of the shoot and compose with a landscape orientation in mind – giving as much of the surrounding landscape as I could to the viewer. I personally have always loved landscape photography, so when I’m on the coast, I’ll try my best to shoot wide and take it all in.

Favorite Element – Besides this beautiful family?! … The wind and time of day! And, Ashley’s skirt. I think all worked so well together. In my opinion sunrise is a great time to shoot on the east coast. On this day, we were fortunate to have relatively moody skies so I was able to incorporate those into the images, while still exposing for skin tones. Normally when you do that in an open space like the beach you will likely have blown out skies. But we didn’t! So I would say the conditions in general, and the choice in clothing by Ashley were my favorite elements.

Biggest Challenge – On the coast, sometimes certain elements one might love during a shoot become things that will pose the biggest challenges – wind, rain, clouds, etc. Wind is always a factor on the beach, especially when you have a subject with long hair, but we worked around it. When done right, it can add such drama to an otherwise ordinary shot!

Final Thoughts – Upon reviewing these proofs, Ashley and I were talking and exchanging our favorites, and we realized that most of our favorite images were the same. We agreed on so many, even the ones with a silly face. Then I realized I had considered not including some of the ones that ended up being our favorites for various reasons. I think we get so caught up in perfection sometimes that we don’t stop to think of it from another perspective. Silly ones are good, posed ones are good, and of course candids are good. There is room for every kind of image and there isn’t a wrong way to do a photo shoot. You won’t go wrong as long as you’re falling in love with the people in the photograph, not the technique.

Inspiration
It’s no secret that I love underwater photography, especially when it involves photographing maternity clients.  I feel that it’s an incredible time in a woman’s life, and something to truly celebrate. Underwater always adds such a poetic element to any sessions and a special something that not many other sessions do. When Kathryn Langley, a local Calgary newborn photographer and fellow NAPCP artist told me she was expecting, and that she would like me to do her maternity session in the water, I was so honoured and excited! It really gave me a chance to co-create with another photographer and incorporate different elements into the session to make it really special.

Favorite Element
I love the fact that we worked with a few different fabrics underwater. I spent a lot of time wandering different fabric stores making sure I had the right pieces that would add some texture and colour to the session.  Fabric is very difficult to work with underwater and it takes a certain type of fabric to get the look I was after, while not being too heavy, which can become dangerous to work with. I was thrilled that I was able to find a pool that let me sink a black muslin cloth to use as a backdrop. I think it added to the overall feel of the session and allowed the focus to be entirely on her. Not to mention that it covered the tiles and the lines that the pool had. It’s a salt-water pool, and really warm, which I always prefer when working with clients because it makes such a difference to your overall experience and how long you can stay in the water for!  I also like the hand held light we introduced – it added a bit of warmth and a spotlight onto her. Lights are an element to underwater photography that I am starting to work with more and more and I like the results.

Biggest Challenge
That it’s underwater!  Seriously, underwater photography is by far the hardest thing I have tried to do, and I always feel like I am at the start of a long journey with it, but I love the challenge of it.  Introducing so many different elements like the backdrop, the fabrics, props and the lights made it that much more challenging, but I had an entirely willing and able subject. It really was easy to work with another photographer – she totally nailed the poses!

Closing Thoughts
Make sure everyone is safe at all times, especially your client. In addition to being in a facility with lifeguards, I also had an assistant who could move the fabrics, help get Kathryn out of the water if he needed to, and most importantly carry that heavy, water soaked backdrop back to the car! He was a great help holding the lights, too, as I had a small portable hand held LED light to work with.

When working with something new like underwater photography, realize there are no quick fixes. It’s an incredibly challenging and dynamic medium to work in and you will make lots and lots of mistakes. Embrace them as learning opportunities, try to be patient, and if you are drawn to it, and want to do more, also try to take it beyond the easy shots.  It’s a bit of a specialized field, but you will be able to find supportive community out there to help you on your way.

Our September issue of Inspired features Jaye McLaughlin of The Life in Your Years Photography! Read her exclusive interview, download your free motivational desktop wallpaper, access helpful resources and learn how to manage your time better in the busy season.

Print your copy of Inspired straight from MagCloud! Share your favorite pieces with friends, family and clients.

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Tell us a little about what’s inside.
My bag includes different things for every type of session or age group I’m photographing that day. This bag is packed for an outdoor session with a mom, a dad, and an 18 month-old! I have my Canon 5D Mark 3 together with my 24-70 2.8L and 70-200 2.8L Canon lenses to capture the action and the portraits. I threw in my macro lens to grab some still-adorable long eyelashes and chubby fingers and toes. I leave the hoods at home.

I love my Capturing Couture scarf strap because it’s cozy and looks great — it’s attached to my camera body with a Camera Strap Buddy that fits into the tripod mount. This is so the camera lays cross-body over my shoulder rather than hanging around my neck (which I find to be really inconvenient).

My monkey goes with me on every session that involves children under the age of 8 — he’s a Shutter Hugger so he fits right on my lens. Oddly, he always seems to have the same name as the child I am photographing. I also bring stickers for “bribes” and rewards, and tissues for tears and little noses.

I bring an extra memory card and battery for insurance.

The lip gloss makes me feel great, and my iPhone is my map, navigator, timepiece, and mode of communication. It’s protected from drops with an Otterbox Stardust Glitter Case, which looks great and has rubberized edges to absorb shocks.

My bag is an Ona Capri, in Field Tan — it’s brushed leather.

Which lens is your go-to?
My 24-70 2.8L Canon goes to every single session with me. Somehow it keeps me creative, and I love shooting with it in its sweet spot of about f/3.5 or 4. My choice from other lenses depends on the session – my 35mm 1.2L or 50mm 1.2L for indoor sessions and newborns, my macro 100mm for newborns, and my 70-200 2.8L for everything outside. I love my 16-35mm, too, but it needs service so sadly it’s been sitting lonely in the cupboard for many months.

Most used item in your bag?
Before a session? My phone! During the session? My camera! After the session? Those stickers!

Least used item in your bag?
If I’ve prepared properly, my extra battery; if I’m not ridiculously overshooting, my extra memory card … and if I’m lucky, the tissues!

Thank you, Heather, for showing us what’s in your bag!

Hello friends!

After much excitement and anticipation, we are absolutely thrilled to announce the winners of our Inspired by NAPCP Gallery Event. In contrast to our annual International Image Competition, the NAPCP Inspired Gallery Event was creative in nature and gave both members and non-members the chance to place in one of three categories — Color, Water, and Explore. Thank you to our amazing judges who dedicated their time and expertise to scoring, deliberating and judging one hundred submissions: Ashley Berrie, Jennifer Kapala, and Rachel LaCour Niesen. Learn more about our judges here:

The following images placed first in their respective categories:

To view the complete listing of winning images, visit our Award Winning Image Gallery.

Thank you to all who participated in our 2nd annual Inspired by NAPCP Gallery Event, to our Gallery Event attendees, and of course to our judges and sponsors! Gallery event photos by Alice Park Photography.

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