June 10, 2020
Virtual Photo Shoot with Melissa Mandula

cleveland family photographer

Virtual Family Photos, Cleveland, Ohio

Before I moved back to Cleveland, I had a chance to connect with Melissa Mandula and her family over video chat for a virtual photo shoot.

We did a few shots of the whole family on the sofa, and it didn’t take us long to realize they’d be a lot happier on the trampoline. So off we went! Luckily, Melissa had her trusty tripod, so she set her phone on that, and I snapped my screen using my DSLR.

cleveland family photographer

 cleveland family photographer

cleveland family photographer

I found the additional scrim of the trampoline netting to be an interesting addition to the already pixelated look of photographing a screen. The things I’m enjoying most about shooting images on a screen is exploring the “flaws” of the medium.

I like the emphasized blur, and the rows of digital lines that appear at different angles. I especially love it when I catch a glitch in the stream – it reminds me of a cross-fade from editing films. (Filmmaking was a passion of mine and that’s what my university degree is in.) It makes me want to experiment with double-exposures and other digital ways of abstracting the art form.

cleveland family photographer

cleveland family photographer

cleveland family photographer

cleveland family photographer

cleveland family photographer

cleveland family photographer

I shot this “long distance,” from California while they were at home in Cleveland. But I’m now fully set up for local photo shoots here in my Midwest home!

cleveland family photographer

cleveland family photographer

cleveland family photographer

I won’t be traveling as much as usual in 2020, so if you’re interested in a virtual photo shoot, please email me. If you’re in Cleveland, you can view available times for an in-person photo shoot here.

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