My Blog » Holiday Spirit

Holiday Lights: Winding Down

admin — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 03:46:33 +0000

Happy 2010 everyone! I thought I would post one last holiday light picture to close up the season. This is the tree in front of my building on Lenox Ave (aka Malcolm X Blvd).

I hope you all have a safe, happy, prosperous 2010!

–
Tim

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Holiday Lights

admin — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 19:19:17 +0000

I love a tree filled with lights. It makes me smile and feel all warm and fuzzy inside. This tree is located at the Time Warner Center in Manhattan.

Christmas Snow

admin — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 13:43:31 +0000

Here we are the day after the first big snow this winter in NYC and we are 5 days away from Christmas. I feel like I’m in the Charlie Brown Christmas special looking at this picture.

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It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like…more Snow Pics

admin — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 19:31:23 +0000

One more post of iPhone Snow Pictures. Here’s the last of them.

Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow

admin — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 22:50:50 +0000

The weather outside is frightful…yuck…rain. Soooo, in order to lift my spirits a little, I am posting a few more iPhone photos from last week’s snow in Boston.

Growing up in North Carolina, I didn’t see snow all that often, and now, as an adult, I turn into the biggest kid when it snows. Tis the season…BRING IT!

Schroon Lake Thanksgiving

admin — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 20:24:20 +0000

This is where I spent my Thanksgiving vacation. Great times.

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Happy Thanksgiving!

admin — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 19:28:06 +0000

Hi Everyone! I would like to wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving and a great start to the holiday season. I wish you safe journeys, good food, and good times with friends and family to you all!

Now…go eat some turkey!

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Capturing Good Holiday Photos

admin — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 20:46:05 +0000

Often, I am asked to give advice on capturing good snapshots…or, I find my clients saying, “I’m not good with a camera.” I think anyone can capture a photo that will make your friends say wow. So, today, in the spirit of the upcoming holidays, I have decided to to give away a few strategies I employ for getting that cool family shot or holiday shot.

1. Find an unusual angle or perspective. As adults, we are used to seeing each other and our family from a particular point of view. Looking at the world from a different perspective (through the lens, and at a different height) will make the picture “pop.” So, try a photo from a kid’s point of view. Look at that turkey or Christmas Tree from “down low” or if there is a ladder or steps in the room your shooting in, take the picture from “up high.” A change of perspective, or even simply a tilt of a lens can completely change the look and feel of an image. One special note: don’t shoot your family and friends from down low. Shooting up on a person will often bring out dreaded double chins, or show what is hiding deep in their nose. No one wants to see that.

2. Get in close. When framing your shot, get in close, or crop the picture tight in post processing. This will enable you to block out distracting backgrounds. Sometimes less is more. Give the viewer only enough information to see what you want them to see.

3. Don’t put your subject in the center of your frame. Have a look at this Wikipedia entry on the Rule of Thirds: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rule_of_thirds. It was something great painters of the past followed, and holds true today in our photography. The center of a picture is a pretty dead space (note the common phrase “dead center”). A subject slightly off the center (in the left or right 1/3 of the frame) draws the eye to it. This could be your kid next to your tree, or a close up of your child’s face when they open that fabulous gift, with their eyes in the upper third of the frame.

These simple steps will certainly help you to create better photos. Happy Holidays!

Tim

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tim hill images gives back!

admin — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 05:32:20 +0000

November/December booking will benefit a charity dear to my heart: Kids with Cameras.

Kids with Cameras was founded in 2002 by photographer Zana Briski out of her work teaching photography to children in Calcutta’s red-light district. They believe that photography is an effective tool in igniting children’s imagination and building self-esteem. They believe in the power of art to transform lives, for both the artist and the viewer.

Kids with Cameras was the subject of a documentary film called “Born into Brothels” (available on Netflix). One of their first kids, Avijit, is now a film student at NYU! My donations will go directly to his scholarship fund. Here is a link to a short film he has made dios te salve maria yt version. I would like to see his dreams come true.

10% of my fee in November and December of 2009 will be donated to Kids With Cameras and the Avijit scholarship fund (http://www.kids-with-cameras.org).

As a performing artist, and a photographer, I know how art changed my life, growing up in the mountains of North Carolina. My first camera was a kodak instamatic x15f (think a little point and shoot camera with a disposable flash bar). I immediately began terrorizing the family pets by making them pose in my mother’s flower garden. While “at work” I destroyed many flowers and took hundreds of photos of the pets, flowers and the family, which my parents were obliged to print and save.

This certainly is a year in which charities really could use our help. Many are feeling the financial crunch. So, I now challenge you to consider giving a matching sized gift to a charity of your choice.