OK, so I've been blogging here about being busy with a lot of event photography, but haven't been putting up images to back up the claim . .so here we go!

I've been shooting a slew of events, which I'm going to say right up front has been a lot of fun. I get to meet a variety of great and interesting people, most local, and can count on absolutely nothing being consistent from one event to the next, which is challenging, rewarding, and satisfying when I go home with a bag full of photographs I never could have anticipated.

I've learned to be well-prepared for this kind of photography work, and I'm happy to rememeber a conversation with a guy I had in Boston last year after we'd been photographed together by an event photographer. "What a dumb job," he said, pointing to the photographer. "Anyone can do that, snap pictures at an event." Well to be sure, anyone can - but my reply to him was more than he was expecting, and is pretty well detailed here as we move on.

For events, there's a lot of prep. You've got two to three cameras with you, because if one fails, you still have to deliver. You have to always be ready for anything. For instance, above, I was sure glad to have more than just a camera bag and a flash for event work - because you never know when you're going need a light stand topped with a strobe, gelled to match firelight, and a tripod to get a shot of a cool guy swirling rope with fireballs on each end. You just never know. But when you have to get that shot? You're ready for it.

Sometimes, too, you're faced with expanding the "event shooter" role a little further. So, that light stand and strobe - as featured here firing into an umbrella I also always keep with me, lets you get frame-worthy portraits of little girls with their favorite PBS puppet, in this case Lomax, the Hound of Music. That's Peter Linz at Lomax's side, helping the cuddly pup be charming at the NYC FAO Schwartz-hosted Adopt-a-thon for North Shore Animal League.

Peter's in the top 5 of this month's most interesting people met while shooting an event; his career as a puppeteer is way, way impressive. I thought I had a fun job...this guy gets to wear a full-body sloth suit a couple of days a week! Check out his website by clicking HERE.

Then, sometimes when on an event, you've got to be sure you brought the right camera. Nikon's latest and greatest digital SLR bodies are wonderful at low-light shooting, producing near noise-free (think distorting grain) images...and with the right lens, you can get keepers like this one, from a local university's play, in merely their stage lighting. OK, OK...it helps when the director lets you onstage, too.

Events also challenge the photographer to find the best light to flatter subjects. Admittedly, in most cases we're relegated to photograph subjects in dark restaurants or dining halls, which requires a camera flash...and that flash has to be coupled with the camera at all times, because the subjects are moving about the rooms, as is the shooter. It gets heavy after a while...

But now and again, you can spot light that would flatter your subject better if you have an event that's also outdoors. Here, the light was very soft underneath a tall porch area - it seems to come from all directions, which is glorious for portraits. With the sun behind the building (and the subject), we get just a little more light there, highlighting her hair and shoulders, giving the shot a little depth. Oh and too, of course, letting her look as good as her radiant personality.

Now here's a shot that features that on-camera flash. On a bracket, the flash is higher than the lens barrel, which defeats the dreaded red-eye effect. Point that flash unit up instead of straight out, and you bounce the light off the ceiling - letting it softly and evenly flatter your subjects as it comes back down.

Did I mention you have to be rather socially "on" during events, too? If you're not coaxing that smile out of the attendees, no one else will do it for you.

So. To my pal in Boston who thinks the event shooters are just button-pushers who show up to harass party-goers and get a paycheck, easy breezy? Try to keep this kind of stuff up for a while. Say, a few weeks. Or, even for your whole career. And don't forget - your clients are paying you to get not one shot right, but all of them right - and all the while, there's a guy or gal who wants your client to use them instead next time, and likely for less $. Noooooooooo pressure.

It's a lot of fun though, Boston Guy - I do promise that. But get to bed early when you can! Thus endeth the lecture, and my chronicle of the past few weeks. Whew!

Lastly, if I may? A quick shot of Ophelia. Ophelia left us Monday night, succombing to pancreatic cancer. She left us quietly while at home, in the sunroom, her favorite spot. I've never really been a cat guy, but Ophelia really had a way to charm you with her almost humorous indifference, her obnoxious vocal requests, and ever persistent insistence of sitting on your head when you were watching tv on the sofa. . .a sofa she never once scratched (well, ok there was one time). Goodnight, Ophelia - we'll miss you. That window sill we kept clear for you will always be yours, and yours alone.