Photography- getting the shot

Keith B Dixon Jr.

Keith B Dixon — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 03:44:24 +0000

My kids are always willing to model for my test projects. Here are some photos of my oldest son Keith Jr. I shot while practicing some lighting schemes for an up coming photo shoot.

more about "Keith B Dixon Jr. ", posted with vodpod

Susan and Ron’s Wedding

Keith B Dixon — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 22:14:35 +0000

Susan and Ron were married on October 11, 2009 and held a traditional style wedding in Oakland, CA at the Bellevue Club on Lake Merritt. This time I decided to feature the grooms portraits for the gallery, enjoy!

more about "Susan and Ron’s Wedding", posted with vodpod

Joe & Melanie’s Wedding 2009

Keith B Dixon — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 17:50:26 +0000

Melanie and Joe were married in June of this year. Their wedding offered guest an a Classic American feel with some influence on Joe’s African Culture. Joe and Melanie was a great couple to work with. They did a great job planning their wedding day.

more about “Joe & Melanie’s Wedding 2009“, posted with vodpod

Olivia Oasis Diamond and Perls Party

Keith B Dixon — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 02:58:20 +0000

Olivia Oasis is an event planing company based in the East Bay. I have work with them over the years and they are truly professionals. See for yourself. Anyone who can pulling a great crowd like they did for their Diamond and Perls Red Carpet Party …in this economy is Real Good! Gotta love these ladies.

more about “Olivia Oasis Diamond and Perls Party“, posted with vodpod

Marks 50th Birthday Party

Keith B Dixon — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 02:32:59 +0000

The pirates have landed. This is an event I photographed for a client that I have be working with over the years. This year they out did themselves. Got to love em!

more about “Marks 50th Birthday Party“, posted with vodpod

Rapper San Quinn performs at the Down Low

Keith B Dixon — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 07:07:42 +0000

San Francisco Bay Area rapper San Quinn performed this weekend at the Down Low in Berkeley. San Quinn first appeared on Master P’s 1997 West Coast Bad Boyz 1&2 album, which went gold. Later on that year he was inducted in the Guinness Book of World Records for the most appearances on an album according to his My Space Page. This is San Quinn’s 7^th album, “From A Boy To A Man,” since his professional start in 1995.

The Down Low, located at 2284 Shattuck Ave in Berkeley show cases monthly Local Hip-Hop and Reggae Artist from the Bay Area and beyond. This showcase, a mix of Reggae and Hip-Hop, featured Rankin Scroo, Mooch Da Player, and Young Fyah. San Quinn rocked songs like “Hell Yeah,” and “SF Anthem” which excited the small but intimate crowd.

During the show there were some technical issues which brought the music to a grinding halt, but that did not stop San Quinn from free styling or what he called “preaching” to the crowd as they cheered him on. Once the show restarted San Quinn never missed a beat. His lyrics flowed and represented a trend setting style and sound that we have come to expect from him. San Quinn supporting cast was well rehearsed, organized and entertaining as well. Overall San Quinn and his cast performed like a veterans and a professionals. Hats off!

Photo: Keith B Dixon

Keith B Dixon is a full-time freelance editorial and wedding photographer in the San Francisco Bay Area. He is a lead photographer for MD News Greater San Francisco, and covers 3 markets for ProAgent Magazine, a green online digital publication, with circulations over 30,000. Both magazines are business and lifestyle publications. Keith has also worked as the primary photographer for the North, South, and East Bay areas for Broker Agent Magazine, which was a real estate and lifestyle magazine for the Real Estate Industry. In addition, he has worked with Eric Mower & Associates, an East Coast PR Firm, on projects for Kodak.

You can email him at keith@keithbdixon.com and visit his consumer web site at www.keithbdixon.com or the commercial site at: www.keithbdixon.net

Tre Pounds Go’s Green and Wins!

Keith B Dixon — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 05:49:40 +0000

Still Bring Good Music, SBG, Musical artist Tre Pound topped the competition for a $1000 prize at the 2^nd annual Solar-Powered Hip-Hop Concert.

The concert was held at Yerba Buena Playground & Carousel in San Francisco. Entrants were asked to create original music and lyrical content about environmental sustainability and solar power. Five finalists were selected and asked to perform in an MC battle at the concert, which headlined Dead Prez, Mista and Mr F.A.B. Tre Pounds performance was flawless and entertaining. Tre worked the crowd and delivered lyrics that promoted an Eco friendly message that also related to his life growing up. Tre’s stage perform was second to none, well rehearsed, energetic and crowd pleaser. The music had the perfect tempo to compliment an Eco friendly theme. Hats off to Tre Pound and SBG Music!

Here are the Photos from the concert:

2nd Annual Solar-Powered Hip-Hop Concert- photo: Keith Dixon

Tre Pound Setting it off!

2nd Annual Solar-Powered Hip-Hop Concert- photo: Keith Dixon

Tre Pound rocks the crowd with his song about the environment

2nd Annual Solar-Powered Hip-Hop Concert- photo: Keith Dixon

Tre pretty much “kills it ” during his performance.

2nd Annual Solar-Powered Hip-Hop Concert- photo: Keith B Dixon

You can email him at keith@keithbdixon.com and visit his consumer web site at www.keithbdixon.com or the commercial site at: www.keithbdixon.net

A Day With Jim Dennis

Keith B Dixon — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 02:29:28 +0000

In a previous blog I talked about the importance of having a mentor. I wrote: “As photographers we generally develop our skill sets through our practical experiences, seminars, organizations, workshops, and through trial and error, but that is not enough.” Learning from a mentor is one of the most valuable experiences a photographer can gain.

Sculpting light in a portrait is an art and skill that is learned over a lifetime. Most photographers will learn to apply lighting schemes through mainstream resources. But the best photographer’s will inherit their techniques from a mentor.Recently, I had opportunity to observe a photographer I respect and admire Jim Dennis.

“Dennis is not only a renowned Bay Area Photographer whose work has spanned over thirty years, with exhibits at a variety of artful venues across the nation,” he is a good person, and the first Black Photographer to work for Kodak.

Here is an overview of my observations:

Jim Dennis Setting UP

Dennis used a three light set-up that you most likely are not going to find in any textbook, seminar or class.

Krafting The Photo

Dennis uses some of the latest technology during his sessions for example, the pocket wizards, but for the most part he uses very basic equipment for most of the complex lighting schemes he sets up. Skill is invaluable equipment is not!

Focusing The Client

Dennis is a master at making a connection with his clients no matter what their mood is. He not only shapes light but he also helps his clients to shape their character during the session to extract the best.

A Window View

It was like Dennis was shooting through a window to his subjects- notice most of the light was bounced except the main. There are two back lights left and right slightly angled out.

Loading a flim camera

Believe me film is still a factor. I shot a wedding a few months back using all film. Dennis shoots film behind every digital shot as a measure of variation.

Felicia and Kaya Davis

The final product! Notice the soft lighting around the subjects face and arms, a signature Jim Dennis Photo.

Gorilla Style Justice!

Keith B Dixon — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 06:49:32 +0000

A College Professor once told me “The Means Justify The Ends.” Gorilla Style Justice, which simply means I can shoot anywhere and produce a quality product. Last month I did a photo shoot for SBG Music for the release of the new Tre Pound “Pound For Pound Album.” Here are the end results; Lets go people! If you missed the video here it is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ftMx6CPRnqE

Pound For Pound

The New Pound For Pound Album Cover

Got to love those photo credits

Are You Planning To Get Married In San Francisco?

Keith B Dixon — Sat, 08 Aug 2009 20:33:32 +0000

Getting married requires a lot of planning. But, getting married in a major metropolitan city requires a more serious thought about how you are going to transport your wedding party and provide information or access to parking for your guest. Before you consider a venue in San Francisco for your wedding you should consider three important facts: the time of day for you event, the location, and the availability of the local area parking.

The time of day is going to be the most critical factor because of traffic in the Bay Area and other events going on. For example, if you were getting married at the Swedish Borgian Church in Pacific Heights at 5 pm there is a great possibility that your guest are going to run into traffic on all the major streets leading to the church. Since the church is in a residential neighborhood parking is going to be sparse and limited. You should be sure to check with your venue coordinator for the best times and parking options for your guest. There is nothing worst then having your guest arrive late with nowhere to park and frustrated.

You can email him at keith@keithbdixon.com and visit his web site at www.keithbdixon.com