Future Horror Movie Superstar Michael!

Alright, you guys, you're gonna love this. I think it's pretty well-established how much I love, and I mean LOOOOOVE the horror movies. It's serious.

Michael here needed some headshots, so we planned a time to get together and that's when I started asking him what kind of acting he was wanting to do and he told me he wanted to get into HORROR MOVIES! How unbelievably cool is that? I am so for it, and you know I'll be all huddled up in my seat, breaking Billy's hand with one hand and pointing at the screen with the other, yelling, "I KNOW THAT GUY!" I'm so excited for that day.

I don't know if anyone believes in signs, but let me just tell you a couple things that may be interesting coincidences, or may be omens of success. First of all, his name is MICHAEL MYERS. Michael Myers, people! For those not into the whole horror movie thing, that's the scary dude in the Halloween movies.

Secondly, we did the first part of the shoot at a forest preserve, and we had the weirdest moment with this little blackbird hovering in the air and squawking at us. I've never seen anything like it in my life. I gave Billy an account of the story later, and as you know from the babies, when I do voiceovers, everyone gets a little ghetto, so it pretty much turned into a turf war between us and the bird. But I TOTALLY digress. The point is, it was all very Hitchcockian. More horror royalty! Good signs, I'm telling you people!

I got so wrapped up in horror nerding after that last pic that I didn't say much about it, but I think that it probably speaks for itself. This is obviously a variation of the same shot.



Michael has very pretty eyes, as I think you'll get a better view of in some of the coming pictures, and I loved the outdoorsy look. Not very scary, of course, but you have to have a wide range so that you can fool the heroine into thinking that you're a nice guy so that it's SUPER shocking when you turn on her with a chainsaw or whatever.

Also, fun common interest sidenote, Michael is the only person I know besides myself and Billy (who I basically forced) who watched Scream Queens on VH1. Man, I loved that show. I think it's time for the Scream Kings version, and I nominate Michael Myers.



Michael's super cute, super fun girlfriend Kim came along and kind of acted as my impromptu assistant--she ran after my bag when I forgot it, and she stood behind me entertaining Michael and making him feel good about himself.

And aren't they CUTE together? He is majorly giving her The Look. I can only hope that this doesn't end up in scary rubber masks and blood and guts! (I really hope I'm not taking this all too far and coming off like a complete weirdo who's making people uncomfortable. I just REALLY love horror movies and get REALLY excited about them, and I'm happy that someone else loves them too and I get to talk about it. So hopefully everyone is just enjoying it with me and not thinking I'm a sociopath.)



This picture is really interesting to me, actually. I shot Michael from a lower angle because he's thin enough to get away with it (usually shooting from below is unflattering, almost universally, in my opinion--you have to have a very strong jawline for it to work, at least in my experience). And even as I was taking it, I LOVED it, and I knew it was incredible. I joyously announced that it was The Hot, and Kim agreed, and I never chimped it, I was so sure. (Chimping, for those not in the nerdy photographer know, is looking at the picture on the back of your camera--monkey see, monkey do, if you will.) I totally should have, because they were really blown out. I played around with them and decided they MAY be salvageable in black and white, so I told Michael that and it ended up being one that he chose. I consider it a very beautiful photograph although with a bit of an experimental look, but I love how his eyes really jump off the page at you.



Speaking of, Michael did choose all of these photos from our shoot to use. I loved this lens flare pic, but I was a little surprised he chose it, and I don't even know why. I mean, who doesn't love some lens flare? I guess I thought maybe it was something that photographers like more than clients, but I am proven wrong! But anyway, his choice is my gift to anyone curious about how I got some lens flare (and it was my gift from the internet, so, you know, very rare, valuable, sentimental, etc.). Apparently, the trick is a smaller aperture. Awesome, right? And so easy. I tend to shoot with a pretty wide aperture, so this fact didn't really present itself to me, and I had to read it. Maybe someone out there is the same way, and now you know the secret to crazy lens flare. Woo!

I've been wooing an awful lot lately.

Thanks again, Michael, for choosing me to do your headshots, and to the beautiful Kim for all of her help! I hope to work with you again, and wish you a bright future of blood, guts, gore, monsters, ghosts, vampires, hopefully some 3-D, but no mummies, because those are lame. Break a leg!