So what's this site all about?

This site houses my photography hobby.

Who are you?

My name is Kevin, and as a hobby, I take photos of people, often cosplayers or folks in costume, for this site. It's fun and a great way to try different stuff with phtography. I go to convetions, and I also take photos of people at separate gatherings and events.

At some point there will be an "about me" page, but for now, I figure that pretty much covers it.

Cosplay? Costumers?

Well, in a nutshell some people like dressing up in costumes of original design, or based on various forms of media, be it TV, comics, video games, anime, books etc. Some do it because they like the source material, some do it because they like making stuff, most people do it as some combination of the two. It seems like a shame for all that effort to go unnoticed so a bunch of folks, myself included, go out and take photos of them at conventions and other events so it can be shared online.

How can I reach you?

Best way to reach me is my gmail address: stillvisions

You can deduce the rest due to spam harvesting.

What/who are you elsewhere on the internet?

I'm somewhat active in a few other places online:

My Twitter Feed is used for general commentary, day-to-day boring info and site updates. As galleries are done I tend to post them there.

My Tumblr has started to be used - sometimes it contains kitten photos, sometimes updates as I complete photoshoots, and sometimes totally random stuff.

I used to post a fair bit on Livejournal, but mostly I post site updates there. It's mostly under lock, so you gotta friend me to see that info, though I might open up the site updates.

I also post occasional highlights on deviantart, but that's more like old highlights.

Finally, I'm a longtime member of cosplay.com but I'm not really active on the forums. You can message me there however.

Are there any 'stillvisions' online that aren't you?

Yep, there's a few. Most notably I'm not the guy on Facebook with that nickname, and I believe the ebay name is taken too. They're not impersonators or anything, just name collisions.

What cameras/lenses/gear do you use to shoot?

(For the record, nobody pays me to endorse or use their gear. But if you'd like to, I'm all ears... just saying...)

My camera body is a well-worn Canon 5D, and my main lens of choice is an equally well-worn Canon 24-70 F2.8L, though I also have a few other lenses I use (The 50mm F1.4 comes in handy for some of my soft-focus shots, as does a Lensbaby). Flash-wise I use a standard Canon 580EX flash, though I have it usually hooked up via a wireless flash transmitter. My secondary is a Vivitar 285HV, though it doesn't work so well with wireless for some strange reason.

For other shots, I use a gold or silver reflector, known as Mister Shiny and Mister Blindy respectively. This can be done for some subtle fill on shots, or for some dramatic lighting.

Canon sucks! ______ is much better!

That's not a question, but for some reason everyone seems to want to have this argument...

I think all the major brands are reasonable for doing this sort of thing - I have no quarrel with whatever works for people. In general, though I can talk about gear, I'd much rather talk about the important part - the photos themselves.

How much do you charge for shoots?

Generally I don't, or at least, not for the stuff you see here. I figure if the people I'm shooting aren't making money off it, I shouldn't either, so convention stuff is done on my own time and dime. Donations or other expressions of thanks are always awesome, but never expected.

If you are interested in hiring me for some gig outside this realm, contact me and we can work something out.

Can I get you for a shoot at ________?

Maybe? I'm never sure of my convention schedule - some cons I don't even bring a camera because I'm too busy with staffing stuff and such. I used to do the big general call for photos, but then I ended up being scheduled wall-to-wall and would be too busy and exhausted to enjoy the con itself. I try and balance it out a bit more now, so I mix it up a bit on the number of shoots from con to con.

If you contact me by email or through one of my various other web presences (see above), we can try and work out a time for a shoot at a con. I always try and get at least one new person in for shoots when possible. So if you have some neat idea for a shoot, lemme know and we can try and make something work.

You seem really far behind on your photos...

Well, yeah, that's the flip side of keeping the convention photos a hobby - I have to balance it against all the other things in my life. Paid work has deadlines, my free work doesn't. Sometime I'll have an "about me" that goes into all the other things I do.