Recent Photo Shoot (FULL ALBUM)
Posted: Wed Jun 16, 2021 9:59 pm
I am FINALLY done editing all these pictures from my photo shoot back in May, so I wanted to share them here so everyone can enjoy! Rather than trying to post them all here, I have uploaded them into an Imgur gallery for easy viewing! You can find the gallery here:
https://imgur.com/gallery/Tt5x0ox
So as many of you know, throughout the last year or so I have been working on a ton of updates to my Ranger kit, including a new leather jerkin, new (refurbished) boots, a new pouch, knife sheath, quiver, and cloak! Also, I received the gorgeous star brooch from Eofor a while back, and I haven’t had a chance to show any of it off!
So last month my wife and I decided to head up into the foothills just west of Denver on a particularly cold and wet day to get some proper photos of it, and I am SUUUUPER excited about how they came out! The area we visited was the Boettcher Mansion on Lookout Mountain in Golden, CO - and when it gets rainy here, the foothills tend to get covered in really dense fog. We got really lucky with the weather, honestly, because rainy days like that are fairly rare here, but luckily we had a wetter-than-usual spring. We also brought our dog, Emmett, along for the adventure, and he was a total trouper! (Pics with Emmett towards the end!)
A few notes:
- Normally I try to do as many “practical” outings as possible in my kit, with an emphasis on actually getting out into nature, practicing outdoorsmanship/bushcrafting skills, and so forth, rather than just aiming to get pretty photos. However, I tried several times last year to get a group together for a hike, and for many reasons including but not limited to the pandemic, that consistently fell through. So I figured, DANG IT, I worked hard on this stuff, and I want some good pictures of it! They’re definitely more stylized than most of what I (and others) tend to post on here, but the kit is still my full practical ranger kit, with only a few things left out.
- One of those things I left out was my water flacket, which I forgot to bring along, and kicked myself about because I’m really proud of my work on that piece and it would have looked great in photos. Oh well. Next time.
- Most of these are edited in some way, whether it’s color correction, or brightening the light of the lanterns, or taking out power lines, etc. But the damp and the fog and the generally awesome atmosphere was all very real! It was an incredible time to be out dressed in kit!
- I couldn’t resist and added a Black Rider into one of the shots, which I thought came out really cool! I got the image from the old AlleyCatScratch website, and it worked surprisingly well. I also included the version of the image before adding the Nazgul in at the very end of the gallery.
- Because I have target points on all of my arrows currently, I did do a little creative editing and digitally added “broadheads” onto them in the photos where they’re visible so as to not to distract from the aesthetic with anything too modern.
- Overall, I’m really happy with where my kit is at! it still needs a few things, but it’s really coming together! I’d like to submit it for approval to the Middle-earth Reenactment Society soon! I just need to start work on my new-new cloak, since technically this one was just a prototype for that design. The new one will have all visible seams hand-stitched (this one is mostly machine-stitched, even on the hems), and the cross-over closure at the neck will hopefully be longer so the star brooch sits more on the shoulder. I’d also like to make a couple alternative tunics from wool since mine are currently all linen, and I need to finally use the heavy wool I’ve had lying around for ages and make some proper trousers (these are technically repurposed dress-pants, and while you can’t really tell in most photos, they’re still not up to my personal standards, for obvious reasons).
Anyway, I think that’s all! Hope you all enjoy!
https://imgur.com/gallery/Tt5x0ox
So as many of you know, throughout the last year or so I have been working on a ton of updates to my Ranger kit, including a new leather jerkin, new (refurbished) boots, a new pouch, knife sheath, quiver, and cloak! Also, I received the gorgeous star brooch from Eofor a while back, and I haven’t had a chance to show any of it off!
So last month my wife and I decided to head up into the foothills just west of Denver on a particularly cold and wet day to get some proper photos of it, and I am SUUUUPER excited about how they came out! The area we visited was the Boettcher Mansion on Lookout Mountain in Golden, CO - and when it gets rainy here, the foothills tend to get covered in really dense fog. We got really lucky with the weather, honestly, because rainy days like that are fairly rare here, but luckily we had a wetter-than-usual spring. We also brought our dog, Emmett, along for the adventure, and he was a total trouper! (Pics with Emmett towards the end!)
A few notes:
- Normally I try to do as many “practical” outings as possible in my kit, with an emphasis on actually getting out into nature, practicing outdoorsmanship/bushcrafting skills, and so forth, rather than just aiming to get pretty photos. However, I tried several times last year to get a group together for a hike, and for many reasons including but not limited to the pandemic, that consistently fell through. So I figured, DANG IT, I worked hard on this stuff, and I want some good pictures of it! They’re definitely more stylized than most of what I (and others) tend to post on here, but the kit is still my full practical ranger kit, with only a few things left out.
- One of those things I left out was my water flacket, which I forgot to bring along, and kicked myself about because I’m really proud of my work on that piece and it would have looked great in photos. Oh well. Next time.
- Most of these are edited in some way, whether it’s color correction, or brightening the light of the lanterns, or taking out power lines, etc. But the damp and the fog and the generally awesome atmosphere was all very real! It was an incredible time to be out dressed in kit!
- I couldn’t resist and added a Black Rider into one of the shots, which I thought came out really cool! I got the image from the old AlleyCatScratch website, and it worked surprisingly well. I also included the version of the image before adding the Nazgul in at the very end of the gallery.
- Because I have target points on all of my arrows currently, I did do a little creative editing and digitally added “broadheads” onto them in the photos where they’re visible so as to not to distract from the aesthetic with anything too modern.
- Overall, I’m really happy with where my kit is at! it still needs a few things, but it’s really coming together! I’d like to submit it for approval to the Middle-earth Reenactment Society soon! I just need to start work on my new-new cloak, since technically this one was just a prototype for that design. The new one will have all visible seams hand-stitched (this one is mostly machine-stitched, even on the hems), and the cross-over closure at the neck will hopefully be longer so the star brooch sits more on the shoulder. I’d also like to make a couple alternative tunics from wool since mine are currently all linen, and I need to finally use the heavy wool I’ve had lying around for ages and make some proper trousers (these are technically repurposed dress-pants, and while you can’t really tell in most photos, they’re still not up to my personal standards, for obvious reasons).
Anyway, I think that’s all! Hope you all enjoy!