It was the Summer of 2010, and my job at the University of Montana was ending. What to do now? Why follow my heart and my dreams. The Rocky Mountain School of Photography was just about to begin it’s Summer Intensive Program so I dove right in. It was there I met Beth Berger, class-mate and all around talented and quality person. It has been a delight seeing her images continue to evolve over the past few years from portraits, to road trips, to documentary style captures and artistic diptychs. I asked Beth to share some of her thoughts on Photography and Film and some of her image editing tips:
You are a wonderful photographer. Your creativity inspires me.
You are so sweet, and the same to you! I love seeing all your travels, hopefully that’s coming up very soon for me!
What is it about the process of photography that captivates you?
For me it becomes the calm in my ADD storm. It slows me down, allows me to organize thoughts in a way that I can construct an image and I never tire of it. It’s the only thing I’ve found that truly fits like a glove in my life. I think I’ve always felt like I was looking through a lens, I would compose images continuously throughout my day although I wasn’t taking pictures& through the outlet of photography, that composition process finally made sense, when before I found it a bit crazy. . Once I attended RMSP I realized I wasn’t alone with this experience and the possibilities of photography as a medium were vast. It’s such an amazing world to be a part of.
After attending RMSP you went onto film school, where did you go?
I had dreamed of living in Nashville since I was little. If there was one thing consistent in my life, it was my obsession with music videos from a young age so I packed up and headed for school in Music City. The school turned out to be different from what I was hoping for and expecting. RMSP really sets a high bar and finding that quality in other schools is incredibly challenging. Although this wasn’t the outcome I had prepared for, it did give me the opportunity to gain exposure to the many different careers within the film world. I’m exploring a more specialized program with a curriculum approach very similar to RMSP & anticipating my participation summer 2014. *Fingers Crossed!
And now which medium is your preference?
I think the hermit within me will always prefer photography and it’s my foundation so I’m at home in it. I like the solitude of me and my camera, like a team, we learn the environment together, we problem solve together and I can create something that feels right to me before I have to collaborate and expose. Film is such a collaborative venture and it has to be, it’s truly remarkable how much goes into even small productions. The life of your story/project is ever evolving in the film world as you start to bring in all your key players. You gain inspiration from costume to set design and by the end you have this not so little package of so many artists vision. I find it invigorating, inspiring but sometimes very overwhelming. There are so many things that you could compare and contrast with photography and cinematography but for me at the end of the day it’s just light, and how you use it to tell your story.
I have seen your portraits and your documentary shots and all are fabulous. What genre of photography do your prefer?
The impossible question. I love the expression of someone’s personal story. Documentary photography probably has my soul while beautiful conceptual portraiture has my heart. They both have a different kind of vulnerability that really fascinates me. Anytime someone is willing to let me into their world and photograph them I’m in awe, I can’t say that I would do the same. I hope in the years to come my passport becomes frayed from overuse. I dream of getting to travel this world and document unseen beauty, whether that be an artisan making drums in some tiny village in South America or helping a women feel beautiful and empowered in the Middle East. Any genre that cuts at these walls we put up from what we don’t know or shines light on people who possess greater beauty than what we see photo-shopped on glossy covers, that will always be my preference.
Where did you learn to master photoshop?
I’m far from a master. Photoshop is still very intimidating for me and I have a lot of basics left to learn. RMSP gave me the familiarity with it that allows to me to problem solve and not get too overwhelmed. It’s a beast of a program, so much so that if you can dream it you can probably do it. Photoshop makes me just want to learn as much as possible.
What percentage of final images are edited only using Lightroom versus both LR and PS?
I would say 90 percent of the images I export to be seen by the public have hit Lightroom and Photoshop. Lightroom helps me sort and organize then fix the technical but I usually take the few images I’ve deemed good enough into Photoshop. Lightroom is like your corner store, I can get a lot of my craft supplies and things are neat and organized to save me time but having Photoshop is having free run in your favorite art store.
A few images by Beth Berger Photography including tips and techniques for her editing and creative process:
Girl Looking Down
My favorite model so far, as she was also my first. Stunning girl, beautiful empty fields just outside of Billings Montana, I loved this impromptu shoot! This Photograph was one of those lucky shots. It was my first frame just testing light and it just worked. In Photoshop I worked primarily with a “curve” layer to bring the contrast way down and then muted the color just a little.
Green Pathway
My favorite place to explore in Nashville is definitely the Natchez Trace Parkway. For my birthday we took a little road trip and I shot a few frames of Tennessee in January. This photograph is that 10 percent that only was in Lightroom. I brought the saturation up and then the vibrance to really get the most out of moss, leaves and sky.
Truck and his Mechanic
These images are from my very first Documentary Class at RMSP taught by the amazing Billy Howard. I love creating diptychs in Lightroom’s “Print” Module. I believe the majority of this was done in Lightroom, bringing it into Black & White and then really adding contrast. Photoshop only helped clean up a few areas and sharpen.
Before and After of a Mountain Pass
Last fall my best friend and I drove from Anchorage Alaska to Nashville Tennessee. We had a pretty tight driving schedule so I decided not to pack all of camera equipment for fear that the temptation to stop every 10 feet would really drag out those 4000 miles. I used my old point and shoot and then decided to use the Filter Gallery in Photoshop to create photo paintings. This image also had another shot from the road composited on to it, we saw a lot landscapes over the course of 8 days.
Before and After of Girl in Field
This image was a stunning senior I photographed a year after school. She is beautiful and I had to bring this into Photoshop to correct some of the illusions that can be created from the angle of the camera or the lens. I knew I wanted to cool the color down and give it a little more honesty as the light wasn’t quite that yellow. Her sweater had bunched towards the front and because of the forward position of her left leg I needed to use the Liquify tool to bring things back to how we were actually seeing her. Fun shoot with gorgeous a Missoula Montana sunset!
You can see more of Beth’s work by following Beth Berger Photography on Facebook, Twitter @bethbphoto, or visiting her Website.