Matthew Coughlin :: Portrait Photographer » Portrait

Jack Blankenship for ESPN The Magazine

matthewcoughlin — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 22:36:54 +0000

Back in January I was commissioned by ESPN The Magazine to travel to Tuscaloosa, AL to photograph “Alabama Face Guy,” Jack Blankenship.

For those of you reading this that have no idea who this guy is or why he makes this face, I’ll let this clip explain it for you.

My assignment was to photograph Jack doing simple day to day things while making “the face.” The main idea ESPN Senior Photo Editor Stephanie Weed and I discussed was to shoot Jack in a grocery store examining an apple and making “the face.” After many rejecting phone calls to grocery stores (because of corporate policies) in the days leading up to the shoot, the apple idea almost didn’t happen. Since the assignment was on short notice and the fact that it was a small shot, we weren’t going to jump through hoops and try to get approval from corporate grocery store chain offices. However, on the day of the shoot I gave the apple idea one more attempt. After scouting some locations for other ideas, we spotted a Piggly Wiggly in the shopping center where we were going to get some coffee. I walked into the Piggly Wiggly expecting to be rejected again, but it turns out I hit the right store. The Piggly Wiggly local owner, Jay Welborn, was a big sports fan and was excited to let us do the shoot in his store on the spot.

Jack grocery shopping

Jack having ice cream at the park

Jack walking his dog

Jack fishing

Jack knitting with his great aunt

When Jack brought me to his fraternity house, I knew I instantly wanted to shoot one last image. A little off the beaten path of simple every day things, I had an idea for a “sophisticated” shot of him with a coat and pipe. This is what we got.

And a few extras…

Dr. Hallion for Flight Journal Magazine

matthewcoughlin — Wed, 25 Jul 2012 19:11:07 +0000

Back in May I received a call from Flight Journal Magazine to shoot some portraits of former U.S. Air Force Historian, Dr. Richard P. Hallion in Shalimar, FL. The article was about Drone planes operating in the same airspace as manned aircrafts. The magazine wanted some shots of him in his home and a striking outdoor shot of him to use as a 2 page spread. The shoot went smooth and Dick Hallion was a fantastic subject to photograph with lots of great stories to tell.

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They didn’t use this image in the article but it was on of my favorites.

Soccer Portraits

matthewcoughlin — Mon, 04 Jun 2012 21:54:08 +0000

Recently I had the wonderful opportunity to work with two very talented high school soccer players. Below you’ll see Sara Papantonio and Frances Harpole. Both Sara and Frances attend Gulf Breeze High School. When soccer is out of season at school they both play for travel clubs to stay fit. These two girls were awesome to work with and kept me laughing the whole shoot.

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For any of your photo nerds wondering about the lighting setup, it was pretty simple, one light plus the sun as rim. Canon 7D, Sigma 17-24 f/2.8-4.0 Lens for all shots except the 2 close ups. Those were the Canon 70-200L f/4.0 nonIS lens. Lighting was Paul Buff Einstein 640ws with 47″ Octa Softbox triggered with Pocket Wizards.

Randy the Cowboy Construction Worker

matthewcoughlin — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 21:16:56 +0000

Every day for the last six months, as I turn the corner from Main Street to Palafox, I have seen a young gentleman working on a construction project. You can’t miss him. He is probably the hardest working guy in the group and it is also tough to not notice his cowboy hat, boots & jeans. Well, I finally took the time to introduce myself and get to know him a little bit. I found out that Randy has recently lost a lot of weight, so much so he was wearing a size 42″ waist. He was also struggling with alcoholism and has been doing very well lately. On top of that, he is proud to boast that he has met the love of his life and he is in a very good place right now. In his spare time, Randy enjoys kicking back with his guitar and singing old country music. Randy was kind enough to pose for a couple portraits in front of my camera.

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Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for Ring of Fire Radio

matthewcoughlin — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 21:05:51 +0000

I recently had the opportunity to photograph Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for Ring of Fire Radio. My window to work in was small. I had 15 minutes to find a location, setup and take the photos. In the corner of a small black hallway, I setup a chair, one light (Paul Buff Einstein with small Octa softbox) and dialed in my camera settings. I gave word to his producer I was ready to shoot and when they arrived I was advised that this needed to be quick. I smiled and told them I’ll have them on their way in less than 2 minutes. I kept my word with time to spare. Mr. Kennedy was extremely polite and a pleasure to photograph.

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For all those who care to see behind the scenes shot, here is the lovely black hallway I found at the Wynn to use.

King of the Beach: Heavy Lifter Portraits

matthewcoughlin — Thu, 22 Sep 2011 03:35:58 +0000

View the entire gallery with 20+ portraits and all of the lifters in action here http://matthewcoughlin.com/kingofthebeach.html.

I was honored when my good friend, Chip Holston, contacted me to photograph his annual “King of the Beach” weightlifting contest that he hosts on Pensacola Beach, FL. After Chip and I spoke over the phone about the action shots he wanted me to get, I immediately thought “portraits” in the back of my mind. While the event took place, I virtually had no time at all to get portraits but I was determined and I made it happen. There was a 20 minute break between the Bench Press session and the Dead Lift session. In that 20 minutes, I had to setup my backdrop, softbox, background light, determine my exposure, and round up all the heavy lifters I could find. The first lifter to brave my lens was my one test shot and that was all I needed. One by one I sat every lifter down on a stool, had them close their eyes and listen to this very specific instruction I gave them… “Now your eyes are closed. I want you to envision yourself seconds before your last lift in the competition, you are about go in front of this giant crowd and show them all your maximum strength. Put yourself there, do you see it? (Then after about a 5 second pause) Now exhale, open your eyes, and look straight into my lens. Click! They get one shot at lifting that weight, so that is all I gave myself. One true, honest, intimate shot of that mental moment I tried to put them in. I am truly stoked at how these images turned out.

Go to http://matthewcoughlin.com/kingofthebeach.html to see all of the portraits and images from the competition.

If you are a lifter and would like to purchase your photo(s), please contact me at matt@matthewcoughlin.com.