Bakersfield photographer, contemporary photography bio picture

Welcome to here


Hi There! I'm Michael Campbell, a portrait photographer in Bakersfield, California. I am all about a carefree, candid and photojournalistic approach to my photography. Custom children's photography, family photos, senior photos or engagement photography are a few of the areas I really love to focus on. I'm really excited to be venturing into wedding photography this year as well!


This blog follows my professional photography life as well as some personal tidbits as well. I have a beautiful family that I love to show off so they pop up here and there. I'll often post a 'sneak peek' of a few photos for clients after I finish a session so my most recent work is showcased here. Thanks for visiting!


If you want to reach me you can send an e-mail or you can get additional details and contact me via my website using the link at the top of this page or just click here.

Friday Free For All - Episode 8

November 21, 2008 – 8:49 am

Hey kids, welcome to another episode of Friday Free For All!

I spent Monday and Tuesday in the LA area and met up with a few photographer friends for some cool Cuban food at Versailles in Culver City. That was a treat as I never had Cuban food before and it was yummy! I had the Ropa Viejo which translates to old clothes. It was shredded beef in a tomatoe sauce and very good. I highly recommend Versailles! Plus it was great to get together with Jen Berry, Henry Chen, Jenny Hsieh and Brian Dreisbach. They’re all cool cats, thanks for coming out guys (and gals)! I had an awesome time!

On my way back home from Los Angeles I went by my favorite place to pick up flowers - Costco. Yes, that’s right, Costco! They have amazing deals plus the flowers always are way fresh compared to the local mega-mart.  So I picked up 2 dozen roses (12 yellow, 12 red) for like $16. But I saw these crazy flowers I had never seen before. Maybe I live in a cave or something but I saw these crazy colorful flowers and just had to get some. The big bouquet was only $8 so I brought those home to.

They’re tinted flowers. Somehow they dye the water holding the flowers and the pigment actually goes into the petals. Check these babies out, aren’t they totally wild?

 


So you all have a great week! Oh and if you’re not already, come follow me on twitter! http://www.twitter.com/mlcampbell

By Mike | Posted in Beyond the lens, Friday Free For All | Tagged , , | 5 comments         Show Comments | Add a Comment

Dave + Carolyn = Engaged!

November 16, 2008 – 9:42 pm

You know what I love? I absolutely love it when I get to photograph people like Dave and Carolyn who were totally relaxed, cool and comfortable in front of the camera. It doesn’t hurt that they’re a totally adorable couple too!

These kids are getting hitched in just over a month and I’m totally stoked to be shooting their wedding.

So here’s a sneak peek from their engagement shoot yesterday. Thanks guys, you were great and I had an awesome time!










By Mike | Posted in Portraits and Clients | Tagged , | 3 comments         Show Comments | Add a Comment

A salute to our soldiers - Veterans Day

November 11, 2008 – 10:52 am

Having lost a grandfather who fought in WWII and several family members who have served in the Air Force and Navy I have a deep awe and respect for our men and women in uniform.  We owe everything to those who have fought for our way of life. We should all make sure that we hold true to the values of our constitution and not let the sacrifices of our brothers and sisters in uniform ever be in vain. 

I think the lyrics to our national anthem are an appropriate read for the day. Enjoy and God bless America…

Oh, say can you see,
By the dawn’s early light,
What so proudly we hailed
At the twilight’s last gleaming,
Whose broad stripes and bright stars,
Through the perilous fight,
O’er the ramparts we watched
Were so gallantly streaming?
And the rockets’ red glare,
The bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night
That our flag was still there.
O, say, does that
Star-Spangled Banner yet wave
O’er the land of the free
And the home of the brave

By Mike | Posted in Beyond the lens, Personal - Misc | Tagged | no comments         No Comments | Add a Comment

Friday Free For All, Episode 7 - Baby Isabella

November 7, 2008 – 11:00 am

I just spent a few days travelling around southern California and wrapped it up in Anaheim to shoot baby Isabella & oh and what a sweetie she is! Roy and Anita were so calm for being first time parents; maybe it’s the sleep deprevation… She needed a few breaks through the shoots but was pretty cooperative. One of the great things about photographing babies is it’s pretty hard to make a bad photograph when you have a pretty girl like this!

So here are a first few favs of mine of 17 day old Isabella.









By Mike | Posted in Friday Free For All, Portraits and Clients | Tagged , | 4 comments         Show Comments | Add a Comment

Friday Free For All, Episode 6 - Happy Halloween!!

October 31, 2008 – 9:37 am

BOO! I feel like Halloween has just snuck up on us this year, I’m just not ready yet! The kids and I attempted a pumpkin carving last night and let’s just say let him R.I.P. Oh it was scary looking but not in a good jack-o-lanterny way :)

A couple random halloweenish facts about me:

My favorite scary movies of all time:

5) Evil Dead II
4) The Exorcist
3) From Dusk Till Dawn
2) Alien
1) Army of Darkness - possibly one of my favorite movies in any category

My best costume ever:
A waitress - while I was working as a waiter. I was a waiter in my late teens for a while and it was classic to go up to a table with people only half paying attention and call me miss or ma’am. The really funny part was when I would ask them for their order in my husky male voice which would snap them into a doing a double take.  Simply awesome.

For a photo today I wanted to share a before and after editing example. The first is obviously the original image straight out of the camera except for my watermark and a slight sharpening. Nothing wrong with the image but the next one has a little more umph.

This second image is the results after treating the photograph with some editing. Nothing too crazy but you can see the difference some simple processing makes. It just gives the colors a little pop, some contrast and finishes it off more to my style.

Have a happy halloween, everyone!

By Mike | Posted in Beyond the lens, Friday Free For All, Portraits and Clients | 2 comments         Show Comments | Add a Comment