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November 29, 2010
lighting the romantic portraits of the bride & groom
Scouting around the location during dinner time, I peered over the edge of this spiraling staircase and thought it would be a good idea to get some light on the couple, seated on the couch. I posed Melissa so that she lounged back with her head on Dennis’ lap. There is no way to get light on them from my position with on-camera bounce flash, and definitely not if my intention is to get light only on them. It needed off-camera flash.
To add some variety, I also thought of a few other things to try with the lighting, using the same set-up and pose.
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November 22, 2010
non-photography goodies in my camera case
Work as a wedding photographer isn’t just about the gear – cameras, lenses and flashguns – and about taking photographs of key moments. Often enough it is up to you as the wedding photographer to help guide the day’s time-line and flow, and also just to help. For me, wedding photography isn’t just a passively observed event where I take photographs in a photo-journalistic or story-telling motif. I’m there to record the day’s events, but also to help, if necessary, making it a spectacular day.
In the photo above, I took over from the maid of honor when her fingers weren’t strong enough for that final button and clasp at the back of the bride’s dress. My fingers were stronger, so I finished the last button. So as a photographer I’m often called on to do more than just take photographs. And in my camera roller case, I keep some extra non-photography related goodies …
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November 19, 2010
shooting in bright sunlight with off-camera fill-flash
This adorable kid looked at the camera briefly because I was singing to him. Kids are devious little creatures. They know when you’re calling them and will purposely ignore you. So you have to be crafty too in getting their attention. Of course, you have to be ready for the moment … and shoot a lot. Sometimes that Decisive Moment is to be found in the edit.
The photo session was from 12 noon to 1pm. So the sun was high overhead. We’re often told that the sun directly overhead isn’t the best time to take photographs. While this isn’t as ideal as the fabled ‘Golden Hour’ – that time just before dusk and just after dawn – there are ways of working with hard sunlight and still get great images …
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November 17, 2010
photographing a model in Hoboken … is complicated
A few weeks ago in October, a friend and I arranged to photograph Kerri, the model shown here. My friend had just bought a Nikon D3s and some serious glass, so I thought that instead of me just telling her about the camera’s functions and settings, it would be more interesting to hire a model to photograph. Then we get to play with the new toys, and get some photos. More fun than just being lectured by me.
So the two of us picked Kerri up along the way to Hoboken, to shoot there. Why Hoboken? I struggle with this question every time that I hit the traffic going into the helix at the Lincoln Tunnel. I hate the traffic by now. And then the traffic in Hoboken is just as bad. But I like photographing in Hoboken. There is a lot of variety to work with. There is the Hoboken waterfront with New York as the backdrop. You have urban areas, but you can make it look park-like by turning your camera the other way. There is the train station nearby, and two blocks up there is a long stretched-out alleyway. So I can’t think of any other place really in New Jersey that offers that diversity within a few blocks … and have parking garages available.
At some point we ended up in the (very well-known) alley in Hoboken, photographing Kerri. My usual off-camera lighting setup at the moment is the Lastolite Ezybox, held up by a monopod by an assistant, or in this case, my friend. It keeps everything mobile and fluid. In particular, another reason why I use the softbox on a monopod, is that I often shoot in Manhattan. The New York City Hall has clear instruction as to when you need a photography permit, and when you don’t. If you don’t use a tripod or light-stand while shooting in New York, you don’t need the photo permit. Great! But we’re in Hoboken in New Jersey. And this is where it gets complicated …
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November 15, 2010
portrait using a gridded softbox
It’s been about a year since I last took a more formal portrait of my daughter Janine. Last year it was her with the steam-punk goggles, when I used a beauty dish (with a sock) as lighting. During a restaurant dinner last night I noticed Janine had ‘LOVE’ scribbled on both her forearms with a felt marker. I asked her about it, and she explained the idea behind ‘To Write Love On Her Arms‘. So I decided to include this tonight in the portrait of her.
Lighting her and the words on her arms was a slight challenge. I wanted a moody portrait, instead of just flooding it with even light from something like bounced flash …
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November 14, 2010
using lens flare for effect
While we often try and avoid lens flare, controlled use of lens flare can enhance the mood of a photograph. The question came up during a workshop last week – how exactly do you get lens flare. It is quite easy to get flare – shoot towards the sun, or any bright light source. Removing any filter will help in not washing out the image. Controlling the flare is more difficult though. Different lenses flare in different ways. The choice of aperture also affects how flare appears.
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November 10, 2010
tips for posing people / working with a model
So you have a great camera and lens; and someone who is willing to be photographed and willing to work with you; and you have a great idea for a setting or backdrop … but now what?
Quite a few people have asked about advice on posing their subjects in the thread on future topics for the Tangents blog. Posing your subject is something that can be quite intimidating to a newer photographer. The pressure is now on YOU to create magic .. or at least an arresting image. Leaving everything up to the model or your subject to do, or for them to come up with ideas … while you just click the shutter, makes you just an owner of a camera, and not a photographer.
When photographing portraits of people then, at some level you need to be able to pre-visualize what you want. Or, recognize when you actually have something in front of your camera that makes a good subject. The point I’m aiming at here, is that if you want to photograph portraits of people, you can’t be passive. At some level you have to exercise control, whether it is the location or the light, or some element that you add or make a decision about. You have to be active in creating the portrait. And this often means directing your subject or posing them.
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November 6, 2010
Auto-focus (AF) settings for the Nikon D300 / D700 / D3 / D3s / D3x
The current line-up of top Nikon D-SLRs offer a range of AF settings. The combination’s in settings seem daunting at first. But with other settings on my D3 bodies, I keep it fairly simple. Instead of flip-flopping between numerous settings, I keep it simple by generally using the AF settings in just two ways. This depends on what whether my subject is static or moving …
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November 4, 2010
flash photography essentials
An email I received recently from someone explained how she is struggling with flash. The basic building blocks of photography are all there and understood, but it somehow doesn’t gel when she uses flash. She explains how she understands exposure metering, but “the minute I attach my flash, nothing makes sense.” Having read my book and scoured this blog, she admits that at the point where she uses her flash and needs to set aperture and shutter speed, she is completely lost.
I’m sure this is something many many photographers struggle with – just feeling baffled by where to start. So while this stuff at some level is easy once you understand it, flash photography also seems to be one of those subjects where you have to immediately grasp a whole bunch of things for it all to fall into place the first time.
So I’ve been mulling this over in my mind for a few weeks now. I thought of how to break this down in a different manner that would help with that “aha!” moment shining through. I have written a few other articles on how to balance flash with available light, which are all linked in this off camera flash photography page. But it might be that I need to find another approach in my explanation of balancing flash with ambient light. Break things down in a different way. And in breaking things down, we can see where we get stuck. And break that down again. Finally we might get an “oh!?” moment of clarity. And for other regular readers, this might just be a useful reinforcement of the concepts.
Now, at the very start of this,we have to realize there are two exposures taking place – flash and ambient light. This is the key. Then we have figure out how we’re going to combine them. The ‘how’ then includes exposure metering, but also includes direction of light. For this article, we’re just going to look at balancing flash with ambient light. We’re going to use a few simple portraits of our model, Camille, as illustration here for an understanding of how to add flash to ambient light. We’re purposely going to keep it simple to have things fall into place first.
Let’s see where this leads to …
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November 2, 2010
Drawing from a story-telling photojournalistic sensibility; and also from the classic style of wedding photography; with a dash of Fashion flair; and Romance … the intention is to give you images that will forever recall this fantastic day. Click on the thumbnail images to see more.
My style as a wedding photographer is flexible – it is whatever we can do on the day to give you the best possible images. We’ll collaborate with ideas you may have – look at clippings from magazines that you like – drawing from any elements that you’d like to see in the photography of your wedding day.
I also photograph weddings in New York, Connecticut and Pennsylvania. So whether you’re from Manhattan or Philadelphia or New Haven, I would love to hear from you if you’re looking for a wedding photographer. Follow the links at the top to the other Galleries or my Contact page if you’d like to have more details about style and pricing and fees.
Neil vN
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