Tangents

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Dramatic lighting effects for portrait photography

July 3, 2015 Neil vN 5 Comments

dramatic lighting effects for portrait photography

Dramatic lighting effects for portrait photography  (model: Jessica Joy)

For this dramatic Hollywoord Glamor inspired portrait sequence of Jessica, I used two Litepanels Sola 4 LED Fresnel Lights  (B&H / Amazon). But there's more that happening here with the lighting than just the main light and the rim light. There is the splash of color in the background, augmenting the blue rim-light coming from behind. Jessica's reaction to the first test shot was amusing - a surprised,"where did that come from?", when she saw the image on the back of my camera. The blue tones and  Read more inside...

Themes & context in Boudoir Photography

June 26, 2015 Neil vN 7 Comments

urban boudoir photography, NYC

Themes & context in Boudoir Photography - on the streets of NYC

The model in this striking image is my friend, Jessica, a boudoir photographer. Her pose is intentionally this strong and assertive. The concept here is part of an on-going project she had planned for a long while now. She had asked me to collaborate with her in taking the photos. The main idea behind the project (and these are my words and interpretation of what we had discussed) - women are objectified in society, but there is a disconnect in how people respond (or don't) to provocative posters and images of  Read more inside...

Posing people: Tips for improving your portrait photos

June 8, 2015 Neil vN 12 Comments

posing people: tips for improving your portrait photos

Posing people: Tips for improving your portrait photos

Throughout the numerous articles on the Tangents blog, I'm often asked about how I go about posing people. I've described some of it in the article, adjusting a pose with incremental changes. Instead of a traditional way of posing, it's mostly a "feel" thing, looking at my subject and seeing if there are elements that could be better balanced. This studio portrait of a model, Adrienne, doesn't follow rigid guidelines of formal portraiture. Her shoulder is a little scrunched up, and her head is tilted to the side. Yet, to my eyes,  Read more inside...

Flash photography tutorial: Balancing flash & ambient exposure

May 22, 2015 Neil vN 47 Comments

flash photography tutorial: balancing flash and ambient exposure

Flash photography tutorial: Balancing flash & ambient exposure

This topic - balancing flash and ambient exposure - seems to one that many newer photographers struggle with. The big hurdle seems to be the basic starting point - how do you decide on the exposure for each? I'd like to explore this topic a bit with this post. The trigger for this was a question that someone emailed me regarding an image in one of my books on flash photography. Instead of answering the question directly, I thought that a wider answer might be more illuminating. We're still on that perpetual quest  Read more inside...

Creative portrait photography on location

May 18, 2015 Neil vN 7 Comments

creative portrait photography on location

Creative portrait photography - Allowing opportunities to happen

There was an interesting challenge for me during a recent individual photography workshop in NYC - Don (who arranged the workshop), already knew the essentials of lighting techniques, and said what he really wanted was insight into the way that I see a photo before I take it.  How do I know something will work or not. Don was particularly impressed with the series of photos of Anelisa that I shot for the review of the Profoto B2 Flash. The shallow depth-of-field images was a particular draw-card. Serendipity - I love  Read more inside...

recap: Flash photography workshops – New Jersey / NJ

May 17, 2015 Neil vN 1 Comment

flash photography workshops – New Jersey / NJ

recap: Flash photography workshops – New Jersey / NJ (2015)

The format of the flash photography workshops that I present, are constantly evolving. Gradual changes as I adapt the program to be fluent. Always with the ideal that anyone who attends will see a marked improvement in their understanding and use of flash, and on-location lighting. I wanted to give a glimpse again of one of these workshops - in this case a Personal Workshop attended by two photographers, with Adrienne as our model. The tempo of the workshop is nice and relaxed, giving everyone time to shoot and practice,  Read more inside...

review: Profoto B2 Off-Camera Flash – photo shoot

March 31, 2015 Neil vN 73 Comments

review: Profoto B2 Off-Camera Flash – photo shoot

review: Profoto B2 Off-Camera Flash - photo shoot

Over the years I have used a variety of off-camera lights on location shoots and at weddings, and have worked my way up from Dynalite and Quantum flashes (and speedlights), to the Profoto B1. The Profoto B1 (affiliate) has made such a difference for me in the ease of use, the speed of setting up, and the sheer power of 500Ws of light. I love my B1 flash. For example, here is how I used the Profoto B1 flash at a wedding. Profoto has now released the Profoto B2 250Ws Air TTL Flash, and it comes as two options: -  Profoto B2  Read more inside...

Portrait photography & Studio lighting – Influences & inspiration

March 27, 2015 Neil vN 5 Comments

portrait photography & studio lighting

Portrait photography & Studio lighting - Inspire your own style

I keep a folder of Inspiration images to which I often add interesting photos shot by other photographers. This serves as an ideas folder. There are hundreds upon hundreds of images. I add to this Inspiration folder, and I also discard images over time as my own style and what I want to work towards, form better shape. I might browse through this and see what sticks in my mind. Sometimes it is the amalgamation of ideas that lead to something new. Even when I try to emulate the style and lighting of an image, there  Read more inside...

In-camera special effects with gobo projection

February 19, 2015 Neil vN 7 Comments

in-camera special effects with gobo projection

In-camera special effects with gobo projection

I still have this old-school preference for effects done in-camera and effects achieved with interesting lighting, over effects achieved nearly entirely through digital manipulation. Absolutely no disrespect to digital artists who create astonishing work. However, my jaw drops when I look at the sheer scale of the work of a photographer like Gregory Crewdson. Naturally then, my hero is Gregory Heisler, who has a true genius for creating diverse work through amazing lighting. So that would be my inclination - how much can I achieve  Read more inside...

Focusing your camera – Focus modes / AF modes

February 14, 2015 Neil vN 23 Comments

Focusing your camera - Focus modes / AF modes

The focusing modes and options can be confusing for new camera owners. The instruction manual's dry distillation of facts might also be overwhelming. Where to start? Let's break it down to the basics and make this all much easier. The photo at the top illustrates the most essential consideration when deciding on a focusing mode - deliberate choice. I deliberately focused on her eye closest to me. Not her hand in the front or the back. Definitely not the background. I chose what I wanted most sharp in the photo. It wasn't the camera's  Read more inside...

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