Tangents

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Photographic composition: Working towards the final image

January 14, 2013 Neil vN 13 Comments

Photography composition: Working toward the final image

When I first immersed myself in photography way way back, it took me a while to realize that what I see in a magazine or book, isn't necessarily the first image. Those incredible images that can inspire us, (or even make us just want to give up photography), most often are not fully-formed masterpieces. Most often, the photograph that we as the viewer are presented with, are but one of a series. One photograph that stood out, or where the elements in the photograph were controlled by the photographer. And even with the work of  Read more inside...

Photo session with a model in New York

December 18, 2012 Neil vN 20 Comments

Photo session with a model in New York

I have already showed part of the photo session with Sarah Raley, in the article, vintage photo session w/ off-camera flash. It was part of a longer on-location photo session in New York. With four changes of clothing, we aimed for a diverse look during the photo session. I'd like to share some of them here, along with some of the lighting techniques, and post-processing. Most of the photos were taken with the Canon 5D mark II, and two zooms: the Canon 24-70mm f/2.8L II (affiliate), and the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II (affiliate). The  Read more inside...

Photo session – Modern Gypsies – mermaid

December 10, 2012 Neil vN 10 Comments

Photo session - Modern Gypsies - mermaid

When the Modern Gypsies asked me to photograph their one performance piece in a night-club in Manhattan, I wasn't sure what equipment to bring along. I tend to over-prepare and bring too much. You know, just in case. So I have a tendency to overload myself with gear at times. It's a discipline thing then to strip it down to just the essentials ... but still be flexible enough to accomodate a challenging situation. The previous time I photographed them, I knew there would be a large prep room, so I could bring in extra gear such as  Read more inside...

Night-time photo session using off-camera flash

December 3, 2012 Neil vN 18 Comments

Night-time photo session using off-camera flash

Sarah and Mark were in New York, dressed to the nines, to attend the Rockettes show. And while they were dressed up, and with some time before the show they were attending, we did a photo session. You might remember them as the couple in my book, off-camera flash. I've also photographed Sarah on other occasions. I thought that the New York skyline at dusk would work as a perfect backdrop to how stylish they were dressed. (I did ask Mark if he felt like James Bond, all suited up like that in his tux.) The lighting setup was  Read more inside...

photo shoot – Modern Gypsies – off-camera flash & controlling the background

October 29, 2012 Neil vN 11 Comments

photo shoot & off-camera flash - making the background count

I got a call from Michael Saab of the Modern Gypsies to let me know that they were performing in a night-club in Manhattan, and would I be interested in doing some promotional photos for them? Of course! Other photo sessions with the Modern Gypsies were all energizing experiences. (The Modern Gypsies also featured in my book, off-camera flash.) Working with creative people always fuels the creative spark. At the night-club, I looked around for interesting areas I could shoot some portraits. I felt this curving  Read more inside...

Vintage photo session and Off-camera flash

October 12, 2012 Neil vN 16 Comments

Vintage photo session and Off-camera flash

Anyone who regularly follows the Tangents blog or has my 2nd book, off-camera flash photography, might recognize Sarah. When she told me she was visiting New York, I made sure that I squeezed in a photo session with her in my schedule. The weather on the day was grey and drizzly ... enough reason to juice it up with some off-camera flash. And then play with the images in post-processing a bit. On this rainy day there were random pools of water in the street, and it took just a few minutes to find a viewpoint where we could get Sarah's  Read more inside...

Photo-shoot with a model: the progression of an idea

October 4, 2012 Neil vN 10 Comments

Photographing a model on-location: the progression of an idea

As often happens for me when working a model on location, the final photographs are the result of a progression of an idea, rather than a fully-formed idea from the start. That colorful background came to be because of how I gelled for the flash. It's a technique I've shown a few times, and here it helped me in bringing a blah scenario up to something more eye-catching. The idea is to create an interesting shift in the color balance between your subject and background. It works especially well if the background is not  Read more inside...

Behind the scenes video – Photo session with Ulorin Vex

September 19, 2012 Neil vN 18 Comments

Photo session with Ulorin Vex - BTS video

The video clip is a behind-the-scenes view (with some techie info) of the photo session with Ulorin Vex. This photo session was also the first time I tried out the Nikon D800, and I also got to play with my Profoto D1 studio light (500 Ws) (affiliate), for the first time. An exciting day.  Read more inside...

Direct off-camera flash as fill-light

August 25, 2012 Neil vN 21 Comments

Direct off-camera flash as fill-light

I really like using a medium-sized softbox when photographing portraits. A softbox allows me to get soft, directional light pretty much anywhere. The most recent example I showed here, was Lucia and Alvin's wedding in Central Park, New York. I do make it easier for myself  when using off-camera flash for photo sessions on location - I pick my battles. I don't try to make everything work. With a photo session where I can control the light and background and setting for my subjects, I can make it easier for myself by not choosing tough lighting  Read more inside...

A wedding in Central Park, New York

August 8, 2012 Neil vN 31 Comments

A wedding in Central Park, New York

A groom holding up the softbox for me ... as you may well guess, there's a story here. Alvin and Lucia are from the UK, but decided to get married in Central Park. Of course, there's a story here too.  Read more inside...

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