Colorful, dramatic portraits in the studio with continuous / LED lights
Colorful, dramatic portraits in the studio with continuous / LED lights
It was a thrill to work with the band Uncured on their promotional photos. They are focused! I expect them to break out and be huge. During this photo session we mostly worked with the usual Profoto flashes I have in the studio. The brief was to create dramatic photos of the band. I used gridded stripboxes which were gelled. This gave the desired effect. (I will post some of the images in a follow-up post here.) But for one sequence of photos (of which three images are shown here), I changed it up with some Read more inside...Studio photography : Improvising on lighting setups
Studio photography : Improvising on lighting setups
Declan in the studio. This kid, only 8 years old, brought the suaveness and confidence of James Bond to the photo session. It was quite a treat to work with someone so young, but who had specific ideas of how he wanted to present himself, to the extent that this was somewhat of a collaboration. camera : Sony A1 (Amazon / B&H) lens : Sony 24-70mm f/2.8 GM ii (B&H / Amazon) lighting: lots of Profoto gear of course. See the description below for the setup. Read more inside...Dance photography – studio lighting with dramatic shadows
Dance photography - studio lighting with dramatic shadows
Jaqlin and I wanted to create photos in the studio that captured the sheer power in her dance movements. It took several tries for me to get her at the peak of her jump. The lighting here is very simple — a single Profoto B1x 500Ws flash (B&H / Amazon), and the Profoto Magnum reflector (B&H / Amazon). With the flash high up on a light-stand in the studio, I wanted it to simulate hard sunlight, with the shadow of Jaqlin, the dancer, being part of the design of the image. The shadow has Read more inside...Headshot Photography : adapting the lighting setup
Headshot Photography : adapting the lighting setup
With headshot photography in the studio, there are several setups such that consistently give great, repeatable results. One such lighting setup is Clamshell Lighting, for example. The results are always solid. Just looks great. In this link with articles on headshot photography, you can read up about some of these lighting setups. While I alway enjoy working with clients to give them outstanding headshots and business portraits, it is an extra bit of fun when I meet a client who wants something extra. Something a little different Read more inside...Creating dramatic studio lighting with Profoto A2 flashes
Creating dramatic studio lighting with Profoto A2 flashes
Profoto has created an entire system of portable lighting with accessories around their Profoto A2 flash (B&H / Amazon). I had the rare opportunity to connect again with one of my favorite models, Erin Leigh Pribyl, for a photo session in my studio. Even in this short video clip, you'll get a sense of her personality. With this, I wanted to create dramatic portrait lighting with a hint of the old Hollywood Glamor lighting, but with color instead of B&W. In this video is a glimpse of how I built up 4 Read more inside...Photo gear you need : a tall tripod
Photo gear you need : a tall tripod
We all started out with a light-weight tripod as our very first tripod. Most likely then after several uses, and budget allowing, you upgraded to a much sturdier tripod. If you've ever struggled with a light-weight tripod, you know exactly why. And then the occasion strikes where you realize at times you also need a really tall tripod. Then the options become fewer. It's that intersect between affordable, robust, easy to carry ... and really tall. Nothing else will suffice. For this kind of situation, I got the Robus RC-0888 carbon fiber Read more inside...Headshot photography : Dramatic B&W photos
Headshot photography : Dramatic B&W photos
I had an interesting headshot photo session in the studio this afternoon. The brief from the company was oddly specific about which #Profoto light modifiers need to be used, and the power settings and angles and position, etc. As it would happen, when they contacted me and sent over the brief, I was all, "Sure, I have all of that." Because, you know, I do. I'm always keen on reverse engineering photos anyway, to figure out the lighting -- but in this case they made it easy with the diagrams and notations. The company is Read more inside...Studio lighting ideas : learning from other photographers
Studio lighting ideas : learning from other photographers
One of the cool things about renting out my studio to other photographers, is that I get to see how they work, and what they do differently in terms of their lighting, and how they work with their subjects. During the past 2 days, I had Jason Buff in my studio where he presented his masterclass workshop on his style of portraits. Jason specializes in studio portraits with a painterly quality. He was kind enough to invite me to take a few photos as well. I didn't take the photograph much further in terms of his style of Read more inside...Studio portraits – different setups for different looks
Studio portraits - different setups for different looks
As a kind of “inaugural” photo session in my new studio space, I asked my photographer friend, @ClaytonReynolds, if he’d be willing come in to be photographed. I liked the way Clayton's confidence and natural charm comes through in these photos. We used 3 different setups for 3 different looks. From the simplest of setups -- just window-light, to a more complex setup using a spotlight with a gobo. There are two pull-back shots if you're curious about the lighting configuration. This photo above is a favorite way to quickly Read more inside...- 1
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