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Studio photography – Posing & Lighting

October 10, 2019 Neil vN 1 Comment

Studio photography - Posing & Lighting

A series of photos from the archives - a studio photo session with one of my favorite models, Claudia. I reposted these photos on my Instagram account, as a quiet celebration because Claudia has decided to re-enter as a model after a hiatus of a few years. When I use models during workshops, it is with the intent of teaching lighting techniques. There is also the strong underlying message that posing and lighting are interconnected. With that, there is a to-and-fro interaction between the model and myself (and the people attending a  Read more inside...

video: Creative studio portrait session – two perspectives

January 16, 2019 Neil vN 7 Comments

video: Creative studio portrait session - two perspectives

Continuing with the loose theme of 'Two Perspectives', I invited my friend Dave Block into the studio during one of his visits to New York from Seattle. The concept behind the initial Two Perspectives video was that I get to meet upwith a fellow photographer, and that something might be revealed in the contrasting styles and ideas during some kind of photo shoot - hopefully informative and of wider interest. The 1st video was the intimate male portraiture shoot-out with my friend Cate Scaglione. The 2nd video was with Tracy  Read more inside...

Available light: Boudoir photography & Feminine portraiture

July 8, 2018 Neil vN 6 Comments

Available light: Boudoir photography & Feminine portraiture

The direction of light is an elemental part of portrait photography. We can control how we pose and position our subject in relation to the light - and we might be able even control the direction of light, as we did with this sequence of photos of our model,  Adrienne.  To start off this personal workshop on Lighting for Feminine Portraiture and Boudoir Photography, we used only the available light that was streaming through the large windows in my studio. This painted canvas backdrop is on a roller stand.  Read more inside...

Studio photo session with a dancer – gelled flash

July 2, 2018 Neil vN 4 Comments

Studio photo session with a dancer - gelled flash

Following on the article showing the Outdoor photo session with a dancer, Ella - here is a studio photo session with another dancer - Grace. For this particular sequence, I decided on using gels to add a splash of color to the images. Grace is impressively elegant, with powerful movements when she jumped. As far as the poses and movements were concerned, I again let myself be guided by the expert here - the dancer herself. Similar to how I described the collaborations with Ella (previous linked article), and with Anna Russel, and  Read more inside...

recap: Studio photography workshop NJ / NYC

April 23, 2018 Neil vN Leave a Comment

recap: Studio photography workshop NJ / NYC

A small group of people met up with Anelisa and myself in my studio for what turned out to be the first Studio Lighting Workshop of the year. On the drive home afterwards, I decided to add another 2nd date this year, for a workshop on Nov 18th. The format of the workshop depends on it being a small group of people - everyone gets time to photograph our model. But more importantly, everyone gets time to hands-on, adjust the studio lights. In the morning we go through the building blocks of lighting. Short Lighting & Broad Lighting.  Read more inside...

Using gelled flash in the studio 

March 26, 2018 Neil vN 4 Comments

Using gelled flash in the studio

Shooting in the studio with Brian and Anette to do promotional portraits of their band, Cut Like This, this one sequence was really fun to shoot. The images directly out of camera had impact already with the swath of blue light against the wall. The lighting is fairly simple - I used a gelled flash to get that color effect. The flash, a Profoto B1 flash  (B&H / Amazon), was bare, with just the turquoise gel taped over it. The main light (to camera right) was one I often use when I want that interesting combination of soft light  Read more inside...

BTS: Fashion catalog photo shoot in the studio

January 25, 2018 Neil vN 5 Comments

behind the scenes: Fashion catalog photo shoot in the studio

From a recent photoshoot in the studio for a fashion designer, Isle By Melis Kozan, I want to give a bit of a glimpse behind the scenes. Further below there is a short video clip that shows what went down in the studio. Nothing frenetic - the pace is calm and steady. As it should be when you need to get through a large number of items. Fashion catalog photo shoots are fairly straight-forward - the key is consistency is lighting and positioning. You also need consistency in the camera's viewpoint. There is no Art  Read more inside...

Tips on photographing dancers and ballerinas

December 25, 2017 Neil vN 5 Comments

Tips on photographing dancers and ballerinas

Photographing a talented dancer / model, Anna L Russel (Instagram), in the studio, I wanted to think further than just sequences. Recently I have moved more to thinking in terms of larger projects or longer-term projects, even if just over a single photo session. I liked the results from the first few jumps Anna did - explosive movements within which she momentally holds a pose before landing again.  I don't know much about dance movements or what would be the perfect execution of a dance move ... which would then affect my timing  Read more inside...

Dramatic portraits: Hollywood Portrait Lighting

November 30, 2017 Neil vN 4 Comments

Dramatic portraits: Hollywood Portrait Lighting

Shooting for my portfolio in the studio with a model, Kimberly Jay, I wanted to create sets of feminine portraits that looked dramatic, and straddled the boudoir photography genre and had a Film Noir look to them. The classic look of Hollywood portrait lighting has long drawn me, and with a set of  Litepanels Sola 4 LED Fresnel Lights  (B&H / Amazon), it is a look that I am still trying to finesse. Other photo sessions where I have drawn on the Hollywood look: Lighting a vintage styled boudoir photo session  (model:  Read more inside...

Headshot photography lighting setups in the studio

October 25, 2017 Neil vN 6 Comments

Headshot photography lighting setups in the studio

As with most photography, lighting setups and diagrams are more suggestions than absolutes. There are 'best practices' that will help you get constantly good results - such as getting enough light on the eyes so there is a twinkle. Okay, call it a catchlight then. Other than a few guidelines, there is a lot of flexibility in the style of lighting, and also the gear used. In the accompanying article, headshot photography lighting on location, I showed a few examples of how I varied the lighting while out on location. This depended on  Read more inside...

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