Lighting Assignment

Hey, I think I've got this figured out. Been trying to post since Mel set up the blog. Very frustrating to be less that clever. Did a couple of shots as tests for Garnet Hill this past week with only two lights and a huge reflector (actually two pretty big ones attached to one and other) Thought you might find them interesting. Spotlight at very high power for a main about 12 feet away and the second head on a leaf image background. Big fill straddleing the fence in the hat shot and to the left in the shoe shot.
M

Lighting Project Examples

Been reading the Stobist material, and it has me thinking more about using different light sources as variables - including ambient.

Cap is our 15 year old Coon cat, seen here in a regal pose at f2 on a 50mm. I squared, selectively sharpened, and vignetted it in LightRoom. He's a study in energy conservation, including his hooded eyes. Not a bad available light portrait.

Now let's look at him using light as a controllable variable. The background is pleasing, but I think a splash of light lower left would brighten him up a bit and reveal the character of his eyes.
There's a few ways to accomplish this without ruining the atmosphere. One way might be to bounce a flash backwards off the back wall. Problem is, that wall is brown, and the vertical angle is not right. The ceiling is white, but the angle from above will shade his eyes even more.

Another way would be to place a white reflector lower left and bounce a dialed-down flash off it. Of course an umbrella reflector would accomplish the same thing.

What about the distance of the reflector from Cap? Close up or far away? Here I believe being farther away will allow the background to be lit also. That means, therefore, that the opposite would be true - a reflector placed close by would tend to isolate him from the then-more darkened background.

The easiest and more cat-friendly method, however, would be to simply place a flat white reflector - a piece of mat board for example, on the floor in front of him. Plus the angle would be just right to see into the eye shadows a bit more. So here's the point: while there are different ways to skin the cat (sorry Cap), they don't have to include lots of equipment. Lots can be done by first seeing the light and using ambient sources as one of the variables with which to work.

Here's another, this time of the guy who feeds Cap. How was it lit? A hint is that I used a reflective umbrella, but where and from which angle? To confuse things, the natural light actually bounces around the room due to windows and a mirror behind the camera. The shadows give it away.

If I were to do this one again, I'd want to move the reflector to upper right to boost the existing natural light, add to the shadow on the face (it's washed out due to being lit evenly from both sides), and preserve the natural look.

So here were a few thoughts on seeing and using light. Lots to learn and fun doing it.

Suggestion - read the Stobist if for no other reason than to be more aware. It's all about seeing the light.

BEAUTY IN RUINS

Check out coolhunting.com for the latest and coolest everything.  Take a look at a recent posting of photos by David Creedon when Ireland was on it's ear. I found the colors inspirational. You might see some in my Fall 2009 line.

And this one is with purple tissue on the lower left flash. Need to get some better colors and upgrade to gels. Just ordered an umbrella--shoot thru with detachable blck back, and an umbrella adapter.

Adding a second flash. One lower left with green tissue paper over it, hitting mostly the "white" wall behind. Second hand-held flash on lower right. Need to work on positioning of the second flash.

Starting to experiment with the Creative Lighting assignment. Here using a hand held flash on the lower right.

Watermark action for Photoshop

Here's the action I use for making watermarks. It gives you a few different styles to pick from, and it's pretty easy to change the font size, move it around, or tweak it to your taste.

When you run the action, it ends up as a highlighted block of text that you change to say whatever you want. Making a copyright symbol is easy — apple-G on a Mac, and (I think) ctrl-alt-C on a PC.

Speaking of copyrights, a site worth reading is Carolyn Wright's Photo Attorney blog. Photography-related legal issues are discussed. If you've ever wondered what your rights are as a photographer in specific situations, Carolyn's site is great. And if you email her with a question, she'll get back to you pretty quickly. I check her site out about once a month to catch up.

Do it yourself

If you haven't seen this site yet, it shows how to make and use equipment. Some rather ingenius stuff. Go to www.diyphotography.net

R

Roots

Got this one on Saturday trudging around in the woods. The watermark is the one I use on my other blog. I tend to favor one that's unobtrusive, but what do you folks think?



Also, would you rather that photos pop up in another window (or tab) when clicked, or in the same window?

New Project - Creative Lighting

So I've been reading The Strobist to learn more about the subject of lighting. I like the way he suggests techniques and equipment on a budget. One can start with the Lighting 101 Archive and simply read thru the subjects. I’ve ordered and just received the compact kit – umbrella & stand, clamp. Pretty inexpensive way to modify and mold light, and you can use the sun as one of the light sources. My two flashes talk to each other and can be dialed up & down to allow more creative control. Possibilities abound. Add www.strobist.blogspot.com to your blog list and sign up for the newsletter. To see a simple setup using an umbrella, off-camera flash, and multiple viewing angles, go the site and on the right is the On-Assignment Archive. Click on the down arrow and find “Light the Little Stuff” to see what I’m talking about. Pretty cool stuff. And portable. So here’s the project. It’s about using a flash. First, read a bit on the Strobist site. Then, using materials on hand, create a photograph that uses reflectors, cookies, gobos - any or all of the above. Share it on the Yarmouth Photo Group blog. Remember to pat Mel on the back for getting us back in the game. Project: read about lighting, get inspired, shoot using 3 sources of light - the sun, your flash, and a reflector. That's it!

Been thinking a lot about Alaska lately. This was taken early one morning as the sun streamed up the valley. The Matanuska Glacier can be seen as a ribbon of white; the rainbow grew in brightness for a minute and then disappeared.

This is an idea whose time has come. For the time being, at least, a forum for the group. Good work, Mel. Now to add others.
Randy

Gulls

This is from a current project of mine. Lots of fun to shoot these with the right light.

Photo Group First Post

Welcome Yarmouth Photo Group! I am hoping we can use this blog to keep in touch. Maybe post assignments, photos and perhaps critiques. You all should have the ability to upload photos and add comments. Right now, anyone can view the site but only we can add photos. Please upload a photo and add a comment to see if everything is working. It appears that photos could be saved elsewhere so think before you give something away--perhaps a watermark. Mel