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Note: Any writing in italics will refer to a general note about photography and are the main points you need to know. So if time is short, just read these tips to avoid the lengthy background story.
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So, despite the stress of high school coming to an end, I (and fellow students) still had time to create unique photos for our yearbook. First up was a good friend of mine, Chris, who actually got this yearbook shoot started.
Chris came up with the idea of being a "scientist/chemist" in his shoot.
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Note: For portraits (or ay other photo assignment), try to get the client involved in the planning phase. In this case, I left my "clients" to come up with their own ideas/themes for their individual photoshoot. Not only does this allow the client to be part of the photographic process (other than modelling), this makes sure the client gets what he/she wants in terms of idea/theme. What you will do as a photographer in this phase is plan how to execute the shoot and give advice/changes.
Here is also the chance to get some logistic problems solved. Try to get your client involved in getting materials/props for the shoot. This will ensure less problems such as giving a heavy metal guitarist an acoustic guitar because you misunderstood what "guitar" he meant.
Lastly, having your client work with you during the planning phase can break any tension when you finally do the shoot. This can help you get to know the client and build a good rapport with them which will translate to a smoother and more fun shoot later on.
Oh, and getting the client to come up with ideas means less work for you, allowing you to focus on the photographic aspects of the shoot!
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So Chris's shoot was going to be an environmental portrait, in a chemistry lab at school. This meant that I would have to work WITH the lighting currently available. This brings me to my next note:
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Note: For environmental portraits, if possible, scout the location before the shoot. See what kind of existing ambient light you will be working with and try some lighting setups prior to the actual shoot. Carry a notepad and take notes about the existing light, setups you plan to do, and any limitations/problems of the location (for example, high winds preventing the use of an umbrella! yup, I found that out the hard way).
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Luckily for me, Chris had done his work and procured materials for the shoot and even planned out the time and location! All that was left for me was to shoot and edit!
Initially, I had planned for a high-key, "clean," environment. One problem, fluorescent lights typical of laboratories plus a huge window letting in daylight. This was going to be a white balance nightmare. To counteract this, I turned off the fluorescent lights and opted to use the window as the main light source and use a flash (which is balanced for daylight as well) as a fill light.
So with the window to camera left, that would provide the main light. In order to fill in the shadows, I used a flash (Metz 50 AF-1) at camera right triggered via optical slave. I used a bounce card to diffuse the light,but this didn't diffuse it as much as I wanted to and as a result, there were harsh shadows in the background.
So I opted for a different approach. Noticing my lack of lightstand (initially the flash was placed on top of a shelf), I had to use what was available. I placed the flash on the table in front of where Chris was standing (where all of the chemistry equipment lay), and aimed it upwards toward him. I closed the sun blinds of the window to eliminate the ambient light and set the flash to a low setting for a low-key effect. No background to worry about. I wanted an "evil scientist" look to the photo. Although upward facing light is not the most flattering, who needs flattering when it comes to an evil scientist?
So below is the final result.
The flash created the evil look i wanted and his smile just makes it much better! Muahahaha! I used the chemistry equipment to create a compositional element to highlight the theme of the photo. As for editing, I used the split toning feature of Adobe Lightroom to turn the highlights green to create an evil atmosphere.
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Moral(s) of the story:
-get your client involved in all phases of the shoot from planning to post processing
-try to scout the location beforehand
-bring a lightstand when doing strobist work, even a tabletop tripod will make a difference
-try alternative setups, these may turn out to be the winning shots!
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So that's all for this post. I choose not to put my settings here because this will all differ according to your equipment combination, lighting setup, etc.
To contact me, Andrei Seki Photography can be reached via the email form in the "Contact Information" tab above or via these websites (in case you are a member of any):
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