Author: travel67

On the bookshelf – Lighting for Portraits

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Having recently posted  some studio portraits I thought it would be a good time to mention the book Lighting for Portrait Photography by Steve Bavister. It is published by Rotovision and similar to other books by this publisher it shows you a photograph and then explains how it was created with lighting diagrams. There is a good mix of camera types and lighting setups. The above illustration if for a natural light shoot, but later on in the book the are examples using multiple strobes, gels, softboxes and snoots. The book was printed in 2001, reprinted (with a different cover) in 2007, and is now out of print. Used copies are available and cheap ($20) so it’s well worth checking out.

Studio shoot: Nikki

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Yesterday I assisted my friend Eboh on a shoot for jewelry designer Suzanne Somersall.  Nikki J, Ursula and Suzanne modeled the various rings, bracelets, necklaces and earrings while Kim Clay did makeup. It was  interesting to meet and collaborate with the client on the shoot. As photographers, our job was to make both the models and the client’s products look their best. I took a couple of shots myself, this one of Nikki came out really well.

Flickr Explore

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A couple of days ago I put up one of the images from Jessica’s shoot on Flickr. Normally I check my Flickr account every few days to see if people have been viewing the images or if there have been any comments from people.  The amazing thing that has happened with this photo is that after a couple of days it has been viewed 4653 times, commented on 35 times and added as a favorite 57 times. It even made it into Flickr’s Explore section for July 5th which showcases the most interesting images of the day. 🙂

On the bookshelf – Lonely Planet’s Discover Japan

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A few months ago I did a quick review of some of the various guidebooks to Japan, you can read the post here. A new  “IN FULL COLOR” guidebook to Japan titled Discover Japan has just been published by Lonely Planet so I thought I’d get a copy. There are many more photos than in the standard Lonely Planet guide to Japan, and they  even used ( and purchased ) an image I took on my trip to Yakushima. As in the previous review I checked out the section on Matsuyama. There are 4 pages of text, with two photos. The text highlights the three main attractions in the city, but  publishers could have done a better job of matching photos with the text e.g. after a long description of Dogo Onsen there is no photo. The page layout is also a little strange with the “If you like…Matsuyama” sidebar hidden on the next page amongst information about Nagasaki. I turned to the section on Okinawa. Here the quality of  both the photos and the information varies. …

Studio shoot – Jessica (Part 2)

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A few more images from the shoot with Jessica. Jessica really reminds me of the character Leeloo in the movie The Fifth Element especially in the shot above. And this is the reaction you get when you ask for a few more photos 🙂 And finally a photo of Jessica and her daughter Sarah. One of my favorites from the whole shoot. (I love the beauty dish catchlight in each eye.)

Studio Shoot – Jessica (Part 1)

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Yesterday I set up the studio lights and took some photos of Jessica. It is fascinating being able to sculpt light with various grids and diffusers, and of course, it also helps to have a beautiful model to work with.  My friend and fellow photographer Annya Eyestone joined me on the shoot, while Kim Clay worked her magic with Jessica’s makeup. Remove the reflector, adjust the angle of light, and reduce the exposure and you get a more moody portrait. I’m really pleased with the results, detail is incredible and the skin tones are very good. The modeling lights on the strobes really help when manual focusing the 67 lenses, and when you get it right and the results are razor sharp. One a side note, I have been using Adobe Bridge as part of my workflow to select the best images. With film, this inital process of editing used to be done on the light table, but now Adobe Bridge fills this role before I move on to Photoshop. The above images are simply …

Island Icon: DJ Keith Gordon

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Feeling the Beat Keith Gordon is a DJ and musician, who combined dance beats with traditional Okinawan music to create Ryukyu Underground. After graduating from college in the United Kingdom, Keith Gordon backpacked around the world working as a club DJ. In 1997, he settled in Okinawa, and had his record collection shipped from home. Keith developed a passion for Okinawan music, and with American Jon Taylor, he formed Ryukyu Underground, producing a fusion of Okinawan, western and world music. After 3 successful albums, which have met with critical acclaim, he continues to find inspiration from the world’s music. What are your musical influences? “Coming from the UK, I grew up hearing bands like The Smiths and The Cure. At around 16, I got into hip-hop artists such as KRS-One, Jungle Brothers, Eric B, and Public Enemy. My tastes widened and I started to listen to older stuff that a lot of these hip hop artists sampled – such as James Brown, Roy Ayers and Donald Byrd. I guess it’s this stage of funk, soul …

F.A.Q.s – Can I check out the raw DNG files from your Pentax 645D

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After putting up some full size Jpegs from the 645D on Flickr I’ve received several requests asking if I can send people the full raw DNG files. The first issue is that the file sizes are very large, too big to send as attachments to an email. The second issue is one of control and copyright. I rarely put images on the net that have a width larger than 470 pixels and these are all watermarked. As you may have noticed I have not attached full sized Jpegs of my latest images to Flickr, but will post crops when I need to show how much detail there is in the image. I feel that sending out the raw DNG files to people over the internet would be asking for trouble. The decision I have made is that I can burn a selection of raw DNG images to DVD and include copyright information explaining clearly that these files are for personal evaluation purposes only. Having the files will allow photographers to process the raw images and …

Beach Shoot – Liz

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On Sunday, as the  sun dropped lower in the sky,  I switched focus from Ursula to Liz. (I shot Liz in the studio a couple of months ago, you can see the images here.)  For lighting Eboh brought a studio strobe with battery pack and a smaller hot shoe strobe. Both were triggered wirelessly using PocketWizards.  This was the first time I’ve used studio lights on location, and it was interesting  balancing the light from the strobes with the natural light. Keep the power of the strobes low for a more natural look as in this shot. Or crank up the power of the lights, and produce a brighter look more similar to what you see in advertising. Thanks to Liz for being a great model, Kim for make-up and Eboh for lighting. Looking forward to working with you all again soon.