indi001
FollowI had a play with one of my all-time-favorite shots, turning my model into the surrounding rock (digitally ;-) )
This is a one-shot photograph btw, real ...
Read more
I had a play with one of my all-time-favorite shots, turning my model into the surrounding rock (digitally ;-) )
This is a one-shot photograph btw, real model, real landscape.
Read less
This is a one-shot photograph btw, real model, real landscape.
Read less
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Contender in the Photography Awards
Flawless Summer Award
Achievement in Originality
Top Pick Award
Staff Favorite
People's Choice in Experimental Fun Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Experimental Fun Photo Contest
Halfway22 Award
Peer Award
Outstanding Creativity
Magnificent Capture
Absolute Masterpiece
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All Star
Superb Composition
Superior Skill
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Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
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Behind The Lens
Location
I took this image in Wellington, New Zealand, in a place called Percy's Reserve. It's literally just off the motorway. There are some really nice, secluded spots in the area.Time
I was out there with my friend (the model) on an overcast late morning, just when the sun started peeking through the clouds.Lighting
This is mostly natural light, one off camera flashgun as a filler (which didn't make much of a difference btw). Lighting in dense bush is generally tricky. It's also a deep valley, which shortens the time o direct sunlight. The sky was mostly overcast, leaning towards some rain. There was also some mist around, which caused some sunrays when the sun brohe through clouds and foliage. In a nutshell, for images taken in some dense forest, one would like some sort of even natural light. Being mostly overcast that day provided just that type of light. A sunny day would have caused way stronger contrasts, making it much harder to shoot. The icing on the cake is some single sunrays coming through to highlight certain spots. Those rays are a matter of patience for the photographer as well as enduranc for the poor model who had to stay motionless in rather damp and chilly conditions.Equipment
Shot with a Canon 6D and Sigma 50mm ART lens. I had an off camera flash gun around, but this didn't really make a difference. The flash was mounted on a tripod, the camera handheld.Inspiration
For the original image: I have been in this place before. In fact, its just a 30 minutes drive from home. Some areas of the bush around this little creek and waterfall are just beautiful and felt perfect to shoot there with a model. I showed some landscape shots from there to my friend and she immediately wanted to go shoot there. It was well worth it! For this particular edit: I'm fascinated by ancient cultures, stuff like Indiana Jones etc. Ancient cities taken over by jungle, holding secrets. Working in movie industry, I thought I'd just create my own version of such, turning my model into a statue.Editing
Yes I did. The original image needed some 'cleaning up' and the contrasts needed to be adjusted, some shadows needed to be recovered. I revisited the original later on, and thought she looks sort of like a statue in some ancient jungle. I let my ideas run free, tried some overlays and additional post lighting effects until I was happy with the result. Editing was done in Photoshop.In my camera bag
At the moment I'm a bit of an opportunistic shooter, going out to see what I see, rather than planning stuff. Hence I go out with minimum equipment, unless I really have a special project on. My usual bag is just packed with either of my cameras (6D mii, 5D miii or 5D miiii) and a pretty generic lens. I do like the Canon 24-105 F4 lens, which is what I'd call a workhorse, very robust, sharp and works well in most situations.Feedback
My advice is, keep your eyes open and use your imagination. Photography might just reflect some part of reality, but you can also use it to create your own world.