Untitled
Nov, 2014Views
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Top Shot Award 22
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Contest Finalist in Negative Space Photo Contest
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Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
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Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken in the comfortable surrounds of my living room here in Bergen (Norway). It was taken just after Halloween and I happened to have some black face paint left over when I had the idea.Time
I remember clearly that I took this photo early in the evening at approximately 6pm. The long autumn/winter nights characteristic of Norway made it possible for me to take this photo while it was very dark outside which allowed me to make use of low light levels.Lighting
I wanted this shot to be dark and intense with the portrait blending into the black background as much as possible so that I could accentuate small features and in particular the eye. To accomplish this I have to admit the lighting was very DIY as I don’t currently own any professional lighting sources, something I wish to invest in in the future. I positioned a flexible desk lamp fitted with a 40W bulb to the side of where I was going to be sitting and I angled this slightly so that it was pointing towards the wall, where a black sheet was hung in position as a backdrop. The direction of the lamp allowed me to only partly illuminate my face when I took the photo.Equipment
This was taken with a Nikon D7100 fitted with my Sigma 105mm f/2.8 Macro lens which has amazing optics and is great for detailed portraits. The camera was positioned on a tripod and connected to my laptop so that I could control the camera and frame the image using free software (digiCamControl). The camera setting were f8 at 1/80secInspiration
My inspiration for this photo was in fact a currently open View bug contest, together with the fact that I had quite a lot of black face paint left over from the Halloween period. The theme of the contest I was aiming to submit to was “Hiding” and I was aiming to have most of my face blend in with the background as much as possible.Editing
There was not much in terms of post processing except obviously conversion to black and white and the usual contrast adjustment/black clipping.In my camera bag
I normally carry my Nikon D7100, and a selection of lenses. I always carry my Sigma 105mm f/2.8 Macro lens, a set of extension tubes and my focusing stage for macro scots. I also usually have my Nikon 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6 lens, which I use for wildlife shots. The next thing in my camera bag is always my Nikon 50mm f/1.8 prime lens which is great for portraits and street photography together with my Nikon 18-140mm f/3,5-5,6 kit lens which is a great all rounder. I always carry a tripod, remote trigger and a selection of ND filters.Feedback
Patience and trial and error was essential when framing and taking this self-portrait especially when working with the lighting source I had available, so be prepared to make adjustments. It took me quite a bit of tweaking of the position of the lamp and reviewing the images to get the illumination level I wanted, but I got there in the end. I have to admit the resulting photo far exceeded both my original expectations and how it looked in my imagination so it was definitely a dark and dreary Norwegian evening well spent.
