Shot off my rooftop with a 3 second exposure, sync on rear curtain, in late October with one very cold, brave, model! :)
Shot off my rooftop with a 3 second exposure, sync on rear curtain, in late October with one very cold, brave, model! :)
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Behind The Lens
Location
I shot this off my rooftop, it was one of those cold winter nights, this shot was taken during the 9 seconds where I'd convinced her into taking off the parka.Time
This is the very first image I had printed, it hangs on my wall to this day, and I shot this about 9pm in the middle of winter, it was very cold, and the air was very clear, I've always liked my view, and I'm very happy with how this concept came out.Lighting
I used only a single strobe on camera-left. Dragged the shutter just a little to capture that ambient from the city below. This was shot at 250 ISO with a 3.2 second exposure, and considering how cold it was, I thought I should definitely use a strobe on second curtain to freeze her (no pun intended!) into place. All in all, I really can't complain with how all that worked out. Mostly it was guess work, which just goes to show, practice makes perfect... or at least, good!Equipment
I shot this on a tripod (3.2 second exposure made that essential!). I shot it with a Canon 60D (I miss that little guy!) with a 24-105 L series lens set at 24mm at f/4.0. I believe the strobe I used was a Jinbei HD-II 600 (which turned out to be a very cost effective piece of gear!) I bought it for location shoots, thinking I wouldn't be really upset if it died or got broken, but I've used it a lot now, and I have to say, very impressed with it.Inspiration
This was a combination of factors for sure. Number one, I've always enjoyed my view and on this particular night, it was cold, and the air was very clear, with an interesting look to the city. Number 2, I really liked the composition that my vantage point allowed me. Number 3, I had this dress that I liked that just doesn't fit too many models (it's size 00!). And of course, number 4, I had a fantastic model who was willing to crawl up a ladder to get on my roof, in heels even! Hard to say no to a combination of factors like that!Editing
Very little post processing went into this post... I burned a few edges on my roof as they were tin, and a little distracting, and other than that, I did clone out a couple things that I felt took away from the image... if you want to study the image, you might just find a little duplication here and there...In my camera bag
These days, I don't go anywhere to shoot without my Canon 6D, and my 3 go-to lenses, my 50 1.4, my 24-105L, and my 70-200 2.8 L. I can capture almost everything with those lenses. I usually carry a strobe in my trunk, and at least one speedlight with me as well. Also, gum, under-rated, but good to have... sometimes by the end of the day, it's a good idea! (Does that count as a photography tip?)Feedback
I've listed my settings above, so for others trying to capture something similar, I would start by finding the exposure that makes the city look good. Then, add in your subject. Using the second curtain sync to fire the strobe solved a lot of problems, and is, I think, an ideal use for this technique. Hope that helps!