Calling
Sep, 2014Views
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Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
Behind The Lens
Location
I took this photo in my studio, which at the time was a tiny space I shared with another photographer and was downstairs from a recording studio so it was always insanely loud. I would have to shout directions at the models when the bands were playing and it could be extremely distracting, especially when trying to do a moody shoot like this one! I remember this day it was a metal band and they would start screaming out of nowhere and we would either crack up laughing or be so startled we almost knocked over equipment!Time
It was midday when we shot the model but we used a strobe here and shut the blinds on the windows. For the crows in the background, I really wanted to use my own stock photos of birds so I thought I would just go find some birds and photograph them because you always see birds everywhere in Texas. My stepdaughter and I drove around FOREVER trying to find some. We finally saw them in an HEB parking lot and she would run at them waving her arms and yelling to make them fly up so I could get a pic. We got some very strange looks in the parking lot.Lighting
The model was lit with a strobe placed above and to the side - I really wanted to catch some highlights on her hair which we had blowing with a fan since it was my favorite feature of this modelEquipment
I used my Nikon D800 with 85mm 1.4 Nikkor lens and a sb700 flash with a diffuserInspiration
It was October and I love all things creepy and Halloween-like, but not gory and gross. The model here, Morgan, is absolutely beautiful and has this gorgeous long hair and always made me think of an old painting when I would photograph her so she was my main inspiration. I wanted to create a beautiful portrait but also have something a little dark and strange about it. Most of the props in the photo where just things I had around the house. The dress was from a table cloth and her flower crown was a sprig of orchids from a centerpiece that I pulled out and spray painted black I also used some sticks and leaves from the same centerpiece to give it a crazy bird-nest type of look.Editing
I used photoshop to blend the layers of the model and the birds and add texture.In my camera bag
My 85mm 1.4 pretty much lives on my camera and is rarely taken off! I have a small reflector, my strobe, extra batteries, safety pins and clips (we are always making props and clothing out of random things so this has become a necessity to have at all times!) I also carry a 35mm lens with me just in case I need a wider angle but if I can make it work with the 85 then I stick with that one as much as possibleFeedback
Be creative with what you have and experiment. You don't need to spend a lot of money on props and fancy clothing, you can create amazing photos just from things you have laying around! I have made dresses out of paper, book pages, dried flowers, scraps of material sewn together, basically anything interesting that I can find! Also, I raid my mom's house a lot - she was awesome old stuff and yells at me all the time for pilfering things for my shoots!
