Woman at the Bar
Oct, 2013Views
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Outstanding Creativity
Superb Composition
Absolute Masterpiece
Jaw Dropping
Exceptional Contrast
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Behind The Lens
Location
When I was in film school at Full Sail University in Florida, we had access to sound stages with pre-built sets. This bar was one of those sets. A few of us asked for permission to shoot there for the afternoon and we found a couple of models through Model Mayhem for our subjects.Time
I shot this in the early afternoon, but honestly the time of day really didn't matter. We were in a building with no windows so outside light had no effect.Lighting
This scene was lit with continuous light, not flashes. Once again, because I was in film school at the time, I had access to all sorts of movie style lighting. The bottles are lit from above with a 650 watt fixture above each rounded built-in. There is a gridded soft light on camera right also hitting the bar behind the subjects. A 1k light with diffusion is to camera right which is the key light for the girl at slightly higher than eye level and a fill light for the guy. And lastly, another 1k light on a stand to camera left which was about two feet higher than the guy's eye line. This was his key light and her fill/hair light. I lit this bright enough so that I could shoot at between a f4 and f5.6.Equipment
At the time, I had a Canon 40D with just a kit lens; the 17-85 f4. We were running out of time for this space, so I shot this handheld at 1/25s at f4.5 and ISO 400. Anything over 400 ISO with that camera and I would get some serious noise.Inspiration
I love the old noir films like Casablanca, The Big Sleep, and The Maltese Falcon. I wanted to see if I could emulate that style in through photography. I spent a lot of time studying these films paying close attention to how they lit both subjects and backgrounds.Editing
I used Photoshop Camera Raw to boost the contrast and crush the blacks a bit then opened it in Photoshop to smooth her skin slightly and make it black and white.In my camera bag
The equipment I use now is completely different. I now own a Canon 5D MKIII and my Tamron 24-70mm 2.8 lives on that body most of the time. I also have a 70-200mm 2.8 which is my favorite portrait lens which is always near by in my bag as well.Feedback
To begin, film noir uses pretty harsh and moody lighting. Not much is lit from the front. When shooting this style I would tell someone not to be afraid of shadows (even harsh ones); they just add to the moodiness. Study the masters, rent the film noir films and pause them on scenes you like to see if you can break down their lighting. Secondly, light the scene bright enough to get your settings in the f4 to f5.6 range. Shallow depth of field is nice, but I think it can be over-used and sometimes distract from the "story" of the photo. In this case, if I had shot at f2.8, the male subject and background would have been a complete blur. By keeping some detail, the "story" becomes richer. And lastly, don't be afraid to collaborate through sites like Model Mayhem. We reached out to a few models who already had wardrobe that fit the style we were looking for and the girl brought a friend who was learning to do hair and make-up. It was a great way to meet other creatives and we all walked away with some great shots for our portfolios.
