Shadow Double
Mar, 2015Views
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Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken in a passageway in my hometown: Sibiu, Romania. It is a small town I have known and loved for a long time, so I am happy every time I have the chance to photograph there.Time
It was a little after noon, on an overcast Winter's day, and people were going about town for a late lunch or after lunch chores. It was rather cold so everybody had thick clothes on, and preoccupied hurried gaits were the norm, it seemed like nobody but me had any time to stay in one place.Lighting
Actually, the lighting was what made me stop and take photos here; I loved how the light coming in from the entrance to the passageway would silhouette people already inside. I did not use a flash or any artificial lighting because I wanted to use the silhouettes in a creative way.Equipment
I used a mirrorless Fujifilm X-E2 for this shot, with the kit lens (18-55 mm) and no additional equipment.Inspiration
I liked the rich interesting textures on the walls of this passageway and the side lighting, so at first I stopped and started looking for interesting silhouettes. Then I realized things could be even more interesting if I were to have a person as a silhouette and another with more detail. All in all, I think I spent about 40 minutes taking photos in this spot, trying different ideas and looking for the best framing. I liked this one from the moment I shot it because it made me think of a man and his shadow walking away from each other. I also love that if I look at the silhouette in the foreground I can think of it as a poster on the wall, in 2 dimensions; but then looking at the passageway, I get the full 3 dimensional perspective and the two notions confuse me for just a second, making me want to give everything a second look. The only thing I regret is that the people are wearing suck bulky clothes, making the silhouettes less interesting.Editing
I don't generally do a lot of post-processing and this shot was no exception. I increased the contrast and saturation just a touch and I cropped a bit because I had included a pipe on the wall that seemed interesting at first but turned out to be distracting.In my camera bag
I like to take photos on the street in day to day situations and to look for the strange and interesting things around me, so these days I only ever carry my mirrorless camera with me: Fujifilm X-E2. I plan to buy other lenses for it in the future, but right now I am using the kit lens, 18-55 mm f2.8-4 and I am happy with it. It is a versatile lens and well suited for street shots.Feedback
My strategy for a lot of street shots is rather simple: find a spot I like and think has potential and shoot there for as long as it takes to get a nice photo. I spent 40 minutes in this spot trying ideas and playing with the framing, and before that I had spent another half hour in another spot I liked. Other than that, I try to pay attention to my subjects before they come into the frame, anticipate their moves so I get a feeling of when to take the shot.
