Selfie From Shadows
Jun, 2015Views
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Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken on my kitchen floor against black backdrop leaning on the wall. I tried to take some others on my bed, because I always use black linen, but my hand sunk too much and my position wasn't as good as I wanted.Time
I had a day off and saw Emerging from Shadows photo contest and got the idea for this photo. It was about midday and I had just come from the shower. I was waiting for my hair and beard to dry and decided to take a couple of shots.Lighting
I used one speedlite without diffusion to get harsh light. I placed the speedlite about 40cm (16") from the ground and about 1,5 meters (5 feet) away from me.Equipment
I had my Canon 6D on a tripod and Sigma 85mm f/1.4 on the camera. I used Metz 50 AF-1 speedlite and radio transmitters. I also had black backdrop behind me. On this photo I focused the camera where I thought I'm going to be and used self-timer. That was extremely hard with f/1.4, but I managed to get some in-focus pictures and this one was my favorite. I also tried using remote control with better success on focus, but I had to tilt my off hand up and it changed my position in a way I didn't like. I wanted as shallow depth of field as possible because I also took some more revealing photos and I didn't really want anything to show, but I wasn't happy with them.Inspiration
Watching the video on Emerging from Shadows photo contest gave me the idea of this kind of a photo. This one was one of my "half serious test shots". I was planning on braiding my beard and combing my hair and showing a bit more, but those photos were a bit boring. It turned out that messy hair and open beard worked out far better. I tried to get an expression of getting finally free from the shadows. I also wanted to use my viking-like appearance to the max. People who know me can tell that there is also quite a bit of irony included in this photo.Editing
I turned the photo black and white and changed clarity, blacks, whites, highlights, shadows, contrast and vibrance quite a bit on Lightroom. I also cleaned up the background on Photoshop. I removed some distracting pimples and moles, but I also left some on the image. The reaching-hand-side of my lip was far too bright so I darkened it down.In my camera bag
I just got a new Lowepro SlingShot 202 AW and I carry it with me almost all the time when I'm out and I take it on the back seat of my car when I go somewhere. Inside the bag I have my Canon 6D and Canon 24-105 f/4, Sigma 12-24 f/4.5-5.6 and Tamron 70-300 f/4-5.6 most of the time. Quite often I replace one of them with my Sigma 85mm f/1.4 and/or a flash. I have some cleaning equipment and extra battery and extra memory cards on the bag. I almost always have my Hoya circular polarizer filter with me. Only time I don't have it is when I have forgotten it in another bag. Sometimes I also have ND filters with me, usually with Sigma 85mm f/1.4. I also have a couple of bigger bags that allow me to take almost all of my gear with me. I also have Canon 7D (Mark I) and some lenses for it and three speedlites and radio transmitters for them.Feedback
When taking selfies be patient and use remote control or self timer. I took about 100 other pics when I took this photo. Most of them were out of focus or I wasn't happy with my expression or my pose. I always use back button focus, so I pre-focused the camera where I was going to be and then used timer or remote control. If you use another camera you may be able to make a focus trap. That would have propably made taking this photo a lot easier. Also when you have idea about a photo, always try something else quite close to your original idea. My original idea for this photo was to have my hair and beard a little differently, but this turned out better.
