Where the World Bleeds White
Jul, 2015Views
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alianapotter
September 18, 2016
wow!! this is a really intriguing photo! i love the idea behind it :)
Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
Behind The Lens
Location
This image was created at the beautiful Svartifoss Waterfall in Iceland at Skaftafell National Park on a vacation with some incredibly talented photographers that I am grateful enough to call friends. It's a composite of the three images; the landscape which includes the waterfall, my subject who was photographed a moment's hike up the hill, and the horses from a day 5 days out.Time
The weather changed on a dime while in Iceland. That particular day threatened rain so we donned our rain gear just in case. I remember walking 30 minutes to reach this waterfall, our group dispersing out amongst the slow and faster hikers. When we arrived, much to our dismay, the place was crawling with tourists. It was nearly impossible to get a good shot without someone standing in our line of sight. This particular shot was taken off the beaten path, shooting through the budding foliage. The promise of warmer days.Lighting
Most of my work is composited in post processing. Therefore, I am very particular about the lighting when photographing for my intended concepts. With an overcast day, even lighting is my friend and allows me greater flexibility when bringing other images into the scene. The subject, my lovely water nymph, was photographed within the same light, moments from photographing the waterfall. I was careful to photograph her in the right angle intended for the scene to create as much realism, if you will, to make her appear as if she was actually at the top of the waterfall.Equipment
Normally the tripod is a necessary tool for my work but for this particular scene, every image was hand held. My tool bag consists of a Nikon D600, my manfrotto tripod with a Kirk Photo ball and socket head and generally my 50 mm lens.Inspiration
I often looked at waterfalls and personified mother nature in my head. Often she was a part of the landscape, perhaps washing her hair or interacting with the terrain. It wasn't until I was standing in front of Svartifoss that I was determined to bring this vision to life. The lovely Mia Hutchinson completed this vision with her amazing dancer skills. She was able to bend over backwards and hold this position for what seemed like an eternity while I tested a few different angles and multiple shots.Editing
Absolutely. Post processing is the second opportunity to play. And how else could I make a woman's hair turn into a waterfall?! Much of my work is touched with nuances of surrealism. The computer, namely Photoshop, gives me the tools to bring my ideas to life. Ideas for concepts that may be near impossible in the waking world.In my camera bag
My Nikon D600 is my lover...only second to my husband! I have three lenses that I take with me, but if I am completely honest, I really use one more so than the others. My 50mm 1.8 is my go to lens to take the images most capable and accepting by the human eye. In other words, no crazy distortions. In those instances where I need a wider angle, I reach for my (dare I say) kit lens, my 24-85mm. One day I hope to upgrade to the 24-70mm 2.8, but until then, the kit lens gets the job done. And finally, my 70-200mm 2.8 takes amazing images when I need a zoom. I would say that my remote is a standard piece of equipment to my bag, but truth be told, I repeatedly wash that bad boy after every shoot. I can't even count the number of batteries I've "cleaned" in the washing machine. So the self-timer has become my best friend.Feedback
The best advice I can give is to try to have your vision complete in your mind before you start photographing. The lighting is extremely important for believability in any composite. In this case, using that giant soft box in the sky (an extremely cloudy day) evened out the shadows. If you choose to work in the sun, be sure all of your subjects (people, rocks, shadows, etc.) show light coming from the same side. For this particular image, photographing the subject from below allowed me to create the right angle for placing her on the top of the waterfall. Photographing her straight on would have eliminated the viewpoint of seeing the underside of her back. Then learn the tools of the trade, get acquainted with Photoshop and learn how to mask, select and effect specific areas of the image. Photoshop allows me to bring to life ideas and concepts that before existed only in my imagination.
