Rainbow Strings
Sep, 2015Views
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Zenith Award
Top Shot Award 22
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Absolute Masterpiece
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john_arsenault
January 16, 2016
old men and bad hands; i meant to award this "Masterpiece" because it is, but my hand slipped on the mouse. it is great regardless of what award i give it!
Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
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Behind The Lens
Location
This is one of my favourite colourful shots that I took in my home studio in Lonehill before moving to Cape Town. It was a very basic studio set-up but I could get all the results I wanted such as this one.Time
Since I had a home studio I had to wait for the darkness of evening in order to avoid all the stray light from my windows. I was looking to light with shadows and highlights so I did not want stray lighting or colour balance issues.Lighting
I experimented with two studio lights, the one a soft-box with a grid which I love using to get angles and shadows on my subjects. I love this kind of lighting adding a bit of mystery with the darker side. The second light was a shine-through white umbrella set to low power just to create a softer and broader light than the grid alone. I love using the grid to get the perfect lighting effect, especially when working with shadows. Changing the angle of the grid creates very different lighting effects, its almost like blinds on a window that can also create great lighting.Equipment
I used my trusty Canon EOS 5D Mark III, Canon 24-105mm L f/4.0 lens and a Manfrotto tripod. For lighting I used two 300W studio lights and Yongnuo triggers. The one light was a 150cm x 60cm soft-box with large grid attached. The backdrop was black velvet, hard to keep clean but great to minimise reflection.Inspiration
My model Kieron wanted something sexy and very colourful. The rainbow string headpiece seemed perfect bringing in colour while flowing over his skin. The white glove was added to bring in a contrast effect. I am always inspired by something different, something out of the ordinary so when I saw this rainbow-string headpiece I knew I could use it for the shoot.Editing
My personal photography style seldomly takes me into Photoshop, I usually just use Lightroom to do some light post production as I only shoot in RAW. I had to play with the blacks and contrast a bit to hide the imperfections in the backdrop.In my camera bag
I always need to plan my camera bag depending on where I'm headed and how much weight I can manage on my back. I say this because I am often outdoors, scrambling up hills or even rock climbing. There are a few things I don't leave home without though. My Tamron SP 24-70mm f/2.8 is my overall lens that works in most situations so its always in my bag and then I choose from my Tamron 15-30mm f/2.8 , Tamron 70-200mm f/2.8 and Sigma 50mm f/1.4. I also always bring a mini tripod if I am not lugging my big Manfrotto tripod along. If I am packing my bag for portraits then the 50mm and 70-200 always come with. It may seem strange to use the 70-200 but the compression from this lens creates a really nice effect. On the other hand the vibrant colour and exceptional clarity of the Sigma Art lens are great too.Feedback
With this type of photography I think the most important thing is to experiment with the lighting and the angles you are shooting from. Don't be afraid to break rules, sometimes this creates unexpected and amazing results. For example in this image the model was actually lying down, the tripod looking down on him and the lights angled a bit off the ground. Also be creative with props, here the headpiece needed something to hide the hair so we used a colourful neck warmer and added a white glove to break the colour with some contrast. It often pays to think what you want and then go shopping at a market to get ideas and possibly a few props to use in your shoot. I always advise not to try copy a shot you see but rather be inspired by it and then try create something fresh and new.
