Soft - Hard
Jan, 2016Views
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Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken in Bare Island a tiny island/islet close to Sydney, Australia.Time
Bare Island is some good 15km out of Sydney, and we had to be up and running very early in order to get there and get Naomi camera ready before the sun got too harsh. This was halfway through the session, so it must have been around 9 or 9:30am.Lighting
Although it was still early, there wasn't a cloud in the sky and the sun was hitting hard. That's why I had Naomi turn her face away from the light, otherwise we would have not softness on her face, which would change the whole concept of the image. I had an assistant with a white reflector camera left to open up the shadows a little.Equipment
I used my Canon 60D with a Sigma 70-200 f/2.8 lens (160mm, 1/640sec, f/5, ISO 100). No tripod or flash or anything else. I shot from the top of a very slippery rock as she lay down on the wet rocks.Inspiration
We had a few different concepts we wanted to try, but this wasn't one of them. But the wet rocks with the small puddles, and the harsh sun making the texture glow gave us the idea. Naomi was brave, as it was not the safest place to reach, with (small) waves crashing only a few meters from her, and very slippery rocks. As we were improvising, I had to try a few different angles until it started working out.Editing
Obviously the black and white conversion. Also, some dodging and burning (in Lightroom), lifting a bit the shadows, lens distortion correction and sharpening. Not a lot, really.In my camera bag
At the moment, my bodies are a Canon 6D and a 60D, and lenses are the Sigma 15mm fisheye f/2.8, Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8, Sigma 35mm f/1.4 Art, Canon 50mm f/1.8, Sigma 85mm f/1.4, Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8 and a Canon 430 EX flash.Feedback
Safety first. It wasn't the most comfortable place to be, but there was no serious danger there. After that, watch for any unflattering harsh shadows. Depending on your concept, you can use it in your favor. Soft light would be a better condition for the model, but then we'd loose the nice texture of the rocks, so having her side or backlit is a good option.
