One-Punch
Jan, 2016Views
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Behind The Lens
Location
While he was alive, my Grandpa had a weird habit of collecting everything, and yes, I mean EVERYTHING. Especially scrap metal. 7 years after his death, despite the multiple clean-up sessions, his back yard still looks as if it were imported from fallout. I took a few of my friends there one day, because i was sure the diversity and the clutter there would provide an interesting atmosphere.Time
I wanted more of a "quiet before the storm" feeling for this photo. so we all hung around until nightfall. The dark environment helps build expectation for something to come.Lighting
As I said, I wanted to create the story of a fighter preparing for his next match, which is why I chose the dramatic dark scenery. As for the light sources, there were two : a makeshift light bulb made by my grandpa a years ago, giving off the incandescence, and a cold halogen video lamp ( quite inexpensive, yet powerful, gets the job done ). I used the latter to balance the color in the foreground as well as separate my subject form everything.Equipment
You'd be quite surprised, but it was really nothing fancier than my Nikon D5100 with my 50mm 1.4 from nikkor, which, I honestly love. Besides the lightning I had on the spot, I used the lamp I talked about above.Inspiration
Given that i'm a graphic designer, specialised in branding, I see portraiture the same way I see an identity creation process. I take the time to get to know my subject, feel his essence, and build the identity I convey to the world. In this case, Rob, my best friend, is a personal trainer and a Kickboxing&Muay Thai enthusiast. The lightning and the general atmosphere lead me to showing this side of him. The idea popped into my head when I recalled I had my hand wraps with me from my training session before.Editing
I usually do most of my work in post processing to get the photo from what it was when I shot it to where it was when I first pictured it. Since my d5100's only an entry-level DSLR, it doesn't offer the best definition out there, so I have to be creative with my editing to get better results than my "competition" This time, though, all it took was some creative color balancing in photoshop. Nothing fancy, just some finesse to give the exact feeling I wanted it to give.In my camera bag
I rely on my ideas more than on my gear, since I don't have a lot of it. Even so, I never leave home without my 50mm and my 35mm f 1.4. One's mounted, one's packed. Aside from that, I keep a sketchbook on me at all times, and challenge myself to see everything before me as "what else it could look like", mainly because I'm very much into compositing.Feedback
What works for me, and what I can recommend to all of you is to look inside yourself more than you look outside, because it's YOUR vision that makes your photographs yours. Secondly, pay attention to your subject, make sure you're both confortable with each other, so you can really see through him. For me, It's the only way, or rather the best I know of, in which you can really present his identity and give your photos character.
