Veronica
A little fun in the studio with the rain making machine...
A little fun in the studio with the rain making machine...
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Oct, 2016Views
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Behind The Lens
Location
This image was captured in my studio, using a homemade rainmaking machine, the rain was cold, but I did turn the studio heat up at least. :)Time
We shot this in the afternoon, but, since it was in the studio, we had the luxury of being able to shoot this any time. I had been in contact with Veronica previously, and she had been looking forward to shooting together, when I suggested something with the rainmaker, she was very enthusiastic about the idea.Lighting
For me, this lighting is all about Veronica. This image is about the softness and sensuality of a woman. I wanted the lighting to help create a feeling of intimacy; creating shadows where needed, and highlighting her curves where I wanted. I wanted to use the lighting to create areas of interest and flattering lines that accentuated her wonderful shape. I put a gel on one of the strobes to add some additional interest. As well, I was happy to see that when I had done all that, and we had worked out a pose that worked, I even managed to capture a nice Rembrandt triangle on her face. If I was going to improve this shot, and for the benefit of anyone that wants to do something similar in the future, I wish I had also used 1 more light (I used 3) to use as a hair light to accent and separate her hair from the background just a little more, but despite that, I'm very happy with this shot.Equipment
I shot this handheld with my Canon 6D, with a 24-105 L lens, @84mm. For completeness, the remaining settings were @f/5, ISO100 @1/100th. I used 3 strobes for this shot, I use Profoto D1's, 2 of them in the rear and off to either side (the one on the camera-right side I put a magenta gel over). Off to the side, but in front of the model, also camera-right, I had a 3rd strobe with a softbox (34x45). And of course, I had a lot of water pouring down from the rainmaker, primarily, a pump, pushing water up to a tube about 10 ft high, with 8 garden hose nozzles used to create the rain effect.Inspiration
This was very much a collaboration between Veronica and I. We had decided we wanted to do something sensual, something intimate, but also something a little different, with the opportunity that the rainmaker provided for us, I think we accomplished that.Editing
There is a little post-processing in this shot, but not a lot. The original was a little darker than I wanted overall, but I usually shoot RAW, so rolling the exposure up a little wasn't any problem. Aside from that this shot needed very little post work done to it, I did enhance the gel colour a little bit, but really nothing substantive, I was fortunate enough to capture this reasonably well right in the camera in the first place.In my camera bag
My backpack usually contains my Canon 6D, a backup 60D, 6 camera batteries, lens cleaning tools, and 1 Yongnuo 685 TTL flash. For lenses I usually travel with a 70-200 f2.8 L series, a 24-105 f4 L series, a Canon 50mm f1.4, and a Canon 100mm f2.8 Macro lens. However most days my trunk also doubles as a larger portable backpack, just in case I need more stuff!Feedback
I think, like a lot of my shots, the setup isn't complicated, as much as it's one of those "devil is in the details" type of things. I had 3 lights, arranged in a triangle around her, I did have the rain, which made for some interesting light, but the most important part of this shot, is, of course, Veronica. I really love the expression on her face, the pose, the way we managed to highlight her curves by getting the angles and lights just right. Take your time, find a model that shares your vision and have a little patience to get things just right, the angles, the pose, the light values, and of course, the composition. Enjoy the process, we had a lot of fun with this shot, and I know Veronica is thrilled with the image we managed to end up with.
