Little Lives
So many people all walking around and living their (our) insignificant lives. We exist in a small speck of time.
So many people all walking around and living their (our) insignificant lives. We exist in a small speck of time.
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May, 2017Views
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Awards
Top Shot Award 22
Contest Finalist in My Best Shot Photo Contest Vol 6
Contest Finalist in People And Patterns Photo Contest
Runner Up in City Life In Black And White Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in City Life In Black And White Photo Contest
Peer Award
Superb Composition
Absolute Masterpiece
Outstanding Creativity
Top Choice
Magnificent Capture
Superior Skill
All Star
Virtuoso
Emotions
Impressed
Top Ranks
Top 10 rankTop 10 rank week 1
Top 20 rankTop 20 rank week 1
Top 20 rank
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Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken at the amazing Grand Central Terminal (often incorrectly called Grand Central Station) In New York!Time
This was taken in the morning. Probably around 10 am from memory. It is quite dark inside the terminal and I was not allowed to use a tripod (there is a funny story about the red tape that has seemingly been created to prevent the use of a tripod - but I won't go into that here). I have only visited this location once, but I suspect that this is probably a good time to go. the light coming through the window and creating the shadows provides much of the appeal in this image, at least for me.Lighting
My intent here was to make the most of the shadows and lines to draw the viewer into the image. Looking to see where your light is coming from and positioning yourself to make the most of that is key.Equipment
This was shot with my Canon 5d mk3 and a 16-35mm f/2.8 L series lens. It was probably hand held, though I think I may have rested the camera on a railing or banister, but I can't be certain. There was no tripod, despite my pleading with the security team to let me use one. Shutter speed and low lighting were an issue. I did want to pretty much freeze the action, yet still show some movement. I did not want 'ghosts' nor blurry people through movement.Inspiration
This was one of my bucket list locations for New York. I didn't go in there with a pre-concieved shot in mind. I expected to be using a tripod, but that was not to be. When I got in there, I fell in love with the location. I took a bunch of shots and this is one of my favourites. The creative process just kicked in and the shadows from the people walking were the magic that piqued my creative spirit.Editing
Post processing was done from the RAW file via Adobe Bridge, Camera Raw, Photoshop and Nik Software. the bulk of the processing was via Nik silver efex. I wanted to draw out the B&W tones, shadows and structure within the file.In my camera bag
Canon 5d body (was 3 now 4), 16-35mm f/2.8 L (was II now III), Nisi filters, cleaning cloth and blower, spare battery, remote release, CF&SD cards. I usually have at least one other lens with me, depending on the shoot. 70-200, 85mm or fisyeye, but I rarely use them. 16-35mm is my go to lens for 90% of my work. I now take a little Fujifilm X100F with me too. I love that little guy! Often though I will still take the Canon and the 16-35 out of the bag over the Fuji, but I do love that little Fujifilm's B&W jpgs straight from camera.Feedback
This was always going to be black and white and I set the camera to monochrome mode whilst shooting. I find this helps me to 'see' and 'think' in monochrome. I am recording in RAW, so I can always process however I would like, but I like seeing the image in the play back screen in B&W. If you have never tried this, do so! it's great for your creativity. If you're shooting in RAW then no harm is done. Think about the speed of movement of the people. No-one was running, so i was able to balance ISO, aperture and shutter speed to best effect. Every stop of light matters, especially in low lighting situations. Choose different vantage points. Choose different points of view. Wait for the right moment, composition wise, when people enter and exit the frame or the rule of thirds points. Don't forget to line up the building and architecture too. Consider the entire frame. I hope this has been useful and informative.
