grahamhebron
FollowGenuine British Army trooper.
www.facebook.com-grahamhebroncreative
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Contest Finalist in All Or Nothing Photo Contest
Prize Bundle
Contest Finalist in 300 Soldiers Photo Contest
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Superb Composition
Absolute Masterpiece
Outstanding Creativity
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One Of A Kind
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BrokenDolly
June 08, 2015
Congratulations! And I Just wanted to Tell You that I Really LOVE This Photo! It's Very Powerful.
MRKll
August 24, 2015
Awesome phototure. If I was the judge this phototure would have won hands down. Great job
Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
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Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken in a forest beside some lakes in my hometown of Knaresborough, England. The environment seemed totally appropriate for the shoot, especially since the soldier is wearing camouflage gear. I'm a self-taught photographer now studying a degree.Time
Any photographer knows that two of the best times to take photos is during dawn and dusk because the lighting is simply beautiful. Midday shows present harsh contrast and sunsets provide a beautiful tungsten glow. I took this around 4pm as the light began to fade and as the clouds hid the sun, allowing me to get a smooth tone across the model's entire face.Lighting
There was absolutely no artificial lighting in this shot. It was all down to the clouds allowing me to capture an even tone on the skin of the soldier. I love working with light such as painting with light and being creative in a studio, but the lack of man-made light here gave a more realistic, documentary feel to the photo which is what I originally planned.Equipment
I used a Nikon D3200 DSLR camera at 24 mega-pixel and of course shot in RAW format, the highest quality possible. The lens was a Nikon 55-200mm at the full 200mm to allow for an evidently shallow depth of field. I used no flash and it was a handheld shot with a low ISO.Inspiration
My inspiration came from my personal travels around Europe and living in Spain. I know what it's like to live alone in a foreign country when everything seems rather intimidating and I thought what better way to convey this emotion than with a genuine British Army soldier who is serving our country and deserves to be recognised. Hero.Editing
I enhanced the contrast slightly and introduced a little bit of blue to the photo so that the image wasn't quite so flat.In my camera bag
I always carry the camera, obviously. Second to that I carry both my standard Nikon 18-55mm lens and the 55-200mm. It's rare I take a flashgun because they generally produce fake, harsh lighting which looks completely artificial. Instead, I carry a battery-operated video camera light and stick it in the scene, out of frame to create more of an atmosphere. In this shot the light wasn't used, however. Tripod is generally another piece of equipment I carry, but not on this shoot.Feedback
I took 20 shots of the soldier standing like this before I took this magical photo. He wasn't directed to do anything other than smoke. His expressions are natural and somewhat unaware of the camera. I advise for those wanting to capture something similar to allow the model to be themselves and not necessarily pose. Posing doesn't work for genuine shots like this one.