KevinMeyerPhotography

A Rainy Walk Home

Canon EOS REBEL T3

settings

Aperture 71/10 ISO 800 Shutter 1/25 Focal Length 18/1

upload_date

Jan, 2017

Views

341

Likes

Awards

Top Shot Award 22

Peer Choice Award

Winner in My Town Photo Challenge

Absolute Masterpiece

+10

Superb Composition

Top Choice

Outstanding Creativity

Top Ranks

Top 30 rank week 1

Top 20 rank

Top 20 rank week 1

Top 20 rank

Top 30 rank week 2

Top 30 rank

Behind The Lens

Location

This photo was takin from an elevated train platform in Chicago. I often have my camera with me when walking the city regardless of the weather so that I can capture any striking moments or perspectives I see.

Time

It was a cold, rainy winter evening. I was walking home from work and decided I would rather take the train than walk the rest of the way. As I waited on the platform I noticed that I could look down through circular holes in the walls of the platform at the Chicago Theater below. The water droplets on the clear plexiglass that covered the outside of the platform created beautiful distortions and transformed the view into more of a work of abstraction.

Lighting

I wanted the shot to feature the theater marque so that the location would be recognizable but I wanted the focus of the shot to be a lone individual, walking through the night. I set my lens to it's maximum zoom and lowest aperture and stepped up so that the front edge of my lens was resting against the perforated sheet metal wall. I then moved from hole to hole until I found the angle I wanted, took some test shots to get the exposure where I wanted it and then waited for an opportunity to capture only one person.

Equipment

I used only my Canon EOS Rebel T3 and the kit 18-55mm lens. In order to get a clear shot in such low light I stood with a wide stance and leaned up against the wall of the platform to transform my body into a sort of tripod.

Inspiration

When I first looked down on the marque, it struck me as a beautiful representation of life in the city. All around there is life and activity and yet one often can feel very alone. The warmth of the street lights and the marque struck a harsh contrast with the cold of the rain and the isolation of the lone walking figure. All the elements harmonized to tell a beautiful, archetypal story of human existence from a unique perspective. How could I pass that up?!

Editing

I like to keep post-processing to a minimum. I typically use luminosity masks applied to curves layers to get the contrast where I want it. A levels adjustment layer to ensure I'm not losing any blacks or whites. Since this is a color image I also did a slight color grade, adding more blue and cyan into the darks and warming up the oranges and whites to strengthen contrast.

In my camera bag

On this day the only gear I had was my Canon Rebel T3 and the kit 18-55mm lens. I like to travel light when I'm out walking around the city so I will typically pic a lens and just go. On occasion I will bring ND filters with me so that I can get the desired motion or depth of field blur. Lately I've been almost exclusively using my Canon 85mm 1.8 prime lens. It's very hard to take a bad photo with that lens and I love the ability it gives me to get in close to subjects without getting in their face. One random piece of "kit" I always have in my bag are 12" long strips of black card stock that are cut into widths ranging from .75"-4". I can hold my camera in my right hand and one or multiple strips in my left hand and if I want to control the focus of a shot, I can hold a strip of card stock in front of the lens to replicate a lamp post or sign post.

Feedback

Always be on the lookout for unique vantage points. Look between signs, around poles, in reflections on windows, through holes in fences and walls. Get low and get high. Then get your settings right and capture a moment that feels real.

See more amazing photos, follow KevinMeyerPhotography

KevinMeyerPhotography

KevinMeyerPhotography

A Rainy Walk Home

Behind The Lens

See more amazing photos, follow KevinMeyerPhotography

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