I met up with Rema in Clinton Hill, one of the nicer neighborhoods in Brooklyn, to take some shots for the cover of his new gospel album. I had him pose in front of a few brownstones, and then we wandered around for a bit with his guitar and took some shots at a cafe and by the subway. It was a really fun shoot, and such an unbelievably beautiful spring day!
Kelsey Fain is one of my new favorite NYC friends. We met during Fashion Week last fall, and she’s pretty awesome. Oddly enough, her photographic interests are the complete opposite of mine – she’s a studio shooter, while I prefer events. But when she invited me to be her assistant for a shoot yesterday, obviously I couldn’t say no! I rarely turn down anything photography-related, especially when it’s a great opportunity for me to learn something. It was really fun to see how she works on a shoot. Studio lighting gadgets are a bit overwhelming for a minimalist like me, but it’s also fascinating to watch so many variables at play in the making of an image. I even got to use a snoot for the first time (to light the models’ hair)!
Here are a few shots from behind-the-scenes of Kelsey’s shoot. The main focus was the hair, and the concept was Star Trek inspired.
I had my first-ever studio shoot this weekend for the Revealing Fashion website and look book. I’d been hired by Rah to shoot the Felicity Hair Salon opening party and, upon meeting me and seeing my work from this event, he asked if I’d sign on for an ongoing monthly studio shoot for his new business. I eagerly took the job, and then I realized I’d never done any studio shooting before. I’d never taken a class, hadn’t read much on the topic, and certainly never delved into practicing techniques. However, I was confident in my abilities as a photographer overall, so I kept my word and did the shoot. The week beforehand, I started to get a wee bit nervous as I crammed various lighting techniques and strobist notes into my head. It was almost like being in school again, except more enjoyable. By the end of it, I felt so much better about the upcoming shoot and just hoped my knowledge would translate into practice.
The shoot was at a studio near NYU – I highly recommend checking out space4shoots.com. At only $20/hr and with all sorts of equipment at your disposal, it’s a complete steal. We utilized a white backdrop and I arranged monolights with a softbox and shoot-through umbrella accordingly. I had plenty of time to take test shots and tweak the lighting. I’d alter the angles, raise the heights of the lightstands, and adjust the power of the monolights. I continued to make minor tweaks throughout the shoot. It was also my first encounter with Pocket Wizards! I was definitely slightly phobic of the triggers before, but once I started using them I realized how easy they are! With one click of the shutter, I can fire two off-camera lights simultaneously – pretty cool stuff for a girl who’s always been a slave to natural lighting.
The shoot itself was pretty awesome. Rah walked in with a box full of wine bottles and an ipod playlist to psych up all the guests. Friends, acquaintances, and designers all showed up to mingle, network, and step up to my set for some camera time. I was given little direction, but was told to focus on any funky accessories, hair, or tattoos. I took some full-body shots as well. Rah really just wanted everyone’s personality to shine through in the photos. Everything was done with my 70-200mm lens and only a few times I found it to be a wee bit too tight. Some people needed a little help loosening up and having fun with the shots, while others knew exactly how to pose and loved it. These images will ultimately be used on Rah’s website as a sort of look book gallery, so they all have a uniform plain white background and narrow depth of field. I probably should have used a higher f-stop, actually. It was all so different from my typical shooting style, but that’s what made it so exciting. It felt so good to pull off the shoot and stretch myself as a photographer. I’ve only just delved into off-camera lighting, but I can only imagine all the images I can create by tweaking different variables. It excites me to have this whole other world of opportunity in photography, and I’m eager to try my hand at it again soon.
Shannon is one of my favorite subjects to photograph. She may think otherwise, but I’m convinced she looks good in every shot. How can she not when she spends at least 2 hours carefully crafting her look (from clothes to accessories to makeup) every single day? :)
I usually end up forcing her to pose and she’ll moan and groan about it, but afterwards she’s got a slew of Facebook profile-worthy photos at her disposal and everyone’s happy. My recent trip to visit her in Boston was no exception, as I staged a few shoots in the Public Garden and Esplanade. There was still a bit of fall color left, which was a nice touch in the background.
Lauren K. Wade is the greatest roomie and friend ever for about a million reasons. One reason: she’s always down for photoshoots. She’s my guinea pig for any photo-related technique I want to experiment with, and I appreciate it more than she knows :)
So this evening, we went down the street and I had her pose in front of some colorful graffiti when the late-afternoon lighting was at its peak. I got to play with my new 70-200mm lens, which is an absolute gem despite being huge and heavy. I am slowly getting better at directing her when she models, paying more attention to the lighting and angles to determine what flatters her best in photos.
Then once the light faded, I tried out my new Demb flip-it with the flash. I’ve been looking for some sort of diffuser/bounce card, and this product has both in one. It’s definitely more flattering light than using direct flash or a normal bounce card, and so far I’m happy with it.
