I have been working on some video projects for an upcoming article and really enjoyed exploring the capabilities of DSLR video. I worked with Chris the other day in an urban part of town. We have done a lot of shoots together and practically know what the other person is thinking when it comes to poses and concepts. The difference this time was shooting video along with stills on the same shoot. Take a look at the HD video.
I used my 45mm tilt shift lens for a number of the soft focus clips. And I used the Redrock Micro Captain Stubling for hand held video and follow focus with my lens. Using the Stubling really opened up camera angles for us. I found shooting video very easy on the D3s, and was amazed at the quality. 720p HD video at 24fps has a great cinematic quality to it and worked perfect for this shoot. For lighting on the video we used Litepanel Micro Pro lights.
For lighting on the stills we used Elinchrom Quadras. I am using these lights more and more… light, convenient and powerful. I really like being able to use the same accessories as with our larger Rangers.
We have been using some new post processing technique in CS5 I learned from Matt Kloskowski. Matt is a great guy and gladly shares his wealth of knowledge about CS5 and Lightroom. If you haven’t checked out the videos at Kelby Training (www.kelbytraining.com) on his techniques and much more, you should take a look. We also had a chance to do a couple training videos for Kelby Training, stay tuned for these episodes soon!
Tech: Nikon D3s for video (variety of lenses), D3 for stills; 24-70mm lens, 1/250 at F11, ISO 200. Elinchrom Quadra packs with A heads for lighting, one light shot through a gridded (rotagrid) 27″ square Rotalux softbox, the other shot with a standard reflector attached. Skyports triggered the lights wirelessly from the camera. Video: Capt. Stubling rig from Redrock Micro used for handheld shots, Litepanel Micro Pro lights used for video.
As much as I love an excuse to get out every Ranger and Quadra I own, sometimes one simple light is all it takes. I love the quality of the Elinchrom Octabanks, from the ‘big daddy’ over 6 feet in diameter to the smaller sizes as well. I was working on images for an upcoming story the other day, and Dayna, the model, was the perfect subject for soft light. Since it was cold outside, she was bundled up in a coat that worked out to be a great shot. I used one 39 inch octabank to add just a touch of light but kept the ratio between strobe and ambient light pretty close. Dayna didn’t need much retouching (lucky girl), but I used an easy technique Katrin Eismann discusses in the latest issue of Photoshop User. If you do any work in Photoshop you should take a look at www.photoshopuser.com and join to access the excellent tutorials. Tech: D3, 24-70mm, f7.1 at 1/100, ISO 100. One Elinchrom Ranger shot using a 39″ octabank triggered by the Skyport wireless system.
Thanks to the help of Bogen, I was finally able to get an image that has been on my list for awhile. I have photographed rock climbing for years with available light. I’ve added flash to some rock climbing images, but generally from below the climbers. What about having lights right there on the vertical face with you, producing that great edgy light that matches the mood and intensity of climbing? This shot would require ascending ropes to capture the face of the climber, no butt shots. The challenge is getting the lights to the climbers level. I considered having assistants rappel with me down the face holding strobes, it would be something like a SWAT training exercise with all these guys rappelling down the face. More ropes, more anchors, more systems…more problems.
But then Will from Bogen turned me onto the 269HDBU Manfrotto light stand. This gem is 24 feet tall and can support more than 20 pounds on top when fully extended. Perfect! When I first set this up in my driveway it looked like I could catch the infamous balloon boy floating overhead, this thing goes high!
The snow just won’t stop falling out here! We had to go out again today and work on more winter images. Today we shot cross country skiing against the snow covered trees, a great winter scene. We followed a similar formula as yesterday in terms of lighting except we used a small softbox on one of the heads.
Today the snow wasn’t blowing like yesterday, so we had a little easier time with the Quadras in the snow. We just put them in LowePro packs and put them in the snow, works great!
Just spent a fabulous weekend in NYC teaching a flash workshop for Photo Quest Adventures and catching up with friends. Talk about access…we had a little rain one day so Mirjam Evers just got us into Bathhouse Studios, 4000 sq. feet of shooting space with huge cycs and incredible backgrounds, a photographer’s dream studio. We focused on Brooklyn for the workshop, beautiful cobble streets, great access to bridges, way too many locations to cover in three short days. If you want to learn some flash photography techniques, we still have two more events this year, Las Vegas and Miami, both will be fantastic!
One afternoon after the workshop we had a chance to photograph a belly dancer near the Brooklyn Bridge. This location provides a great city and bridge backdrop right along the East River. Aisha, our energetic dancer, was game to dance on the rocks. I kept lighting simple on this, just one 39″ Elinchrom octabank and a Quadra for power. The light was positioned high and angled down to accentuate the almost ‘angel’ like appearance of Aisha and her ‘wings’. Sometimes all it takes is one simple soft light to get just what you need. Tech. Nikon D3, 24-70mm lens, f14 1/160 sec, ISO 100. Quadra at around 350 watts using the Skyport wireless trigger system.
We found a location near the Wyoming border recently that I have wanted to shoot at before the snow flies here in Colorado, and since it is snowing today we were lucky to get it done. Often times what drives me is location rather than subject. I keep a list of locations written down that I see in my travels, and make a note to photograph there at some point. The trick is finding the right subject and concept that matches the location. I may return to an area the next day or a year from when I find it. This area is a group of sandstone spires nestled in the rolling grassy plains of northern Colorado, really unusual to find this type of formation in this area. I recruited Chris, a friend, model and hard core skateboarder and biker for the shot. I knew we would have clouds moving in ahead of our first winter storm, which would add mood to the image. To light this shot of Chris we used two Elinchrom Quadra lights. The main light was to Chris’s left, a strip bank held high on a boom arm. Just off the right side of the frame is another Quadra with the standard reflector to add a highlight to his right side and give some separation to the background. We underexposed the daylight by about 2 stops. Tech: Nikon D3, 24-70mm lens, 1/250 at F8, ISO 100. Contrast was punched up in CS4.