Bristol Urban Portraits 11 ~ Pictures and Techniques
June 9th, 2009
Wow, another day at the Bristol waterfront and another set of pictures. It is important for me to keep evolving the strategies and techniques I use and it is fair to say that the pictures I shoot at these workshops evolve too. Charlotte was a fantastic model for us to shoot and as you will see I loved that red coat.
Marko has given this first frame of the day a simple twist. Taking a well lit original and making a piece of art out of it takes just a few moments when you know how.
Marko will be showing some of the techniques he uses to make big prints for discerning clients at our ‘Big Day Special Event’ on the 22nd June. At the time of writing we have 17 places left on this feature packed day. Click here for details.
This is the scene for the shot above. The debris is all ours! 2 Speedlights on Lovegrove flash brackets, on Manfrotto stands triggered by an STE2 transmitter. I set this up as the first frame of the day to establish the shooting skills of the delegates. By the end of the day we were all shooting this kind of picture well within our comfort zone.
Charlotte's hair was wafted by a Bristol wind. I love buttons, big brass ones. f/4 on a 200mm lens was spot on for this street scene.
Opposite colours and an abstract shadow / reflection make this tight profile shot work.
We spent a good part of the day exploring profile shots. All the familiar locations revisited with fresh ideas. This frame was lit with natural light.
Lit with an on camera Speedlight in full daylight. By this time, the delegates were shooting with full control of ambient exposure, plus the exposure, direction and zoom of the flash.
We all went retro for some cafe photography. It was an imposibly dark location for creating some wonderfully light portraits.
Life at 1/30th second using ISO 800 and f/3.2 is tough but well worth the effort. This shot was lit with naturally occurring light. It's the sort of shooting conditions that would trigger some photographers to use flash.
I love shooting into the light. By now all the delegates had switched their highlight warning off and were loving the opportunity to compose with white.
Flare - You either love it or you hate it.
The same space can deliver low key and high key portraits alike.
Back out on the street it was time to see how much of the mornings flash tutorial could be remembered. I used the Canon 430EX2 as a design element in this shot. f/16 ensured a nice iris flare, hence the 8 point star burst.
f/22 for this shot ensured the clouds were rendered suitably dark.
A simple shot like the one I showed being taken on my using flash DVD. This time though I used 2 Speedlights.
A splash of on camera flash with plus 1 stop of compensation lit this simple composition.
A nice simple shot to end the day. One Speedlight on a stand. Canon 5D mk2, STE2 transmitter and f/16 clouds, the day was actually quite bright.
If you want to unlock your lighting creativity and get your Speedlights working for you then get yourself booked on the Autumn series of the Shooting Urban Portraits workshop. If you can’t wait until then why not join me in Manhattan for the shoot of a lifetime. Please feel free to comment on the pictures or the techniques used below. Damien.
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8 Comments Add your own
1. Paul Hurst | June 9th, 2009 at 8:59 pm
Hi Damien
Great photos yet again and a real inspiration. Shooting f/16 & f/22 in bright light with a speedlight – I’m surprised you got a good exposure. I have always struggled in those scenarios with my Nikon SB800, even with fully charged batteries.
2. Pete Tiley | June 9th, 2009 at 10:55 pm
I do like the evocative image you can create with 1/30th. Lovely stuff and again, wonderful PP.
3. James | June 10th, 2009 at 8:45 am
Hi Damien,
Thanks for a superb day. Great locations, fab model and not forgetting a pretty decent tutor!
Look forward to seeing you on the 22nd.
Regards
James
4. Jonathan Phillips | June 10th, 2009 at 1:53 pm
Hi Damien. Another great day out! Thanks for letting me “carry the bag” i learned so much.
The Pictures are stunning
All best
Jonathan (Evolve2)
5. Richie Carter | June 10th, 2009 at 2:35 pm
Great Stuff as usual!
6. Sean Gannon | June 15th, 2009 at 12:55 pm
Great images as always – love the mix of natural and controlled lighting. See you next week!
Sean
7. damien | July 16th, 2009 at 11:17 pm
Thanks guys
8. damien | August 15th, 2009 at 9:58 pm
Paul,
SB-800s revel in these conditions. Choose Manual exposure on your Nikon, ISO 200, f/16 and rig the SB-800 3m from your subject and zoom the flash into 105mm. Stand back and light the blue touch paper. Just shoot and enjoy.
Damien.
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