Model test shoot ~ Pictures and slideshow presentation

May 30th, 2010

Here are a few pictures from a test shoot I did with Rosie Pitt last Wednesday. I set the pictures to some royalty free music using Fotomagico slideshow software.

I used a Canon 5D mk2 with my 100mm f/2.8 lens for all the shots. Lighting in the field was from one Broncolor Mobil head in a Bowens Wafer softbox. I only used flash on a couple of the shots. I deliberatelyincreased the exposure in camera by 2 stops on what the camera meter indicated and hoped that Marko could make the shots sing.

The studio session used just one light on a stand, a Broncolor Kobold DF400w HMI daylight balanced Fresnel spotlight and a Speedlight in my Lovecube set to 1/16th power.

This is a bit of an experiment for me. It’s an idea that was given to me on Twitter. Originally I thought I’d narrate the details of the shots but whatever way I tried to do it, I ruined the feel of the movie.

Please feel free to comment and ask questions below.

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19 Comments Add your own

1. Wayne Williams | May 31st, 2010 at 6:15 am

Brilliant Damien!

This would also work with some HD video mixed in.
A little fusion project maybe?

Wayne
2. Neal Shaw | May 31st, 2010 at 9:22 am

Very nice slideshow Damien – interested to know if fotomagico is your prefered software or have you used others that are equally as good.
Neal
3. damien | May 31st, 2010 at 9:37 am

Hi Wayne, you are absolutely right. Slow motion video would have worked really well in this production. Fotomagico handles video alongside pictures too in a drag and drop kind of way.

I cobbled together the video. It was triggered by a thought sent to me in a Twitter direct message. I was about to post a set of pictures from a model test shoot anyway so I combined those pictures with the Fotomagico idea.

Cheers, Damien
4. damien | May 31st, 2010 at 9:39 am

Hi Neal,

I work on a Mac as most of you know so the obvious choice of Pro Show Gold etc was not an option. iPhoto/ iMovie could have done similar moves etc but the timing system for moves and transitions in Fotomagico is wonderfully simple.

This is my first ever project with Fotomagico and I feel the limitations are with me and not the software. I’m going to trawl the net for more elaborate Fotomagico projects to learn what is possible and to get some inspiration.

Regards,

Damien.
5. damien | May 31st, 2010 at 10:08 am

I’ve been asked on Twitter about my source for the music and I thought I’d share my replies here.

The royalty free and rights managed music industry is a minefield. It is quite possible I’m sure to spend many days trawling through naff and inappropriate tunes to find the needle in the haystack that is an acceptable piece of music for a particular production.

The first task is the hardest, to find a website with a search system that works well. I stumbled across Audiojungle and was immediately impressed with it’s openness. Each tune is rated and shows the number of downloads. So it is quite easy to search by genre then refine by the most popular or highest rated. I did just that for this project and took the number 2 tune.

Do you know a great website for music?

Damien.
6. Matt Pereira | May 31st, 2010 at 11:05 pm

Damien, there’s the obvious Triple Scoop Music for music – amazing quality and none of that plinky-dinky rubbish you find on some Royalty Free sites …

How did you find FotoMagico for finer control of music, compared to ProShow Gold – and also burning to DVD too, for playing on a home DVD player ?

I just have not found anything on Mac that matches up to the power and simplicity of PSG If only they would port the app to Mac!

Have you tried SoundSlides Plus – very good for web based slideshows?
7. Ian Freelance | June 1st, 2010 at 6:14 pm

If you are on a Mac, using the Safari browser and are unable to watch the quicktime file; use a different browser such as Firefox and this should enable you to see the slideshow.
8. Markus MacGill | June 1st, 2010 at 11:10 pm

I just want to know, did the shoot trigger hayfever for anyone?!

I love the running-through-the-fields stuff. From feedback I’ve had, women seem love pictures like these that give a feeling of liberation. Somehow the slideshow motion helps with that feeling. I’m really inspired to try and get more of this kind of emotion and lighting in my photos.

I’d like to have seen lighter-looking bras on the model though – you know, just that little bit more liberation
9. AlexSnaps | June 3rd, 2010 at 2:43 pm

Excellent slideshow! Damien, may you share with us name of the track played in it?
10. damien | June 4th, 2010 at 12:26 am

Hi Matt,

Thanks for the Triple Scoop music idea. Their website didn’t work on my iPad so I’ll check it out at some point soon on my laptop.

I just sort music in Audacity normally but I’ve not gone to any trouble for this production. Fotomagico will fit your slides to the music duration etc etc.

Fotomagico Pro outputs in loads of formats including iPhone, web movie, MP4, H264 Quicktime, straight to DVD, Apple TV and even full HD.

I’ll look into soundslides Plus. What I want is drag and drop input, probably no zooms etc, with smooth clean sharp pictures on the output with a small file size:)

Not much to ask for then.

Regards, Damien.
11. damien | June 4th, 2010 at 12:29 am

Hi Ian,

Safari comes with Quicktime straight out of the box so I’ve no idea how it could become incompatible with Apple’s very own video format. Hmm. Works fine here on all our Macs.

Cheers, Damien.
12. damien | June 4th, 2010 at 12:30 am

Hi Markus,

No hay fever here

Cheers, Damien.
13. damien | June 4th, 2010 at 12:31 am

Hi Alex,

I think it was called clear blue skies.

Regards, Damien
14. martin | June 7th, 2010 at 11:43 pm

Hi Everyone,

Animoto is not bad its a bit choppy and as per the previous comment it might not be to everyone’s taste!, its very easy to use you can have a free trial so its worth a test!, it does have a music selection but its a bit grim!!, personally i think i am going to use a mixture of animoto and fotomagico, audiojungle is a great tip thanks!.
15. Country Royalty Free Music | June 10th, 2010 at 10:16 am

Personally i think i am going to use a mixture of animoto and fotomagico, audiojungle is a great tip thanks!.
16. Juegos | December 21st, 2010 at 7:48 am

Added to my favs!
17. Kevin Cull | March 6th, 2012 at 9:50 pm

Another endorsement for beauty in simplicity, love it!
Kindest regards,
Kevin
18. Kevin Cull | March 6th, 2012 at 9:50 pm

Another endorsement for beauty in simplicity, love it!
Kindest regards,
Kevin
19. damien | March 17th, 2012 at 4:33 pm

Thanks Kevin.