Katie (LA Models)
Shorts: American Apparel. Ring, vest: stylist's own.
A few weeks ago I worked with Katie from LA Models on a shoot. I had some very specific ideas about the final look of the images, based on some inspirational pages I’d pulled from magazines. Sometimes I start with visual references from other photographs, to give me some guidance on where I want to take the shoot. Other times, I have more of a conceptual story in mind, and the look of the shoot exists more in my mind than reality (you’ll see that in a post coming up in a week or two). It certainly is easier to translate my vision into something concrete when I can hand the stylist some pages and say “let’s do this, but not this part, and change this to that” etc. Otherwise I’m left trying to describe vague things I see in my head! But both styles of shoot design have their advantages.
For this shoot, the look was all about ‘boy shorts’, casual tops, and reclining on soft and furry blankets. The trick was to keep it fashion and not have it turn into something cheesy or “pin-up”. I thought long and hard about how I was going to achieve this. The key component for maintaining a fashion look was going to be facial expression. Wardrobe and posing would make their own statement, but if the model had a “come hither” look on her face, the results would be a disaster. Instead, I wanted the model conveying anything but sexy: anger, melancholy, even a hint of a smile as in the lead image. This would create subtle layers rather than just a one-dimensional image.
So I kept telling Katie to “give me stink eye”.
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Judging Again
I will be judging the print competition at the Thousand Oaks Camera Club this evening, which will be my second time. Information here.
High-Resolution Media Delivery Devices (i.e. Magazines)
Unless you live on a secret island that moves its location in space and time frequently, you’ve probably heard of the Apple iPad. Big screen, small price, going to save the world etc etc. It will even, supposedly, save the publishing world from extinction. Magazines and books will have a new lease on life, now that they can be all digital and stuff. No more small screens, only wide vistas to view beautiful…
…low-resolution images. Uh oh, we’re not there yet.
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Dive In, Let Go.
So I was driving down to a shoot yesterday, and I was worried. It was a big production: apparel designer, three models, hair, make up, and the location was a fancy house about three hours away. Due to some last minute changes, I was unable to scout the location ahead of time (the original house fell through, and the new one was arranged too close to the shoot date for me to get over there). The designer had secured a makeup artist, who had canceled 9:30pm the evening before the shoot with a family emergency. Fortunately we were able to get a replacement makeup artist…but it was a close call.
So, needless to say, I was a little stressed. So many unknowns to deal with here. No way I could plan for every eventuality, because there were too many variables. I started thinking about other shoots that had had last minute problems, or big unknowns or unresolved production issues. I thought of myself as having pulled those shoots “out of the fire” so to speak. I was giving luck more credit than I gave myself.
And then I got to thinking: this is what commercial photography is all about. While planning makes a shoot go smoother, sometimes you can’t tie up every loose end ahead of time. It’s what you make of a situation that is the real skill. Sometimes a shoot will just go to heck and there’s nothing you can do about it. But the ones where you make something out of nothing, or keep it from becoming a disaster…that’s the defining quality of a good commercial shooter.
I came to the realization that, more often than not, I’m going to range from mildly anxious to scared out of my wits before any major shoot. And there’s no getting around that. Part of my job is to embrace that chaos, and forge something out of it. I need to just dive in, and let go. The better I am at what I do, the more likely I’ll be able to manage that chaos and turn it into something beautiful.
So from now on, when I get those pre-shoot jitters, I’m just going to tell myself: that’s my job. To dive on in. And that’s what I did yesterday. And it came out alright!
My fashion/commercial site: www.onethousandumbrellas.com
[I love blog comments! If you leave a comment, and I'll donate a canned good to the local food bank, FoodShare.]
Danneille
A few weeks ago I worked with Danneille, who is with the Elite and Q modeling agencies. We were introduced by a mutual friend, Desirée Durang, who has assisted me before and was also the assistant on this shoot. Danneille had recently moved to LA from the east coast, and needed to update her portfolio to make it more ‘California friendly’. High fashion with lighter, sunnier feel. We decided to go for a ‘resort’ look. The kind of clothing the well-to-do might wear while vacationing in Palm Springs or the south of France. And since we didn’t have the budget to rent a sailboat or take over a Malibu mansion for the day, we decided to head for the beach.
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Modeling 101
I get a lot of questions from aspiring models, about how to get into the business, what it takes, do they have the right look etc. Having never worked for a model agency, I have a very limited frame of reference…I’m the client after all! I give whatever advice I can, but I’ve just found an interesting site that should help. It’s even written from the model’s point of view. While the site’s main purpose is to tease you into buying a book about the modeling business, that’s no bad thing. And there’s plenty of helpful information there if you’re starting from ground zero. So check it out!
Seven in the Park (Family Portraits)
Here’s a family portrait I did just before Christmas. The client called me the day after I’d marked as my cut-off point for Christmas card portrait sessions. But she was willing to shoot immediately, and desperately needed images for her holiday cards. So I agreed. We picked a day that fit everyone’s schedule, but our start time would be only 45 minutes before sunset. And since this was a park in Thousand Oaks, CA, there are mountains and trees to contend with. I had only shot at this park once, long ago, and so wasn’t really familiar with the way the light falls there. But there simply wasn’t time to scout the location ahead of time.
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Q and A: Seamless Paper
I just had this blog comment question from “PhotoJunke” on a previous blog post (here), and thought I’d answer it as a new post.
Great light Matt,
Is that a paper backdrop? I am using a bed sheet but the wrinkles are overwhelming and I can’t get rid of them. Have you ever encountered this? If so, how did you deal with it until you were successful enough to buy high end equipment?
Thanks! Yes it’s a paper backdrop. You can’t beat paper for wrinkle-free backgrounds! (Well a permanent ‘cyc’ wall is even better, but hardly anyone ever paints them black)
An alternative to paper is black faux-velvet cloth. It reflects even less light than black paper, and while it might wrinkle a little, they don’t show because it’s so dark. It has a different look though, as it’s completely black and there’s no detail in the background whatsoever. Also rolling up the cloth instead of folding will reduce wrinkles. The trick is to find a piece of cloth wide enough.
But really, a roll of paper isn’t “high end”. A 9 ft wide roll is about $43 at the local Samy’s. The trick is to have a local store that sells it, because shipping is expensive on these rolls (freight only).
I have a portable backdrop stand I often use that cost me $60 used. You can find new ones here, for about $100. This is what I use if there’s nothing available in a studio.
In this shoot above, the studio had a pole on a pulley system for seamless paper, which was very quick and convenient. In my garage, I have two large hooks on the rafters about 9.5 ft apart, and I have an 11 ft length of 2″ PVC pipe, which I run through the seamless paper core and simply suspend from the hooks. My garage isn’t really big enough for full-length shots, but I have pulled it off on occasion when necessary.
Or you can make one yourself. DIYP has a few different articles on this, including one here.
No Words 4
My New Camera Strap
I don’t usually talk about photo products, because that’s not the point of my blog (and no one sends me stuff to review!). But I just got something cool for Christmas and I wanted to share it with other photographers out there. I have no affiliation with this company, and my mother-in-law paid full price for the strap.
Ok so first off: a camera strap? I’m excited about a camera strap? Yeah sounds a bit stupid. I needed a camera strap for a little-used camera, and decided to put it on my Christmas list. I’d heard about the “R-Strap” from Black Rapid, and figured hey since I’m not paying for it, might as well ask for something a little nicer than a basic strap.
I had a camera with me when I opened my gifts at the in-laws, and as soon as put it on, I knew. I knew this was The Strap For Me. It was a real “oh yeah!” moment.
The strap slings over one shoulder like you might carry a courier bag, and the camera hangs down at your side when not in use. This is much easier on your neck over long periods of time. Yes you can do that with a regular camera strap, but you don’t normally because it’s inconvenient to actually shoot that way.
But there are two main advantages compared to slinging a regular camera strap over your shoulder: one, the camera attaches to the strap via the tripod thread on the bottom of the camera, so it hangs upside down at your side, with your lens usually pointing backward. This keeps the camera out of the way. Also, since it connects to the tripod socket, you can swap cameras out relatively quickly, and might only need one strap in your camera bag.
And two, the camera attaches to the main strap by means of a loop that slides up and down the strap. So to bring the camera up to your face, you don’t have to slide the whole strap around your body. The strap stays in place, and the camera, tethered by a loop, slides freely up and down. There is a clasp at the bottom that acts as a “stop” for the camera, so it doesn’t swing too far backward. The action is almost like picking your camera off a table, it’s that frictionless. But when you set it down again, it’s still attached to your body.
I was really surprised at how much lighter my camera felt when using this strap, because the weight is distributed differently. This was really my ’surprise gift’ of the season, even though I had requested it!
