Studio Shoot Plan for 25th of March

This week I've been planning my portrait studio shoot. I have been inspired by contemporary fashion photographer Lara Jade. I was initially drawn to the styling in her shots and the shadows cast in the black and white images shown below. I plan on styling my shoot on the poses and make up of a selection of her works but will add my own twist.

I've sent Steve my shoot plan with inspiration shots and required equipment - I intend to help with the set up of the studio lighting and equipment so I get a better understanding of the equipment.

I will be using my friend Sharon in the shoot. I briefed her on the above plan the evening before the shoot - she has posed before for me so is used to how I work. I gave her the plan to practice the poses - we selected a range of clothing to reflect a high fashion shoot. I will do her hair and make up. There are a lot of textures in Lara Jade's work through the use of different fabrics. The lighting looks almost ethereal and is very soft focused on the models faces. The poses may be very hard for a non trained model to emulate as they are very angular.

Engagement Portrait Plan 6/5/10

Having got married last year, I was fortunate enough to have contemporary wedding photographer of the year, Lynsey Thompson take our photos of our Special day. Since then I have developed an interest in Bridal photography. Unfortunately the weddings I am attending are from June onwards.

To get us used to posing in front of the camera and get used Lynsey, her wedding package includes an engagement shoot. Lynsey shot myself and my husband in her studio - we wore black tops. The shots included head shots, full length, couple and individual shots. I can not get copies of our shoot as I would have to pay but I have looked at various photographers on flickr who have taken similar poses. See my plan below.

Research - Focus on Imaging

On Wednesday the 10th of march I went to focus on imaging. It was great to have access to so much information under one roof. Although I'm studying portraiture - I discovered wildlife photographer Andy Rouse, his work is fantastic and captures animals in their natural environment.

I also invested in a macro lens EFS 60mm and 75-300mm lens - please see product descriptions in equipment pages. I plan on using the macro lens for my portrait studio shoot on the 25th of March and taking experimental outdoor shots with the 75-300mm lens to expand my techniques. The 75-300mm will hopefully help with shooting a friends wedding in Italy in June this year.

I was able to obtain information regarding where to buy specific equipment as well as subscribe to magazines or photographic societies.

Health and Safety Procedures for Photographers (1.9)

As I am focusing on portrait photography I will be using the studio, it is therefore important for me to understand the Health and Safety Act at work.

In order to to this I have looked at the government website www.hse.gov.uk/legislation/hswa.htm

Health and Safety Executive statement: Our job is to prevent death, injury and ill health to those at work and those affected by work activities.

There is also a union called The Media and Entertainment Union which freelance photographers can join which gives guidance on Health and Safety http://www.bectu.org.uk/get-involved/health-and-safety

When using the studio particularly for portraits, models or human assistance will be required. It is important to make a risk assessment and advise the individuals of the possible hazards in the studio environment, these include possible hazards and risks in the studio. They must also be advised not to touch any of the equipment unless advised to do so as there is possible risk of being burnt if the lights are touched.

Safety Points for photographers:

1. Insurance - Photographers should have public liability insurance to cover loss, damage and injury.

2. Agreements - When working for a client a photographer should obtain an agreement of the shoot requirements.

3. Access and Rights - When photographing on location the photographer should ensure they have permission to access and the rights to photograph.

4. Risk Assessment - A thorough risk assessment of the location/studio should be carried out. Potential risks should be identified, these could include trip hazards such trailing cables and using ladders to adjust equipment. Once potential risks have been identified each will need addressing to ensure the risk is avoided or reduced. Where a risk cannot be eliminated all potentially affected parties should be informed and advised.

5. Fire - Fire precautions and signs should be in place in the studio. Due to the presence of electrical equipment it is important to ensure the correct fire extinguishers are available.

6. Equipment - All equipment should be correctly maintained and stored to ensure safe use.

7. Training - Individuals should be trained how to operate the camera and studio equipment, this is particularly important for lighting.

8. Handling - Where equipment will be lifted it is important to follow lifting guidelines to avoid back injury.

9. VDU - Guidelines should be followed - computers are needed for transferring images from the camera or when using editing software. Guidelines include being positioned at the correct distance from the screen, taking regular breaks and using adequate seating for back support.

Exploring Techniques - Las Vegas Experiments

On the plane over to Vegas I started exploring F stops with my standard 18-55mm lens using no flash and the shutter speed set at 1/60. Although I am studying portraiture I could not miss the opportunity to experiment with different techniques in Las Vegas. I was advised to use these settings by Scott Harrison a US based photographer who often shoots in Vegas.

I started with F stops at night time using an ISO of 100 through to 1600, fast and slow shutter speeds using a tripod and sat in a moving car and hand held. I also took shots of reflections and various patterns I came across including a tank full of fish and various depths of field.

I was quite pleased with some of the results. It rained in Vegas on one of the evenings so it was great to take shots through the glass which acted as a transparent barrier on the bridges which experimenting with depth of field gave bright blurred light shots. I also used very slow shutter speeds 0''4, f stop 5.6 and ISO100 making sure I used my travel tripod to secure the camera in position to avoid camera shake.

Following a power point presentation on Techniques given by Steve our lecturer, I tried to cover the following areas in Vegas as well at the back of my house where I walk my dog these include;

• Depth of Field

• Framing

• Patterns

• Reflections

• Shadows

• Texture

• Colour

• Shutter Speeds

• Rule of Thirds

I spent twelve hours on the plane to Vegas and followed some of the tutorials from a book I purchased from Amazon called Complete Photography Course by John Garrett and Graeme Harris. The tutorial I particular that has helped me technically was on Exposure and understanding F/stops. It really helped me in the various lighting situations I encountered in Las Vegas from the artificial lights to the bright sunshine conditions outside of the hotel and casinos.

Overcoming Indoor Lighting Obstacles

I wanted to find interest textures and whilst walking through the hotel Caesar's Palace notice a large fish tank in a Sushi restaurant. This was excellent to practice several techniques - the indoor lighting conditions meant I had to play around with exposure, shutter speeds and aperture.

I wanted to find interesting textures and patterns. Whilst walking through the hotel Caesar's Palace I noticed a large fish tank in a Sushi restaurant. This was excellent to practice several techniques - the indoor lighting conditions meant I had to play around with exposure using different shutter speeds and aperture.

Initially I tried shooting the tank using my flash which of course reflected off the glass of the tank. I had only really started understanding F stops on the plane over to Vegas so knew I had to turn the flash off and increase the F stop number. Understanding the lower the F stop number the darker the image would be due to the narrow aperture and because I was using a relatively fast shutter speed as I did not have a tripod to stop camera shake.

I decided to select a higher ISO of 1600 in the hope of allowing more light through the lens - the quality however was abysmal due to the grainy effect, I also did not have my tripod which meant I had to use a 1/60 shutter speed and not below or else my images would be blurred due to camera shake.

My only option was to use a lower ISO number and to use a slow shutter speed, I found a ledge to place the camera on and used ISO 100 and reduced my shutter speed to 1/25 which still was not slow enough and the F stop set at F/5.6.

Tank of fish photographed using flash. The image was also very dark I have lightened the image in photoshop using levels.

The image here shows ISO 1600, again the image is too dark possibly due to my shutter speed of 1/60 and not being able to use the flash. What is great about the image is the textures created by the fish - I also think it depicts movement of the fish swimming.

Here you can see the camera is being hand held at a low shutter speed - the image has become very blurred. ISO 100, 1/8 shutter speed and F/5.6.

The fish have started to become clearer, the vibrancy of their gold scales is evident - it was quite hard to shoot the fish constantly moving so I set the ISO higher to allow more light through the lens and to capture their movement. ISO400, shutter speed 1/25 and F/5.6.

Here I have used an ISO 800 so it is not too grainy - shutter speed 1/25 and f/5.6 - because I have used a relatively high shutter speed I feel them movement of the fish has been captured - there is various yellow and gold tones, texture and pattern.

Reflections

Many of the hotels exterior in Vegas is reflective glass - this gave me a perfect opportunity to take shots of various reflections.

Framing

Here I was in a taxi using ISO 100 we drove between two bridges and I could resist framing the lights of the buildings in this shot. I wedged the camera in between the window and on the door frame of the cab to secure it in place so I could use a slow shutter speed 0.6 F/4.5 whilst moving. I really like the abstract shapes and colours.

This image shows a frame within a frame with the dark contrast of the archway which then reveals the main strip.

Scott Harrison and Vegas research

Prior to my trip to Las Vegas I spoke to Steve about research of images, burlesque and night time shots he advised contacting a photographer I've researched called Scott Harrison. I emailed Scott who has photographed Holly Madison and night time landscape shots of Vegas. Following Scott's advise I invested in a Tripod and purchased the Hama mini traveller pro.  I found it extremely useful for my night shot experiments.  I used my 18-55mm lens, no flash.  Please refer to blog info and pictures. 

Scott advised I would not be allowed permission to take pictures of Holly Madsion who stars in the burlesque Peepshow at Planet Hollywood. He sent me several shoots of Holly recently taken and also gave some information on techniques for night time photography.

Please see Scott's email response below

Hi Natalie,

Thanks for writing.  Holly is one of my favorite photo subjects here in Vegas, she is so darn photogenic!

I am 39 and started my photography when I was 21.  I had always been a big time music fan, but don't have any musical ability, so I had to find a way to work in the music/entertainment business without playing an instrument.  I went to the Art Institute of Houston back in '92, studied the Music & Video Business, and that's where I started shooting concerts.  I've been doing that and photographing celebrities ever since.

 

You will not be allowed to bring your camera into the Peepshow Theater, but I hear Holly does meet fans in the lobby after each performance, so make sure you stick around after the show right outside the theater so you can meet her and get your photo with her.  She is a living doll!

As you can imagine, the best, most striking photos of the Las Vegas Strip are taken after-dark, with the hotel/casinos available neon lights.  To get the best shots, you will need to put your camera on a tripod, get a cable release, and do long exposure photos.  You will need to do exposures too long to hand hold your camera, you must use a tripod and cable release.  Shoot at the lowest asa possible...like 100.  All manual settings: 100asa/iso, 5.6 aperature, maybe a shutter speed of 3-8 seconds.  You will have to experiment with how long to keep the shutter open.  I have gorgeous pics like these with my 17-80 lens, so your 18-55 will work perfectly.  

Let me know if you have anymore questions!

Scott