#shoot2

I am pleased with how this shoot turned out considering I once again have been able to produce two final outcomes that demonstrate two diverse lighting set ups.

Ultimately I chose this as a final outcome for my project because light is a clear focus - the way the smoke creates this glowing quality to it and how it interacts with the subjects profile and clothing make it really nice to look at, and I feel using only one colour of light in this set up was a large factor in achieving this - and making light a focus is something I want to achieve in my outcomes across my whole project as stated in my plan.

I chose this image because while the composition is somewhat simpler, the partial covering of the subjects face with the door creates an air of mystery that draws the viewer in, similar to my first and second outcomes from my first shoot.

Something I felt to be quite time consuming when setting up for this shoot, across both lighting set ups, was getting myself (the subject) in focus. This was obviously not going to be as easy as usual since I was acting as both model and photographer, but in future I think I shall place something where I intend to be positioned to get the focus I want, then switch to manual and begin shooting. Or alternatively I can ask other people to model for me.

Original Image

I first cropped the image to remove the negative space and draw focus to the subject. I then removed the small specs of light coming from the LED panel peeking through beside the subjects profile as they were very distracting.

I also removed the parts of the wall in the top right corner with the clone stamp tool leaving just the doorframe in order to simplify the composition and draw more focus to the subject.

After studying the two finals from my previous shoot, I felt they had more of a sense of mystery and animosity about them in terms of the subject as you can't see their face, where as being able to see the subject face here loses this quality a bit. So since I want my finals to be cohesive and follow a similar theme, I finally decided to drop the shadows and mid-tones of the image to create a darker and more contrasty image which brings more of a focus to the light in the image as well as the shape/form of the subjects profile and sleeves, while also being more in-keeping with the themes of my previous shoot.

Original Image

I did not do much to this image aside from duplicating the door from the left side of the image, flipping it then placing it on the other side of the frame behind the subjects arm. This balances out the composition and helps the doorway further act as a frame for the subject in the centre.

Original Image

I first changed the hues in the image on camera raw from purple to blue so it is in-keeping with the colour scheme of red and blue that I have chosen for my project.

This image definitely has an eerie feel about it which I like however I think there is too much negative space that lacks any detail.

Adding a second blue light certainly improves this composition I would say and adds more colour, however I think it loses some of its dramatic, creepy feel.

The use of the door to act as a somewhat frame for the subject works well, and I like the silhouette and the quality of the light due to the addition of smoke. At this point in the shoot I was still trying to get myself in focus which took longer than normal because of me acting as model and photographer.

At this point I decided to start adding cigarette smoke to further visualise and show off the quality of the light, which worked well as it also filled some of the space on the darker side of the door and stands out against it well.

I changed my top to a white one as I figured it would catch the light better, and I like the way I am posing as it really shows off the flowyness of said top and how my arms/hands line up with the door in the background.

I repositioned myself, the camera and the light to be straight on with each other to create a more balanced composition, with the doorway acting as a clear frame for the subject. Due to the doors reflecting some of the light onto the subject, this resulted in them not being very silhouetted, but this can be rectified in post.

I like the way I am posed here with my arms up helps to show up the flowy quality of the top and catches more of the light, while also making the image more dynamic.

Too slow a shutter speed resulted in blurring of the subject. Was also still trying to get myself in focus at this point. The red light on the door is also a bit too bright causing the door to lose tonal detail and look flat. It is also distracting the viewer from the subject. It is also worth noting that the blue hues in these images show up as more purple toned due to the coloured gel I was using, but this can be easily fixed in camera raw in post.

Adding smoke at this stage helped bring out the difference in tone on the wall and door and stopped the image looking flat, it also added more atmosphere.

Switching to landscape helps bring more focus to the subjects face as having too much of the upper body I felt made the image lose impact.

Set up 1

Set up 2

Like my first shoot, I ended up splitting this one into two parts, using two different lighting set ups with the aim of producing two final outcomes with diverse visual impact from one another.

Set up 1

Unfortunately I did not get a set up shot for my first lighting set up - however it was very simple in that I used one LED panel on full power with a red coloured gel attached, with the intention of having the subject directly in front to achieve a silhouetted effect. I also used my smoke machine to disperse the light a bit to produce a more 'glowy' effect around the subject - something I knew adding smoke would do from learning from my first shoot (final 2).

Rough Camera Settings - f2.8-f5.6, 1/30, ISO 2000, AWB

Set up 2

One blue LED on half power providing key light, with other red light bouncing slightly off white wall to light up the door. Smoke machine sitting on top of radiator.

(bedroom light was on for the purpose of taking set up shot, was obviously turned off during shooting)

Rough settings: f4.0-f.6, 1/10-30, ISO 2000, AWB

For my second shoot I want to continue shooting from within my flat due to the reduced amount of external factors that would come with shooting outdoors and I still want to be able to take my time at this stage. I also feel there is still things I could achieve with the combination of smoke, light and doors like I did with my first shoot - and I am confident I will achieve some new and diverse final outcomes.

Reference images (via Carter Baran)

Risk Assessment

After some thought, I decided both images I edited display an effective use of techniques and are diverse enough in terms of composition and aesthetic to use them both as final images. 

I really like the “winter wonderland” appeal of this image which is enhanced by the water appearing as if to be frozen over from giving sharp reflections - it looks very different to other infrared images I have seen and has a good amount of saturated colour to attract viewers attention. The bright white clouds also standing out well against the blue sky is something I like.

The slight warm tone of the foliage contrasts well with the colder sky which results in a very dynamic image with good, even lighting and would say it captures the beauty of the natural landscape well and features the river like I intended.