Patrick and I decided to create a video series where we compete to see who can come up with the best image based on a set of randomly chosen rules. This week, one of us got to use an iPhone and the other had the entire studio at their disposal.
Because I won the official "rock, paper, scissors" competition, Patrick was forced to shoot on his iPhone while I reached for the Nikon D850 and Tamron 70-200mm.
Patrick certainly could have used any sort of cheap lighting, but we didn't have any around so he used the modeling lights on our Profoto D1s. To spice up his shot he added a bit of smoke that added an overall mood and accentuated his hair light. To top it off, Patrick added an extreme color grade which I'm sure will cause some debate.
For my shot, I decided to use strobes. I knew I was going to be moving lights all over the place so I decided to use our wireless B1s. Being that I was making this up on the spot, I decided to start with a single beauty dish off to the side and then build up the lighting after that. After adding a grid to the dish I added a giant fill card on camera left. I then added a strip box for a very faint hair light, and finally, I added a third B1 firing into the ceiling to fill in some of the dark shadows and add a bit of light to my background. I was worried that Patrick had created a really funky looking shot with his smoke so I decided to choose a final shot that had some over-the-top hair.
So now it's up to you guys to decide who won this competition. Click on each image and give them a star rating and let us know your thoughts in the comments below. If this video and post get a lot of engagement we will continue doing these sorts of competitions.
I'm pretty impressed with Patricks final shot.
Well screw you too! ;)
Yeah that guy's photo is pretty badass!
Clearly because it was shot on an iPhone
Yeah I'm throwing my dslr off a cliff lol
I am impressed with Patricks too, I love the colors and the mystery of the smoke, it does look like a photo of a singer. Lee, try the foam waved slower so the hair doesn't move so much lol, slow steady motions, I usually go one way or the other, not up and down continuously and it works great.
Also with thin hair like hers, it helps to go from below her with the wind, wave up just barely and it will pick her hair up
omg.. Patrick nailed it. It really awesome to see that creativity really pays off
I actually liked Patrick's shot without the red color gradient better, but I think his photo still wins. It has more mood, in my opinion. However, I might be biased because I am impressed that he was able to get that out of an iPhone. Lee's is still a great shot, but I wish the hair was just a bit less crazy. Still a great challenge, please do more!
The title of this post made me roll my eyes, but the actual video was very enjoyable. Watching you guys create an image from scratch while thinking out loud should be a regular thing. More challenges, just with better titles.
Make it a common challenge. aaaaand i guess I'll say Lee's shot. Sure, why not.
What does a common challenge mean? We actually had a ton of challenges in the hat...this one was kind of predictable but it was the first one we happened to pick.
Sorry, weird choice of words oh my part. Make these challenges more common. A reoccurring segment. Do more.
Good idea.
The red gradient killed it for me, so I'm going for Lee's shot in the end
Lee's shot is a banger' the hair looks awesome. I could imagine a series of these photos with more models and their hair being blown in an extravagant fashion. Good work guys keep it up. B.
Nout to do with what gear was used, rather choice of pose and post. Sorry Patrick, hands down - Lee's photo was best
I put my vote on Lee's picture, it's much more alive.
https://media.giphy.com/media/mhXEQ2SrpjGWQ/giphy.gif
I am sure an Android phone would have helped....either way I have to go with Lee´s photo. More personality and I prefer the edit to Patrick´s. (sorry Patrick, you are still way cooler than Lee :))
Awesome. I have a suggestion for a fun challenge: large format! Get someone to coach you both together for 1 hour, then you each have an hour to do a shoot with a 4x5. Could be fun...for us. ;)
Add film development and hand printing. So plus one more hour :D
Haha. Could make for some hilarious and bleep-filled outtakes.
I vote for Patrick. Sorry Lee. lol
One keypoint that I'd add to Lee's photo its to add a bigger specular highlight on her eye either by retouch or actually get a bigger light. On the other hand the specular on Patrick's photo its perfectly land on the right place on her eye which gives so much life to her.
Preach it brother Pat!
Both shots are great. For the motion of the hair, I vote for Lee. Cool video, more like this please.
I think i prefer Patrick's previous image with different color
Patrick's photo has that vintage vibe, which I really dig.
I did like the hair in Lee's photo.
I like Lee's photo just a bit more, but secretly thinking what would happen if it has that smoky feel in Patrick's photo...
I think there would be no questions asked if Patrick would have used a third party app and shoot in raw. Anyways both great shots!
I see a lot of comments like this and it really makes me wonder what you guys think the raw file would have afforded me? Obviously the final file could have been cleaner but viewed small on a desktop or mobile device, I'm not sure there is anything I would actually have wanted more out of the file.