Some of our readers might have met up with Monte Isom at last month's Fstoppers NYC Meetup. His videos have been fan favorites on the site and this week he is sharing another one of his commercial shoots. In this behind the scenes video, Monte shows you how he photographed his latest Molson Export Ale ad campaign featuring hockey players as they slide in towards the camera. As always, Monte has a lot of fun on his shoots and hopefully you can gain some ideas for shoots of your own from this video.
Eric Curry is a photographer who specializes in painting with light. Unlike using strobes to exposure your photos, painting with light requires you to use long exposures and constant light sources to effectively "paint" over your subject and capture it on your sensor. The newest image in Eric's American Pride and Passion series is one of the most complex light painting images I've ever seen and the behind the scenes video shows just how much work goes into such a big project. Click the full post to see the final image and be sure to click on Eric's website to see many more examples of his layered light painting photographs.
I'm sure many of you have heard the saying "overcast skies make for amazing photos". While it's true that soft overcast light is usually more flattering on people's faces, it can also make your photos super boring and even gloomy. So what can you do with your bag of tricks to spice up a photo session during cold, rainy, or overcast days? Damien Lovegrove explains how you can use a "dingle" (or more commonly a Cookie) to bring some pseudo-sunlight into your portraits . This clip is from Damien's Speedlight Mastery DVD and he does a great job explaining this super useful technique that can be applied to many of your own shoots at almost zero cost. Next time you see those interesting shadow patterns while thumping through your girlfriend's fashion magazines you can imagine the dingle that created them!
Yes, you read the title correctly. The famous female Mattel toy has photoshoots, and they are actually quite extravagant. When I first saw this I thought it was a joke but after doing some research I found that Mattel designer Robert Best has big production photoshoots like this for all his Barbie Fashion Model Collections. The photographer is Paul Jordan at Mattel, and the final products are really interesting considering these are just toys. If you don't want to go through all the set building and fashion lighting required to get these photos, you can always use a simple reflector just like this Barbie fashion photographer. Click the full post to see the final image and other images featuring Barbie.
Behind the Scenes of a Barbie Fashion Model Photo Shoot from Paul Jordan on Vimeo.
Have you ever wondered how DSLR cameras match up when compared to film and high end HD video cameras? Last year, Zacuto brought together some of the biggest names in the movie industry to see how well the first round of video capable DSLRs compared to the industry's standard film and HD video cameras in The Great Camera Shoot Out of 2010. This year they have started another series which compares some of the top cameras including 35mm Kodak 5213/5219, Arri Alexa, Red One M-X, Phantom Flex, Sony F3, Panasonic AF100, Canon 1D Mark IV, and Nikon D7000 (where is the D3s?), and a bunch of other professional video cameras. The Great Camera Shootout is a must watch if you are a gearhead or simply enjoy seeing how well the current crop of DSLR cameras are at video. It's pretty amazing to see the consumer Nikon D7000 holds its own against such a competitive group; I can only imagine what the next crop of Nikon cameras is going to do! Check out the trailer below and hit the full post for the first episode that outlines exactly what sort of tests Zacuto is going to run.
Lee and I decided months ago that it would be exciting to have a contest on Fstoppers to see what our readers can do behind a camera. Over the course of 3 months we received over 80 submissions from YOU, our readers! There is no possible way that we can share all 80+ of these videos on the front of Fstoppers but we believe that everyones work deserves the chance to be seen. We have decided upload every submission in 4 threads so that everyone has the opportunity to easily view these videos. In the next few days Lee and I will choose our favorite videos. These videos will be voted on by the community, and the winner will win a Canon 7D or Nikon D300s. A lot of time has been given for these videos so we hope you guys enjoy watching them as much as we did. Thanks again to everyone for getting up, going out, and creating something interesting!
Happy 4th of July weekend if you are living in the United States. Jeremiah Warren just sent me a pretty remarkable and quite psychedelic video he made using a camera I have never heard of before now. Jeremiah mounted the tiny HD Micro Car Key Camera from ebay to different fireworks for a rather unique perspective. I have to admit this is really cool and I wish I had thought of it first. Click on the full post to see how the camera was mounted as well as a tear down video of the camera used so you can get a better idea of how these were mounted on large bottlerockets.
Have you ever tried to shoot an interior photograph and have it look like the shots in magazines or high end property brochures? If so then you probably know there are two routes to go: HDR or Flash. Photographer Dom Bower recently made a video showing the differences in both techniques and how you can combine them both to create a sort of hybrid image. Keep in mind that Dom is only using one single speedlight directly above the camera. Many of the amazing images you see for high end hotels and expensive properties often have dozens of light sources accenting very specific elements in the image. What techniques have you guys used in your interior photos? If you have examples, feel free to post your images in the comments below and check out Dom's final photos in the full post.
It's Spring time which means a lot of photographers are back to shooting outside and probably photographing group portraits. As a wedding photographer myself, I'm constantly having to light groups between 2 and 20 both quickly and effectively. In the latest video by Adorama Tv, Mark Wallace talks about how to light large groups evenly in a studio with Profoto lights. His explanation is really detailed, and if you apply this knowledge you can easily adapt this technique outside with something like a Photex Softlighter and some speedlights for even lighting on location.
Douglas Sonders has been one of the most featured photographers on Fstoppers because he not only has great photoshoots but he also makes great BTS videos. Recently he headed out to Nelson, Nevada (a requirement of any photographer traveling to Vegas) to shoot a few promotional posters for The Showbots' Droidz. In the video, Douglas uses a few White Lighting Strobes with 7" reflectors and does some desaturated edits with Nik Software's Color Efex Pro. Click on the thumbnail image to view the final images.
Robert Seale is a high end sports portrait photographer who was recently commissioned by Sports Illustrated to photograph Evan Longoria of the Tampa Bay Rays. His attempt to create something unique and a bit off-kilter involved using a huge 8'x5' piece of Plexiglas that was 1.25 inches thick and 400 pounds. He then set the huge piece of Plexi on a 5 foot tall frame of scaffolding. Using a couple of Profoto Pro-7B strobes and a unique 'below the player' angle, Robert was able to create this photograph for the magazine. The concept and image are fantastic but unfortunately the BTS video is just a timelapse. If you have a hard time imagining what is going on in this video, head over to Rob Galbraith's post for a traditional write up.
I can't remember the first time I saw this video by Gregory Crewdson but I'm glad it came across our desk again. Gregory is more or less a conceptual photographer who uses both sound stages and real locations to create images that make you stop and question what is going on in the shot. His lighting is very similar to what you would see on a big budget movie, and the amount of resources required for these sorts of productions is probably beyond what most photographers would even consider.
If you really want to feel like your photography is complete garbage, which I suggest you do every now and then, head over to LA Fashion Photographer David Nguyen's Website. Lucky for us we have a nice little BTS video from David during his recent fall fashion shoot for ViViD Magazine. Lots of natural light and scrimming for you strobe shooters :) Who knows, maybe we can see more of David working Behind the Scenes down the road!
ViViD Magazine Fall 2010 Photoshoot from Matt Rodgers on Vimeo.
Camera and Video equipment is expensive! Whether you are just getting into digital media or are a seasoned professional, we are all looking for bargains and ways to justify dropping even more coin on photography gear. Everyday our email is full of readers asking about what gear we use/recommend and if there are any deals out there to be had. So we have created an Fstoppers Gear Guide that includes every piece of equipment we use for both photos and video separated into categories. You can also check out the latest Canon rebates (most end Jan 8) and Nikon rebates (expires Nov 20) through BHvideo.com which we find to have the best prices online. So check out the Fstoppers Gear Guide and if you want to get some new toys for Christmas, don't miss out on these Holiday rebates through Nikon and Canon.
If you are laying on your couch reading this after a Thanksgiving binge, then there probably isn't much hope for you. But if you didn't over due the calories (or aren't in America) then you still have 5 days to participate in our Monthly Fstoppers Forum Contest! This month's theme is "Emotion" and I still think the winning image is up for grabs. The winner of this month's contest is going to win a Photoflex Multidisc Kit which is a great tool for when you need extra light and don't have a strobe with you. We use these all the time with video, and it is crucial to have the reflector holder when you don't have an extra set of hands on set. If you win, you will also get your image and website at the top of our site for a month. So head over to the Forum Contest Thread and post your best "Emotion" photo.
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