litebook July-December 2013
the creative lighting magazine
Rebeca Saray a fantastical Spanish Armada of creative talent...
Chris Reeve creates some truly memorable images for a Mitre ad campaign
Working Space Olly Hearsey explains why he loves to be beside the seaside
Simon Eldon life on the inside... Paul Dakeyne pays homage to one of the most famous album covers of all time
Product Test Wayne Johns puts Bowens Beauty Dishes side by side
LiteBites Kevin Focht gets confident with his new high-speed flash, while Christian Hough goes automotive on location...
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C o n t e n t s
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e’re feeling pretty grown up here at ‘Bowens Towers’ these days, as we continue to celebrate fifty years in business. From humble beginnings making flash units in the backroom of a Victorian mill we are now one of the largest lighting manufacturers in the world with offices on three continents; distribution in 65 countries and a 60,000 square foot production facility. For your delectation we’ve turned this edition into a bumper celebratory issue with features on some ‘really out there’ photographers totally committed to producing outstanding and highly original imagery (all superbly lit by Bowens equipment of course). Check out Paul Dakeyne’s work around Pink Floyd’s legendary 1973 ‘Dark Side of the Moon’ album. This guy revels in getting it done the hard way on his exclusive ‘prism’ shoot – a tribute to one of the great albums of all time. We’ve tracked down thirty year old Spanish photographer Rebeca Saray – who admits she actually inhabits two worlds. You’ll see what she means when you browse her work inside. ‘Fantastical’ and ‘mesmeric’ are words that come readily to mind. Rebecca doesn’t just shoot – she teaches photography, lighting and digital artistry too. Sussex-based, award-winning lifestyle and editorial photographer Simon Eldon tells us about his life shooting interiors ‘I love this photogenre because I can shoot interiors and products and move them around, dust and polish them to my heart’s content - and they never hit you with their opinions.’ In the spring we ran a special competition embracing the theme ‘50’ and in this issue we’ve reproduced a spread of short-listed images – including the winning entry from Poland-based photographer Arek Soltysik – an absorbing study of a close friend. And do take a peek at our brand new 21 inch silver beauty dish - a photo-shoot sibling to our white dish, released last year. Read why leading fashion shooter Wayne Johns considers it a ‘studio essential’. And don’t miss Kevin Focht’s latest flirtation with our stunning Creo system - which he confesses has ‘created a whole new dynamic to my photography – an element that I just haven’t had access to in the past.’ David Hollingsworth Editor.
04. 50th Birthday Comp To celebrate our 50th birthday we held a photo comp...here are the winners. 08. the shoot out... Chris Reeve uses the Bowens Creo to create some memorable moments for a Mitre campaign. 14. Pro:file - Simon eldon Litebook gets the inside scoop on a top interiors photographer. 22. working space Lion Works studio owner Olly Hearsey talks to Litebook about his sunny disposition. 28. product test Lighting guru Wayne Johns tests and compares Bowens 21” white and silver Beauty Dish. 30. behind-the-scenes Paul Dakeyne recreates Pink Floyd’s ‘Dark Side of the Moon’ album cover... and he even uses actual real lasers. 34. pro:file - Rebeca Saray Imaging phenomenon. Purveyor of photo-magic. Visual artist. Call her what you want but Rebeca Saray has some seriously mesmerising work. 42. litebites - kevin focht KF shows us how to shoot moving subjects with confidence using the super-fast Bowens Creo pack. 46. litebites - christian hough CH gets to grips with automotive photography on location using the classic Gemini and Travelpak combo.
litebook: Published by Bowens International Ltd. 355-361 Old Road, Clacton-On-Sea, Essex, CO15 3RH. Tel: +44(0)1255 422807. Email: litebook@bowens.co.uk - Any prices quoted are correct at time of press but may vary by retailer and are subject to change at any time. All models and technical specifications featured are subject to change and without notice. ‘Bowens’® and ‘the power behind the picture’® are registered trademarks of Bowens International Ltd. © 2013 Bowens International Ltd. E&OE. // Cover image: ©Rebeca Saray - rebecasaray.com
creative freedom without compromise The Pixel is a compact, rugged 300W focusing floodlight designed for a wide range of photographic and video lighting applications. Featuring a dedicated, in-line control unit, the Pixel combines a soft-start on/off switch, a rotary dimmer and multi-voltage AC mains operation. Barn-Door accessories available along with daylight & diffuser glass filters. Also available as a three head kit.
95º-115º zoom
100%-1% dimming
soft start lamp
multi voltage
two-year warranty
limelite.uk.com ‘Bowens’® and ‘the power behind the picture’® are registered trademarks of Bowens International Ltd.
© Trevor and Faye Yerbury - yerburystudio.com
Pixel by limelite
winner: Arek Soltysik • image: Stefan 20x20 • website: areksoltysik.com
Runner-up: Jaspal Rajasani • image: Grandparents Anniversary • website: www.fireflypictures.co.uk
Our 50th birthday celebrations have been picture perfect.
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e asked you to submit an image to us by the end of May embracing the theme ‘50’- and we received a ‘virtual sackful’ of entries. The winner picked up Bowens equipment worth £600. The Bowens team scrutinised pictures from photographers all over the world and shortlisted their favourite ten to be uploaded to our Facebook page. Then you voted for your favourite five.
Poland-based Arek Soltysik (www.areksoltysik.com) came out on top with his study of a close friend. Arek, describes himself as: ‘a big-nosed coffee addict who also likes whisky but hates cooking – and can’t pay attention to more than one thing at a time.’ But adds: “I need photography like I need air. I just love
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photographing people and my preferred medium is analogue. My entry is a portrait of my friend Marcin Matyja, who also happens to be a photographer. I decided to capture the image on 120 film with Marcin styled as a 50s photographer…to fit with the competition theme.”
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Third Place: Simon Anderson image: Self Portrait website: http://simonanderson-photography.blogspot.co.uk
Fourth Place: Daniel Sakal image: Smoking Monk website: www.da-photo.co.uk
Fifth Place: Kishore Jothady image: Vintage Bombay Queen’s Necklace email: jothadykb@yahoo.co.in
“I need photography like I need air. I just love photographing people” Arek Soltysik
The other shortlisted images we feature on this spread are: Runner-up Jaspal Rajasani (www. fireflypictures.co.uk) who entered the competition on its last day and submitted an opportunistic shot of his grandparents. He tells Litebook: “It was the last chance to enter and it suddenly clicked that it was my grandparents’ fiftieth anniversary this year. This was full of meaning to me and I felt inspired to capture this moment. I rushed home to get the camera and took the shot using just the ambient light in the room.” Third placed Simon Anderson (http://simonandersonphotography.blogspot.co.uk) went the self-portrait route. “This self-portrait was taken in my front room in a very small space and shows what is possible with a little bit of thought and creativity,” he says. “The background was a sheet of black velvet on a background stand and held in place with A
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clamps. The ‘50’ was achieved by taking a picture of a flashgun facing the camera and after each shot moving the flashgun and taking another shot, guessing the positions to make the ‘50’ sign. For myself I used two flashguns that were placed to each side of me but slightly behind, giving this dynamic lighting. To minimize spill from the flashguns I taped folded paper to the sides of the flashes to stop light getting onto the background. I combined the images in Photoshop, converted to mono, then tweaked the image using levels and adding unsharp mask. The number 50 in lights was to give that celebration vibe.” Daniel Sakal (www.da-photo. co.uk) was placed fourth with his image: Monk smoker. Says Daniel: “I love people; I have always had a keen interest in photographing faces and using studio and natural lighting to create interesting photographs. While I was travelling in Asia I came across this monk smoking while waiting for a train in Bangkok, I
photographed him from a distance as he lit up his cigarette. I studied him as he slowly smoked away. I watched him wander around and everything he did was done in such a relaxed, slow pace, that it was hard to take my eyes off him. Despite all the hustle and movement around him he remained completely calm and collected. I wanted to talk to him and wandered over. His very limited English was hard to understand but I got from him that he was in his 50th year as a monk. He was such a gentle and calm person really was at one with himself and the world.” Kishore Jothady was placed fifth with this image of ‘Vintage Bombay Queen’s Necklace’. “The photograph depicts Bombay the metropolis (as Mumbai was known at that time) in the late 1950s with gas street lights adorning its most famous stretch of road, known as the Queen’s Necklace. When the utility providers switched on the gaslights at dusk manually, the whole stretch glittered like a diamond necklace.”
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Behind-The-Picture...with Chris Reeve
THE SHOOT OUT... Chris Reeve found himself amazed by the speed of the Bowens Creo and its ability to freeze the fastest of action, and it helped him to create some memorable shots for a Mitre campaign.
“the high speed of the Creo made sure that the water was captured in a form that appeared remarkably solid” Finding a client who is prepared to give you the freedom to experiment and to try out fresh and exciting new ideas is a dream come true for any photographer. Over the four years Chris Reeve has worked with sports equipment brand Mitre he’s had the opportunity to contribute his own ideas and to create some amazing images, and the latest campaign that he’s just completed for the company has led to some of his most innovative and eye-catching work to date. “There were several strands to the commission,” says Chris, “all of which centred around the theme of football. I’ve been a long-time Bowens user and the recent introduction of the Creo system, offering, as it did, the chance to work with some really high flash durations – up to 1/7700sec – gave me food for thought and proved to be the key to several of the shoots that I was asked to set up.” One of the main strands of the campaign was a series of action portraits of footballers, shown doing such things as performing a scissors kick, flying through the air to make
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a save or trapping the ball with the instep. “Before I started out I borrowed a Creo kit and set up a test shoot, using a footballer who was adept at ‘keepy uppies’ to serve as a model,” says Chris. “I lit the scene with a Creo head and set my motordrive to fire at around 5 fps. I fired off ten shots and the flash just kept up, working at full power. I’ve never been able to do that before: previously my flash would manage a couple of shots and that would be it. My assistant and I were just ecstatic, and we both thought the same thing: why couldn’t we have had something that could do this years ago?” Now that he had the means to tackle the shoot, Chris had to find the right models, young men who looked the part and were footballers in real life with the skills that were required. Then he had to think about the logistics: this was going to be a no-holds-barred shoot that would be tough on the surroundings, and conventional background paper in the variety of colours that was required would not have lasted five minutes before being ripped to shreds.
“I thought about it and decided to paint the cove in the studio bright green so that it could serve as a green screen,” says Chris. “This meant that I could then drop in any colour that was required very simply at the postproduction stage, and it saved an enormous amount of time that would otherwise have been spent changing the background papers at regular intervals. It cost £350 to paint the white cove green and then back to white again, but it saved us a day’s shooting time and meant we could get everything done in one day instead of two.” That fact not only saved money but it also proved to be a crucial factor as the weather outside deteriorated. “It started snowing soon after everyone had arrived,” recalls Chris, “and I was aware that the pressure was on to work quickly so that everyone could set off home. We managed to get through by 4pm, and I think if we would have had to have got everyone back in the following day to have finished everything off we would have struggled.”
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“I fired off ten shots and the flash just kept up, working at full power. I’ve never been able to do that before” Right on the ball: The campaign called for a series of innovative shots based around the theme of football and the products that Mitre produced, and the challenge was to come up with some innovative and eye-catching situations. One of Chris’ favourite pictures shows a Mitre football suspended in a metal cage, being welded by two futuristic robot arms. “Leanne, one of the designers from Mitre, came down to my studio for a week to work on this shot with me,” says Chris. “I had the idea in mind and I just needed to find the things that I needed to bring it all together. I knew a place where I could get a metal box made that looked the part, and I managed to find the two robot arms I needed off the Internet. The two ‘welding guns’ are torches, and everything was held in place through a mixture of Blu Tack and fishing wire. “I put the whole arrangement on top of a white Perspex sheet, and lit with a Gemini head from beneath so that the light was diffused.”
“Overhead I had another Gemini on a boom, firing through a softbox, and there were two more Gemini heads firing from either side to complete the lighting. I wanted to add smoke trails and so I lit some joss sticks, and the place absolutely stunk by the time we’d finished! The blue sparks were added in postproduction, but actually there was very little retouching on this shot at all.” One of the most breathtaking shots features a ‘ball’ made from water, apparently being handled by a Mitre goalkeeper’s glove. It looks incredibly complicated, but actually the secret, when you know it, is a little more down to earth. “The main component of this shot was a water-filled balloon,” reveals Chris, “and the picture was pieced together in postproduction. The balloon element of the image is actually upside down, and the studio was in darkness with the shutter open on the ‘B’ setting. I popped the balloon at the precise moment that Adam, my assistant, pressed the Pulsar Radio
Trigger to fire the pack we were using, and the high speed of the Creo made sure that the water was captured in a form that appeared remarkably solid. Then gravity took over, and the water ended up in an old developing dish on the floor, although much of it also went over Adam, who was soaked by the end of it all!” The second component of the picture was created by Adam heading up to the top of a ladder and dropping tennis balls from a great height into a tank of water. Lighting was provided by two Creo heads reflecting back off a white background so that the water’s surface had a white sheen, and the velocity of the balls ensured a suitably satisfying splash. Creative photographers have always demonstrated that they can be inspired by the capability of their gear and, in Chris’ case, the Bowens Creo has been the catalyst for some remarkable images. chrisreevephotographer.com
• To see a behind-the-scenes video of Chris’ Mitre shoot visit the BowensTV channel online at: www.bowens.tv •
Chris’ Key Equipment Creo
High Performance Reflector
Limelite Mosaic
I love these packs for their bitingly quick flash duration & recycle times...as well as their consistent colour temperature, which I think photographers take for granted these days. bowens.co.uk
These are my go-to lighting accessory simply because they give me such a sharp precise light. Its hard to put into words apart from they provide such an incredible output. bowens.co.uk
I’m really enjoying using the Mosaic LED panels, they really are perfect for video and stills; they surprise everybody with just how bright and compact they are. limelite.uk.com
Profile
SimonEldon
So what’s top interiors photographer Simon Eldon really like on the inside? The really excellent thing about still life of course is that it tends not to move. And that self-evident natural law suits awardwinning lifestyle and editorial photographer Simon Eldon ABIPP perfectly.
“It’s a really sharp wake up call when you suddenly realise the only person that is going to be paying your wages at the end of the month is you.” He tells Litebook: “What I love about shooting interiors and products is that you can move them around and dust and polish them to your heart’s content prior to a shoot - and they never hit you with their opinions.” Simon (39), who lives with his web designer wife and fourteen month old son (Wolfie) in a village near Lewes, east Sussex, has been a pro for a decade – and his flourishing talent has recently been highlighted nationally after he picked up the prestigious BIPP Peter Grugeon Associate of the Year award. “I am really thrilled with this award” he admits. “To be recognised by noted professionals in the photographic industry is a huge honour - and it gives me the drive and inspiration to keep on pushing my work forward.” Simon, who majored in photography and filmmaking at university, initially employed long-standing graphic design skills in the travel industry. “I moved to Brighton and worked for a company putting travel brochures together. I became the senior designer and also looked after the
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firm’s photography needs. I organised shoots and image commissioning plus a bit of art direction. I absorbed knowledge like a sponge – but my camera and I were virtually joined at the hip.” Things started to happen. The Getty organisation asked him to interview for a role with them. He notes: “I didn’t get that particular job but just getting an interview was a great boost to my confidence – and led me to decide to go it alone as a pro.” “It’s a really sharp wake-up call when you suddenly realise the only person that is going to be paying your wages at the end of the month is you.” At first Simon used his graphic design experience to help support the photography side of his business. “It was like a set of scales” he says. “I had photography – my true passion – on one side, and graphic design, which was helping me pay the mortgage, on the other.” And his complementary dual skill sets have given him a commercial advantage with editorial clients too.
“I understand magazine page layout and editorial design, so that really helps when I am commissioned for an editorial shoot – I can create images to fit an overall design. Additionally, it helps that I can talk the same language as my interiors clients. I work hard to make sure I know the suppliers’ trends in the marketplace at any given time - for example, whose cushions are in vogue and whose chairs are fashionable etc.” These days Simon’s focus is sharp on his interiors clients, retailers, leading travel companies, hoteliers and advertising agencies. But it wasn’t always the case. “In my time I’ve tried a bit of everything” he smiles. “I’ve even done weddings – but I really didn’t enjoy that at all. I’d much rather be working with objects than the general public. If I am working with a model for a client shoot in a studio the model will respond – but that becomes a real headache when you extend that to people at a wedding. I found that photographing the public requires real showmanship – and that is very exhausting.”
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“I understand magazine page layout and editorial design, so that really helps when I am commissioned for an editorial shoot – I can create images to fit an overall design.�
“The thing is with interior shoots, you often don’t know exactly what you are going to be presented with - you have to think quickly on your feet.” “I am becoming increasingly meticulous with my shoots,” he reveals. “I have a mantra. If I dust this properly now I am going to save myself half an hour in Photoshop.” Simon aims always to keep post production time to a minimum. “I try to do as little Photoshop work as possible. Most of my work is done in the camera. Then afterwards I just tickle it.” When it comes to style he lists ’clean and crisp’ as key photo-drivers. “The thing is with interior shoots, you often don’t know exactly what you are going to be presented with when you get there – and so you have to think very quickly on your feet. I am always seeking to convey the real character of the space I’m shooting but still allowing every detail of the interior design to be experienced by the viewer. And if I am shooting products I want to bring them to life – so they set a mood for the brand.” Simon does not own a studio. “Most of my work is on location. If I do need access to a studio I rent one locally” he says. “Many of my clients are extremely budget conscious and
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I can usually take my own portable studio, including my trusty Bowens Travelpak, to them when it’s needed. A studio is really just a white space and I can set that up in a kitchen or a garage. It’s all about controlling the light – but I do admit that from time to time some of the set-ups I’ve had to contrive have been a touch ‘Heath Robinson’. Spur of the moment solutions have included rushing off to find quantities of bubble-wrap – with the client staring at me in quiet disbelief! On one shoot I had no scrim and I needed to get rid of a tiny hotspot that was seriously bugging me. Tin foil is another lifesaver – because there is bound to be a huge window in the space I have to shoot and you can bet the sun will be blazing right through it when I get there. I confess I do bring a touch of the ‘mad professor’ to some shoots. Most clients have got used to it now though. They know that what they get with me is a passionate, if slightly mad bloke turning up with a camera and some Bowens kit who drinks a helluva lot of coffee but doesn’t stop until the shot is as perfect as it can be.”
High quality digital capture is a boon to interiors shoots, according to Simon. “Most of my clients will be at the shoot with me so I can easily show them the basics of the shoot on a laptop as we go along. This enables me to sleep at night.” If budgets allow, Simon will have the luxury of a stylist – but often the stylist and the assistant can end up being the client. “When I first arrive at the shoot scene there will be a considerable time delay before I ever pick up my Canon 5D MK11,” he explains. “I might take as long as an hour to get ready. I have to unpack my Bowens Gemini’s (I’ve had them for the best part of a decade) and get everything set up. I’ll give the place another good recce before I decide where to start shooting from. So the first shots take a while to acquire but once they’re done all subsequent shots in the same place come very quickly. I guess I do work to a formula as I prepare – even if by now, it has become something of a subliminal exercise.”
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“I might take as long as an hour to get ready. I have to unpack my Bowens Gemini’s (I’ve had them for the best part of a decade) and get everything set up. I’ll give the place another good recce before I decide where to start shooting from.”
“My go-to kit is a Gemini head with a hand-held triangular reflector – and if I need a bit of direct softened light I will employ a large softbox.” For Simon the most important light is that very large and natural one in the sky. “I use flash to soften dark shadow areas and create that important crisp light effect. I don’t need a huge amount of kit – I find that often even using a second light just complicates things.”
two.” Simon not only keeps an eye on what’s on trend with interiors products but also with shooting styles adopted across the world by his contemporaries and their clients. He says: “I’ve been looking at interior magazines in the US and there is a big difference in approach.
“I always take a car full of equipment but end up invariably using the same pieces. My go-to kit is a Gemini head with a hand-held triangular reflector – and if I need a bit of direct softened light I will employ a large softbox. Give me a large softbox and a white background and there’s my ministudio. The application of white reflectors and sunbouncers enable me to pretend I’ve got four lights, when actually I can often only fit in
Both here in the UK and across Europe editorial style is to allow windows to bleach out – go white – and leave a suggestion of what might be out there. I think this method gives a clean background and focuses attention on what is inside the room itself. It allows everything to feel like a brighter, sunnier day. But in the US they seem to want to incorporate everything – from the room to the outside view to the horizon. But that
just isn’t working for me. If you go into a room your eyes adjust to what is in that particular and clearly defined space. Plus, in order to achieve that US - style look, where everything inside and outside is lit, you would need about a dozen lights.” We may be in the era of convergence but Simon has no desire to start flirting with video on his 5D MK11. He says: “I have studied filmmaking, so I know what is involved. It’s a different discipline entirely. I don’t get asked for it and for me it would be like attempting to be a jack of all trades. What I shoot is still. That is where I get my pleasure.” simoneldon.co.uk
Simon’s Key Equipment Gemini 500R Twin Head Kit
Travelpak
Lumiair 140
This is my favourite piece of kit that I own; they’re my reliable work horses. They’re versatile, easy to use and simply great on location. I honestly don’t leave home without them. bowens.co.uk
On location you don’t want to be hunting for a plug socket and taping down cables, with the Travelpak I have the freedom to put my lights anywhere without limitations. bowens.co.uk
Light modifiers are just as useful in product and interiors shoots as they are in portraiture and fashion. Being able to control light is important. I love big softboxes. bowens.co.uk
WorkingSpace
LionWorks
Olly Hearsey talks to Litebook about his thriving Lion Works Studios on the south coast:
‘Oh yes, I do like to be beside the seaside’ Eastbourne has a reputation for being the sunniest spot in Great Britain. This is an attribute that resonates neatly with the commercial optimism and sunny disposition of one of its residents - thirty two year old music, fashion, editorial and commercial photographer Olly Hearsey.
“I quickly discovered that running a successful business is not just about taking pictures, it’s also about learning how to deal with a wide variety of clients’ needs.”
Olly and his business partner Xoe Kingsley run Lion Works Studios – the area’s biggest professional photographic studio establishment – perfectly positioned just a lens cap throw away from the sea. And this duo’s strategic approach to business is refreshingly simple and unselfish. Olly, who acquired the studio four years ago, handles shoots for a burgeoning client list but also hires the ‘fully-Bowens’d up’ studio to other photographers at competitive rates. In true entrepreneurial fashion he also runs photo-workshops, and has no qualms at all about promoting courses that teach clients how to organise their own product shots. You might think that is a ‘shoot yourself in the foot’ error – why teach clients how to do it themselves? But it isn’t. Explains Olly: “When I first took over the studio I needed to be totally focused on trying to get work. But I quickly discovered that running a successful business here is not just about taking pictures, it’s also about
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learning how to deal with a wide variety of clients’ needs. I’m not precious or defensive about what I do. I am very open to working with others. I rent the studio out for £210 a day – that’s a competitive rate and it needs to be because there are a few good studios around this area.” He adds: “We run a number of workshops incorporating a range of subjects but I also host courses aimed at business owners. If, for example, a small jewellery company needs products shots and can’t afford to repeatedly pay a professional photographer, they sign up for my workshops and learn how to shoot for themselves. The clever bit, I guess, is that they often come back and hire the Lion Works studio and facilities to do their shoots.” “And of course, if they need specific help, for example with lighting techniques, I am happy to provide it – for an extra fee. I’m not precious about other photographers taking good photographs. I need to do what is necessary to survive and make a profit.”
One of the most popular courses at Lion Works is the one with the heading: ‘An introduction to studio lighting’. Says Olly: “We cover both low-key and high-key lighting with models – I like to make it as practical as possible. I don’t run the type of course in which delegates are expected to just watch the host and nod. I invite them to take their own pictures throughout the sessions. And I keep the groups small, no more than six – so it’s all pretty bespoke.” Olly is completely self-taught. After a spate of globetrotting in his early twenties he finally rocked up in India and found himself indulging in (and enjoying) street photography. That spurred him on to come back to the UK and learn professional phototechniques. He worked with Martin Grainger, former owner of Lion Works (the business was at that time trading as Cuckoo Media) for over five years. When Mr Grainger died Olly made a life-changing decision to take over the studio. Lion Works was born.
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Olly’s Key Equipment 21” White Beauty Dish
15º Snoot
High Performance Reflector
(with & without grid)
I use my Snoot a lot. Many photographers underestimate just how useful Snoot’s are. When I need to highlight a specific area on my subject these are just unbeatable. bowens.co.uk
The name says it all. These reflectors kick out so much light; I love the contrasting output and the hard shadows these create. I highly recommend them. bowens.co.uk
The White Beauty Dish is simply fantastic. I use this for a lot of my work; the addition of the grid makes this a truly brilliant lighting modifier. bowens.co.uk
“The thing about Bowens’ kit is that it is affordable and oozes quality – and doesn’t easily get wrecked. There are cheaper lights on the market that might give you appropriate power but they are only going to last half as long.”
He loves shooting music (bands) and fashion – and is ably assisted by partner Xoe, an expert make-up artist and stylist. Notes Olly: “Xoe has real vision. She just knows what she wants and sets out to get it.” “The Lovebot is a great example of her talent. When we first discussed the idea of creating a human/robot I didn’t really anticipate the lengths to which her character development would reach out. But when we sat down to plan out some lighting I was just bamboozled with a stream of references from Blade Runner, Bjork, Japanese Virtual Girlfriends and Lady Gaga. Personally, I had been picturing something a little more ‘steampunk’ like Tick Tock from Return to Oz but Xoe had been thinking ‘softer.” Says Xoe: “The not-so-far-off future belongs to compassionate companions and to LoveBots – I’m sure of it. When the world is numb to your ‘having a bad day’ special status updates and your ‘wake-commutework-commute-sleep’ routine has left your social capital dwindling on bankrupt – the LoveBot will be the
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unconditional friend by your side.” The couple wanted very soft light for this shoot. Explains Olly: “We didn’t want the natural contours of our model’s body to cast shadow or interrupt the rendered shapes. Also we needed to demonstrate the robot was approachable and kind of neutral. Any hard light mix could put a cold cast on the character. We opted for a mix of large softboxes and beauty dishes and eventually settled on a warm, diffused gel on a grey backdrop.” Olly tends to use Nikon for capture (D3 and D800) – and an everexpanding Bowens inventory for his lighting requirements. “I started with four Bowens’ heads and, as my skills improved, I kept investing in additional equipment. It just became self-evident that I needed more lights to help me better handle the more complex set-up situations.” He adds: “The thing about Bowens’ kit is that it is affordable and oozes quality – and doesn’t easily get wrecked. There are cheaper lights on the market that might give you
appropriate power but they are only going to last half as long.” Olly also works closely these days with a professional video production outfit: The Progress Film Company. He states: “Convergence is the buzz word in imaging now so we teamed up with ‘Progress’ to collaborate on a wider range of projects. We have a history of working with a diverse client base; from big organisations like The National Trust and Age UK, plus international brands like Hodder and Stoughton, Saab, Mazda and the Vodafone mobile network - to performance and music videos for artists iLikeTrains and Felix Dennis.” He adds: “Lion Works, with its 20’ x40’ fully equipped studio, complete with solid flooring and white walls, is kitted out with seven Bowens’ Gemini 500s and Pulsar radio triggers; reflectors; snoots, beauty dishes and softboxes. We also have separate make-up stations and reception/ editing areas, so the studio is ideal for producing not just stills but also broadcast quality video footage.” lionworksstudios.co.uk
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ProductTest
21”BeautyDish
Why the Beauty Dish is in the eye of the beholder... ost fashion and beauty photographers acknowledge that a good beauty dish is a ‘must-have’ in their equipment inventory for the creation of hard light with soft edges. These tools can create contrasty light that can be used to add drama to an image – and for top fashion, beauty and advertising photographer Wayne Johns beauty dishes simply come under the heading; studio essentials.
Now we’ve launched a brand new 21 inch (53.5cm) silver beauty dish a photo-shoot sibling to our 21 inch white beauty dish, released last year. The new silver dish (£149.95 including fabric diffuser) creates an expansive pool of hard light with a sweet spot – providing more contrast than the white dish option. Explains Wayne: “As Litebook readers will see on my ‘split image’ of the model, if you use a white dish and a silver dish with exactly the same power output setting on your flash head – the silver dish effect (on the right) will give an exposure output anything from three quarters - up to a full stop, brighter, even though the power output of the flash head has not changed.” He adds: “Most photographers I know will have both white and silver dishes available in the studio but the launch of this new silver dish now gives photographers the option of accessing that extra, crisp punch of light. I use the silver option for more contrast and crisper highlights. The different (hammered and reflective)
finish on this model will also affect light fall-off, so it goes from high contrast to deep shadow areas over a shorter distance. The light fall-off is very much shorter than that of a white dish so if I need to control light in a specific zone where I want a punchier image with greater contrast over a shorter range, I would use silver. It just produces a more dramatic light fall-off from the centre.”
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“On the other hand, a white dish will provide a more uniform light with a more gradual fall-off from its sweet spot – giving softer tonal ranges. If I was going for a specific ‘beauty’ shot I could opt for the white dish or I could embrace the silver version with the diffuser (shower cap) to soften the highlights.” And what about catchlights? Says Wayne: “If you shoot faces and eyes are facing towards the camera you see catchlights - the reflection of a light source. If you are using one of these as a main light and it is fairly forward on the subject you will notice the typically round catchlights created by the beauty dish.
I find that if I’m using the beauty dish to shoot fashion and the dish is quite a way back from the subject, it can give me a lovely degree of light fall- off down across my model and clothing, if needed. And if I wanted to reduce that fall off even more I would attach the grid accessory (available as a separate purchase) which narrows the spread of the light from the dish, but also adds more contrast.” Litebook readers can go to the Bowens website for more information on the silver and white Beauty Dish. Images ©Wayne Johns - waynejohns.com
whitedish FLASH MEATURED TO: Shutter Speed - 1/125th // Aperture - f5.6 // ISO - 100
silverdish
Behind-The-Picture...with Paul Dakeyne
‘Why use Photoshop when you can shoot real lasers?’ Paul’s Key Equipment Maxilite with Grid
Travelpak
21” White Beauty Dish
On of my ‘go-to’ solutions for carving light, with ultimate control, exactly where I need it. The maxilite reflector on it’s own is a vastly under-rated and powerful lighting tool. bowens.co.uk
This pack gives me the power and flexibility to utilise my Gemini head literally anywhere. I can shoot a full day’s outdoor session and barely tickle the battery level indicators. bowens.co.uk
A new addition to my lighting armoury, the white beauty dish offers me a truly ‘next-level’ quality of lighting control. For drama and emotion, I find the honeycomb grid stunning. bowens.co.uk
Inspiration for Paul Dakeyne’s latest image came from the cover of Pink Floyd’s legendary 1973 ‘Dark Side of the Moon’ album, but he was determined to do things the hard way:
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’m a huge believer in personal projects. I see them as the ideal way to motivate myself and to move my work on to the next level. It all adds to experience and it gives me images that I can then talk about, put in my portfolio, and use to encourage clients to give me similar commissions.’
The inspiration for what eventually became titled the ‘Prism’ shoot came about after I saw a BBC documentary on great albums of the past. While talking about this Pink Floyd classic they made mention of the cover design, which had been created by the artist Storm Thorgerson. I hadn’t seen it for years, but it made such an impression that suddenly I was fired up by an urge to pay homage to the work while reinterpreting it for today. I pulled out my iPad and quickly fingerdrew a visual sketch of a concept. My idea was to have three instances of the same girl, one pulling the laser light in, one feeding it away and one gesturing toward the gradation between the two. I deliberated for a while about how to set this all up, and it was clear from the outset that there would need to be several elements to this picture, and they would all have to be carefully planned so that I could fit everything together like a jigsaw in Photoshop. My first task was to find a suitable model and to shoot her in the three positions that were required. That might sound straightforward but it wasn’t. Visualising the ‘talent’ positioning and how the light would fall on each of ‘them’ was key to making a believable image, both in model pose and how the light coming from the triangular ‘Prism’ would fall on body parts/faces etc. The two vertical girls would need a very similar lighting set up, with the laid-down girl needing a re-jig of the lighting rig. The talent shoot, with full hair/makelitebook
up stylist and wardrobe input, was done at a country club venue local to me that offered the full space I needed for the lighting set-up.” “I worked with a Gemini 500 head fitted with Bowens Lumiair strips (Gridded) on either side, one of which served as the keylight while the other was my rimlight (and secondary key). Overhead I lit with a Gemini 400 fitted with a Bowens Gridded Maxilite reflector, while a mild fill was provided by a Gemini 500 fired through a seven foot Parabolic Reflector positioned just behind my camera position. I shot with a Nikon D700 and 50mm lens, and styled the picture so that the model’s dress was flowing away from her in the way that it would have done had she actually been leaning at the angle she would appear to be doing in the final image. Everything was shot against a seamless grey background to help with the final cut out. The second component of the image was the triangular laser set-up with the light entry and departure prism effect. I could have so easily fudged this in postproduction, but I wasn’t looking for an easy option. Instead, I decided to capture genuine lasers, and I used some old industry contacts and got in touch with a company in Basingstoke called ‘Definition Group’ who do major event sound and light installations and are experts in this field. I chatted with the company’s MD and he was very much into the concept of the shoot and full of enthusiasm. He agreed to give me full access to his team and the main event laser rig. The venue for the laser shoot was a massive old grain warehouse, which
needed to be completely blacked out. The technical challenges of creating a ‘static’ rainbow of laser light, plus a ‘white’ beam and gradient (for the centre of the prism) involved some quite complex computer programming. We used gargantuan event sized smoke machines to aid the definition of the beams and various camera settings were experimented with to faithfully capture the lasers (correct colour temperature, saturation and exposure). The final touch was to add some ‘speckle’ to the laser light, and we did this by literally ‘wafting up’ the dust and grain from the industrial floor - which added subtle texture and definition to the otherwise perfection of the laser beams. Although the effect was brilliant it did mean that my camera and lenses got covered in filth! One other interesting vibe at this laser shoot was that I was shooting wifi tethered (via the Camranger system) to an iPad. This enabled the guy programming the laser computer to make alterations to the size, shape and colour of the beams, and I could sit next to him (30 feet away from the camera) and trigger the shot, with both of us then viewing the result on the iPad screen. Once the session was over the benefit of the careful planning became clear, and everything just slotted together nicely.” “On a poignant note, two weeks after I’d had the initial inspiration for the concept and had begun planning the shoot logistics/team etc, Storm Thorgerson passed away, but like to think he might have appreciated the homage we paid to his amazing original creation.” dakeynephotography.com
• To see a behind-the-scenes video of Paul’s Prism shoot visit the BowensTV channel online at: www.bowens.tv •
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bowens.co.uk
litebook
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The 21” white Beauty Dish provides a wonderful soft, diffused, directional light. An all-purpose, all-rounder - this dish is a musthave for fashion and beauty photography. Includes a fabric diffuser cap to effectively transform the reflector into a round softbox - perfect for those round catchlights. A Honeycomb Grid is also available separately.
tough metal construction
universal s-mount
honeycomb accessory
diffuser cap included
two-year warranty
Bowens.co.uk ‘Bowens’® and ‘the power behind the picture’® are registered trademarks of Bowens International Ltd.
©Wayne Johns - waynejohns.com - Model: Emily Marie Anderson - Retouch: Nick Humphries
creative freedom without compromise
The large silver 21” Beauty Dish creates a beautiful, big, soft pool of light with more contrast than the white version. The Beauty Dish is a staple tool for fashion and beauty photographers. Supplied complete with a fabric diffuser for a softer light with superb round catchlights. A Honeycomb Grid is also available separately.
tough metal construction
universal s-mount
honeycomb accessory
diffuser cap included
two-year warranty
Bowens.co.uk ‘Bowens’® and ‘the power behind the picture’® are registered trademarks of Bowens International Ltd.
©Wayne Johns - waynejohns.com - Model: Clare-Alana Ford - Hair/MUA: Sarah Elizabeth Abbott - Retouch: PJK Retouching
creative freedom without compromise
RebecaSaray
Profile
welcom to my Worlds M
adrid-based Rebeca Saray is an imaging phenomenon; an accomplished purveyor of photo-magic. An obsessively dedicated photographer, visual artist, author and tutor, she creates polished, professional work for her clients and sensational, fantastical compositions for herself. Armed with Bowens lights, a Pentax 645D, a splash of ‘look at me’ pink hair, some serious ink in the form a profusion of tattoos (including a medium format camera branded on her upper arm) a love of rock and grunge and an imagination that’s up there with Dali, Rebeca mesmerises all who stray into her shooting zone. Litebook caught up with her recently and snatched this exclusive insight into both her worlds.
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in my alter ego world my personal work is all about fantasy and magic Litebook: So Rebeca, who are you? Tell us a bit about your background and how you got started in photography. Rebeca Saray: I’m thirty years old and live in Madrid. But I come from Galicia - a truly magical place. I’m self-taught in the disciplines of photography, retouching and digital art but I spent a lot of time learning about lighting and how to better understand it. I’ve been a pro for the past seven years, working in
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advertising, fashion and celebrity portraiture for Spanish magazines. But the truth is that my real love is for my personal work - fantasy photography and digital art. Additionally, for the past four years I’ve been running fashion and fantasy workshops here in Spain. I teach photography, lighting, retouching skills, digital artistry and how to work with a team of makeup artists, hairdressers, stylists and
models to develop specific photothemes and projects. LB: What is your definition of ‘visual artistry’? RS: For me that phrase encompasses capture, retouching and in many instances, art direction - all the skills of styling and make-up too. LB: Describe your photographic shooting style in a few words.
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the only limit in this world is set by my imagination RS: I live in two different worlds. In the real world of commerce I create original fashion editorial shoots and portraits for magazines and also for the artists themselves. And in my alter ego world my personal work is all about fantasy and magic - but this world does also include commissions for book covers and CDs etc. I guess my commercial work is more realistic and natural, with a splash of romanticism. I adore
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black and white portraiture too. My fantasy endeavours clearly require a substantial commitment to retouching but the great thing here is that the only limit in this world is set by my own imagination.
with Bowens and Pentax and host workshops and presentations for both companies in Spain - I shoot with a Pentax 645D with three Gemini Pro 750s; two Travelpaks; a beauty dish; an octagonal softbox and a ringflash.
LB: What about your studio set-up and photo-equipment needs? RS: I am fortunate to have my own large studio in Madrid but I also do a lot of work on location. I work closely
LB: So how important is lighting to you? RS: It’s the most important thing. I adore my Gemini heads. They make life so much easier.
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sleep is for wimps! I do work hard but photography is my passion LB: How much do you rely on postproduction techniques to achieve your fantasy-style perfection? RS: It all depends on the idea in my head. I don’t set limits but it is important to me that the picture looks good in the camera. Some work needs very little retouching but other shots will require substantial post input. LB: The sheer volume and complexity
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of your work suggest you never sleep. How hard do you work and how do you finance what must be substantial model and stylist costs? RS: Ha. Sleep is for wimps, isn’t it? I do work long hours but photography is my passion so it’s not like I have to work 24/7 on doing something I hate. The team I use on the commercial side will depend on the client’s budget but
across both commercial and personal work there are a number of variables with regards payment. LB: What are the key things you feel you really must achieve at every shoot? RS: The priority is that every shoot MUST tell a story. LB: Let’s face it Rebeca some of your personal work certainly comes under the heading: dark and macabre
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strive to be better at photography than you were yesterday with many images involving weapons and violence. Why? RS: Well I just love horror and fantasy films and books. I find them exciting and so my work reflects that. LB: You must have a warehouse full of props! RS: True! My boyfriend and I work together on all the leather costumes for our fantasy projects and I am also lucky to be connected with a number
litebook
of quite amazing artists and designers who are all keen to help. LB: Tell us about your very successful workshops. RS: The workshops are either instigated by me or they are the result of requests from associations, photography event planners, schools and universities. These workshops are restricted to about ten per session. I focus on fashion
and portrait photography and fantasy and digital art photography. I work with delegates on idea formulation and with models on the shoot itself - and then we get into the challenges of retouching. A key message at these seminars is to set goals that can be reached; to strive to be better at photography than you were yesterday, whilst never losing the passion and desire to take great pictures.
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i have been producing complex images long before digital was established LB: Where does the inspiration for your own unique style come from? RS: I am always reading books and I love anything to do with the cinema. Plus, I am inspired by people like Helmut Newton, David LaChappelle, Eugenio Recuenco and Diane Arbus. Such inspiration enables my work to continually evolve. LB: If we still lived in a silver halide world how much of your work to date
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could you have accomplished? RS: Well it’s true that it would take more time but I have been producing complex images long before digital was truly established in the mainstream. LB: What has been the most challenging brief so far? RS: I did a magazine shoot on the beach at midday with Jorge Lorenzo the Spanish professional motorcycle
road racer. It involved two costume changes in thirty minutes. The sun was just huge. It was utter torture. LB: Talk us through the creation of one of your more complex images. RS: OK. Let’s take the beach image with the airships (pictured) I shot this on the beach at Barcelona. I used two Bowens Gemini Pro 750s and shot with my 645D with the 55mm 2.8 lens.
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Q. WHAT IS THE ONE THING YOU LOVE ABOUT YOUR WORK? A. THE DREAMS It involves a complex marriage of photography and illustration. All the people were out there in costume and the sky, sand and sea are all part of the original shot. I added the airships and other effects in postproduction. It’s all done in Photoshop,
which is the only editing program I use. The most important element though is the human quality. They are all members of the Steampunk Association of Barcelona (steampunk is a sub-genre of science fiction) and they had to go through what
was really an endurance test in order for me to get this right. LB: What is the one thing you love most about your work? RS: The dreams. rebecasaray.com
Rebeca’s Key Equipment Gemini 750Pro
Pulsar Tx
Lumiair 100x140cm
The perfect flash head; loads of power, simple controls, dual-voltage operation as well as Travelpak compatibility. The Gemini is the perfect portable lighting solution. bowens.co.uk
Everything needs to be wireless where possible. I couldn’t do what I do without these; they’re super small, lightweight and make my work-flow so much easier. bowens.co.uk
I love using big Bowens softboxes; the bigger the better. The quality of light that I get from these always produces fantastic results. bowens.co.uk
finalshot
Kevin Focht // kevinfocht.com
movement captured in a flash just got started with my new high performance Bowens Creo kit and I have to tell you that it has created a whole new dynamic to my photography – an element that I just haven’t had access to in the past. Now I can shoot confidently with high speed flash. The original intent of my shoot was just to do some simple beauty shots using the Sunlite reflector and the Supersoft 600 diffuser. This lighting set up is ideal for beauty work and particularly head shots. I had the Sunlite/Supersoft linked to a Creo flash head which was attached to a Limelite boom arm. The main light was coming slightly above and to one side of the model. I then added two Lumiair strip 100s with ‘egg crates’ either side of my model to add highlights.
Having the facility to make small adjustments to my main light with the boom arm was a real plus. With other boom set-ups I’ve seen you end up having to loosen the arm and then try and manipulate accurately but with the Limelite boom, you just move it where you want it and it stays put. The quality of light from the Sunlite/Supersoft duo was beyond expectation. The light fall-off was so gradual that I was able to shoot full length without worrying at all about it. I can’t wait to shoot with it again.
So we have the quality of light required but now let’s talk about the speed of recycle using Creo packs. For the first time in my career I am able to stop action in the studio just like I can outside. In the past I would have to try and time my shots to be at the peak of the action – and with 25 years of practice under my belt I am pretty good at it. But with the high speed recycle time of the Creo system I can now turn my motor drive on in the studio and the packs will keep up with me. It’s a godsend.
jumpsequence
Kevin Focht
“The quality of light from the Sunlite / Supersoft duo was beyond expectation.” I love shooting action and so being able to shoot with total confidence, knowing I definitely got the shot with a burst of frames, is unreal. This is really going to change how I approach a shoot now. No more trying to get the shot at the peak, I can now just hit the button and know that every shot will be properly lit and no blank frames.
As you can see from the group of images, I was able to fire and know that every exposure was spot on. Then all you have to do is simply pick the peak action and process it.
I just knew I had got the shot.
In this sequence I added the Jetstream wind machine - another outstanding piece of Bowens gear. I can put a precise amount of air exactly where I want it. (An added bonus is that now all the hair stylists love me!) Now I am looking forward to testing the Creo system on sports subjects for future articles. A whole new realm of photography is just a flash pop away now.
Setting up your shot and then having your model jump and using your skills to catch the peak is a really hard way of managing these kind of shots.
Gear used • 1 x 2400 Creo pack • 1 x 1200 Creo pack • 3 x Creo heads
Take a look at the shot opposite. I just told the model to jump and the Creo did the rest.
• 1 x Jetstream wind machine • 1 x Limelite boom arm • 2 x Lumiair strip 100s with ‘egg crates’ • 1 x Sunlite reflector with Supersoft 600 Diffuser
kevinfocht.com thecreativeorange.com
Kevin’s Key Equipment Sunlite and Supersoft 600
Creo generator
Lumiair Strip 100
The perfect flash head; loads of power, simple controls, dual-voltage operation as well as Travelpak compatibility. The Gemini is the perfect portable lighting solution. bowens.co.uk
Everything needs to be wireless where possible. I couldn’t do what I do without these; they’re super small, lightweight and make my work-flow so much easier. bowens.co.uk
I love using big Bowens softboxes; the bigger the better. The quality of light that I get from these always produces fantastic results. bowens.co.uk
rearview
Christian Hough // christianhough.com
see your car in a different light f you’re a budding automotive photographer or even if you’re a keen photographer with an interest in cars, applying a little studio flash to your shots when on location can really make all the difference and produce some surprising results. No matter what time of the day you shoot, you can never rely 100% on ambient light when photographing cars, simply because of the scale of the subject and reflective nature of the paint/glass. You will always find that one side of the car has too much light, is too reflective or needs more light. Fortunately, Bowens have the answer in the form of the Travelpak, an extremely convenient way of getting your studio lights on location. And what better time to take advantage of the weather and get out practicing?
Considerations There are a few things you’ll need to consider before shooting anything on location, the first thing being the location itself. It is worth spending time searching and travelling to locations at different times of the day to see how each one is affected by the light; whether you’ll need any permissions to shoot; the background environment and how busy it can get. It sounds obvious, but it is worth checking that you don’t find yourself with sensitive military sites in the background
or somewhere where people will trip over the equipment, risking injury to themselves and damage to equipment. As for the time of day, it is of course possible to shoot at any time , but you’ll find that the direction of the sun will be crucial to your shot and the direction at which you can position the car. Early morning and late evening sun lends itself particularly well to automotive photography, helping draw out the shape of the car and minimise the impact of background environment. So you
may have found a great location, but it is equally important to consider the position of the sun at the time of day you intend to shoot. It pays to plan ahead a little. The weather in the UK is at best unpredictable, so keeping an eye on it for a few days before you shoot will help you plan the best time and make the most of opportunities. Equipment Used For this shot I used three Travelpak batteries with four Gemini heads. This allowed me to adequately light the nearside and rear of the car.
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grilllight
Christian Hough
Step ONE - SIDE lighting
• 1 x Gemini 750Pro • 1 x Travelpak • 1 x Lumiair 140 softbox Step TWO - GRILL lighting
• 1 x Gemini 750Pro • 1 x Travelpak • 1 x Lumiair 100 softbox
This of course isn’t a definitive way of shooting cars and different number of lights and range of reflectors and modifiers can be used to produce different results. If you don’t have the same equipment as listed below, there’s nothing stopping you from experimenting. • 4 x Gemini 750Pro • 3 x Travelpaks • 1 x Lumiair 140 softbox • 1 x Lumiair 100 softbox • 2 x Snoots • 2 x floor stands • 2 x heavy duty stands • Tripod • Camera, triggers and laptop Getting Started Once you have arrived on location, it is worthwhile unpacking all of your kit and getting everything set-up and up and running before you position the car. This is due to the fact that at certain times of day (sunrise and sunset), the sun will change direction quickly, so you’ll effectively have to start manoeuvring the car again and repositioning things. Start by positioning the car so that the sun/setting sun is behind the car and on the opposite side to the camera. The idea here is that you use the sun to draw out the shape and light the top of the boot and bonnet. Positioning the car at an angle so that you can see the shape and detail on the rear/front and side is a good start
and helps add some depth to the finished shot. Once you have the car in position, begin to quickly manoeuvre the lights into their relevant positions. Begin by turning the 140cm Lumiair softbox into the landscape orientation and positioning to the camera left so that it illuminates the nearside of the car. Turning the softbox in this orientation will help the light cover the length of the car. For this a higher power head is recommended as it must cover a broader area. Now position the 100cm Lumiair softbox at approximately 90 degrees to camera right and again turn the softbox to the landscape orientation. This will be used to light the front/ back of the car. Again, meter this to approximately f/16. Again, a higher capacity flash head will really help with power output. Once this has been done, take a couple of test shots to see how the car is being lit and to manoeuvre the softboxes and change the power output as necessary. You should find that both the side and front/back are fairly evenly lit. However, this can also leave the whole image still looking a little flat and this is where the final two heads and snoots come into play. These are used to lift the detail on the wheels and tyres, creating a bright highlight on the alloys and lifting the back tyres from the shadows.
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nolights
alllights
Chris’ Key Equipment Gemini 750Pro
Travelpak
Lumiair 100 x 140cm
Loads of flash power, multivoltage operation, simple controls, mains and battery compatibility, fast recycle times and short flash durations. There’s no better unit available. bowens.co.uk
I’ve used the Travelpaks loads of times on location and I’ve never been let down. If you plan on doing location work you can’t go wrong with the Gemini and Travelpak combo. bowens.co.uk
Whether on location or in the studio these are simply amazing; and with the option of a soft grid attachment you can really get creative with a basic softbox. bowens.co.uk
Step THREE - WHEEL lighting
Christian Hough’s new book ‘Studio Photography and Lighting: Art and Technique’ (The Crowood Press) is available now from all good book stores and leading stockists. RRP £16.99
• 1 x Gemini 750Pro • 1 x Travelpak • 2 x Snoots Step FOUR - ALL lighting
All equipment used in steps one to three are used for the final image as displayed opposite.
Fix each of the heads to a floor stand, attach a snoot and position them off axis and to the left of the camera. These don’t require a huge amount of power and are there only to add the highlight and fill a little detail, so it is perfectly acceptable to attach both heads to a single Travelpak. It isn’t absolutely necessary to meter these two heads as long as the power output is equal from both of them. Just ensure that they aren’t too bright and the light is aimed at the wheels and not the bodywork. A quick test shot will usually tell you if they are too bright and they can be adjusted accordingly. If you feel you absolutely must meter them, then an output of approximately one to two stops lower than the key light will work, depending on the finish of the wheels. Useful Techniques There is no exact metering when working on location. Much will
depend on the environmental light and how you wish to balance this against the flash. More power from the flash and a smaller aperture will make the background environment darker - so reducing the power of the flash is one way of increasing the effects of the ambient light. Shutter speed is also another useful way of controlling the ambient light. To use this technique, meter your key light to around f/16 and begin with a shutter speed of 1/125sec. You will now find that increasing the shutter speed will cause the ambient light to become darker, whereas decreasing the shutter speed will allow a longer exposure of the ambient light and will cause it to become lighter. Remember, if you are shooting fast moving subjects, using this method at slow shutter speeds will cause motion blur. christianhough.com
Gemini by Bowens
Step up to the best - when you need precision lighting control and consistent colour stability, Gemini delivers. With unmatched durability, it’s easy to see why Bowens has been a premier lighting brand for over 50 years. Available in six models, from 200Ws to 1500Ws, each capable of running from mains power or the award-winning Travelpak battery system, Gemini is the most versatile flash lighting system available today. Why compromise?
fast recycle times
fast flash durations
AC/DC compatible
radio enabled
two-year warranty
Bowens.co.uk ‘Bowens’® and ‘the power behind the picture’® are registered trademarks of Bowens International Ltd.
©Rebeca Saray - rebecasaray.com
creative freedom without compromise