Five-Minute Pit Stop

CASE STUDY #17 Five-Minute Pit Stop

CAMERA: Hasselblad 503c LENS: 50mm

FILM: Fuji RDP 100

EXPOSURE: f/8 at 1 / 60 second

LIGHTING: Norman 200B through a white umbrella

Assignment Sports figures were also a key group I gathered for my “fathers and sons” project. I can’t remember who gave me Mario Andretti’s number, but I was sure grateful.

The Story Mario’s schedule was so busy that the only opportunity for a session was with his son Michael—and it would have to be right before Michael’s trial run for the Indy 500. I said “no problem”—totally disregarding the logistics of getting there.

When I met Mario, he was friendly and told me to find a place to set up; Michael would be there in twenty minutes. I quickly saw the racecar hoods sitting on end (6 and 6x) and thought they would make a great frame for the father and son. I set up my light, set my camera on a tripod, and took light readings.

When Michael arrived, we had five minutes for the shoot before his time trial. I went through about four rolls of 120 film and it was over. I thanked them for the time and wished them all the best. Mario gave his son a kiss on the lips and turned to me and said, “I always do that since I know I may never see him again.” rescent lights in the background were a happy accident; they suggest the idea of movement.

Posing I wanted to build on the symmetry of the racecar hoods and have Michael and Mario mirror each other. Having them place their hands on their hips showed confidence and portrayed them as heroes. The fluo

Tips When time is limited, you must have everything in place so you can concentrate on shooting. Of course, this is easier when you are working for yourself and don’t have to satisfy a client. In instances like this, I use the tripod to restrict me from shooting too many angles. This lets me concentrate on getting the right pose and looking for the right moment.

This is a good example of underplaying the fill flash. I metered the flash at f/5.6, a stop under the ambient highlight exposure, to lighten up the shadows. This reduced the contrast but didn’t give the “flash” look. It gave the image a grittier feel, which is what I wanted for these road warriors.

56 50 LIGHTING SETUPS FOR PORTRAIT PHOTOGRAPHERS

white umbrella