Woody, Meet Ira

CASE STUDY #33 Woody, Meet Ira

CAMERA: Hasselblad 503cw LENS: 120mm

FILM: Fuji RDP

EXPOSURE: f/5.6 at 1 / 60 second

LIGHTING: Norman 200B OTHER: 81b filter to warm the open shade

Assignment Ford Times Magazine assigned me to photograph actors who are stand-ins for famous actors. These are people who literally stand on the set so the cinematographer and lighting crew can get set up before the star arrives. They don’t always look like the star, but they have the same build and face shape.

Visual Objective I wanted to create a Woody Allen–type of movie still depicting Ira Sakolski, Woody Allen’s movie stand-in.

Posing Ira was great to work with (did I mention how much fun it is to work with actors?) and had mastered Allen’s mannerisms. I had him turn around in the park bench as if it were a candid moment. placed herself in the frame. She added an Allen-esque feel to the image, so we kept her in.

Tips If you intend to become a location portrait photographer, effectively scouting locations is key to a successful shoot. There are also professional location scouts you can hire when working outside of your familiar turf. I am always looking for interesting locations that I will use for future shoots. Sometimes it also works the other way around; a great location will inspire me to create a portrait shoot.

Story A park across from the Waverly Theater on 8th Street in Manhattan was the perfect location for this shot. You could see the Empire State building and there were always pigeons, the city mascot. We brought a bunch of breadcrumbs to attract more pigeons. While I was shooting, Mr. Sakolsky said, “Watch this.” Then, he somehow lured a pigeon to perch on his hand— that was the shot. The one mysterious aspect of this shoot was the woman in the background. No one knew her, but she seemed to follow us to the park and

spun glass over Norman 200B

LIGHTING CASE STUDIES 89