|
|
|
|
It is rare
for us living in the Pacific Northwest to get a glimpse
of the sun during the colder months. In fact, the
shorter days can be so overcast that the days will be fairly
dark. The challenge is that I do have one (and only
one) south facing window, and I just love the light that
come in it. During the longer days, sunlight puddles
on the floor under the window (see the image above, from
Keira Grant's
visit last July); during the shorter & colder days,
the sunlight can stretch over 20 feet along that one wall
(see the image below, of today's subject model, Sarah).
It is so interesting to me that a single window can yield
such radically different lighting. I like both versions
of light (and the incremental variations between the two),
but since sunny days are so rare in the colder months, I
am especially intrigued by the winter configuration. |
|
|
|
|
|
So, the challenge
-- since the sunny days are so rare, how to arrange a sitting
during those unpredictable sunny days? The solution:
you've got to develop an agreement with a "go to gal",
a model who might be able to drop everything at a moment's
notice & come over for an hour or so during a rare sunny
day. Hence, Sarah -- she's a local college student
who lives just a few blocks away. In fact, at the
time of this sitting, my house was closer to Sarah than
the parking garage where she parks her car. To the
extent possible, we set up our session without scheduling
a date. Then, when it looks like we are going to have
a sunny afternoon, one of us will phone the other to see
if we are both available. After three attempts, we
find a sunny day that looks promising. Sarah hustles
home (to change her clothes) and comes over, arriving just
10-15 minutes after our phone call. I immediately
ask her to sit in the sunlight, and without any delay, we
start making pictures. |
|
|
|
There is something
mesmerizing & exotic about blue-eyed brunettes.
I find Sarah's eyes to be captivating, especially when they
are side lit like this. Photographing a model can
be like a three-ring circus -- there's a lot going on simultaneously:
I'm looking at the light, the figure, the expression, the
shadows, the composition, the movement, etc., and as distracting
as all that is, I pay special attention to Sarah's eyes,
especially when they are lit like this.
I love
the opportunities for interesting compositions when using
this lighting setup.
|
|
|
|
Roll your mouse
over the above image. |
|
|
Sarah &
I had met at my house a couple of weeks earlier. Usually,
I meet a model about 10 minutes before we make the first
exposure, but I wanted to meet with Sarah beforehand so
that she could find my house when she hurries over and so
that we can discuss all the "preliminaries" before
the day of the sitting. We wanted to be able to jump
into the sunlight as quickly as possible.
When
we met, I had told Sarah about how I like photographing
a model in the clothes she wears to the door and then continuing
to photograph her as she removes her clothes.
So, when
I called her to get her over while the sun was shining,
she asked which were we going to do -- the sunlight setup
or the "getting started" setup. I answered,
why not both?
|
|
|
Getting the
exposure right in this lighting setup is a big challenge,
and perhaps it's a bigger challenge than I can handle.
This image is a case in point -- the light on Sarah's face
is a bit blown out (but I don't mind much because it yields
an ethereal feeling) -- meanwhile, the tonality on the rest
of Sarah's figure are pleasing. It's a hodge-podge.
There
is something slightly disturbing/funny about the placement
of Sarah's right hand. It looks like a mistake in
an anatomy textbook.
|
|
Here's me playing
composition games again. I used to do these unusual
shapes & off-center compositions all the time, and when
I find an appealing excuse, I am always happy.
Despite
having only modest technical qualities, I like this image
a lot.
-
I like how Sarah's hair is flowing around her face &
shoulders,
-
I like her direct look & lovely face,
-
I like how you can see her lovely eyes in the different
shadows,
-
I like how her breasts are de-emphasized by shadow,
and
-
I like the contrast between the curves and the straight
lines of the sunlight.
|
|
|
|
|
Teeny tiny
changes to how Sarah holds her head translate into radical
changes in the light on her face. If her nose is pointing
directly at the camera, her hair would cast a shadow over
her face, but if she turns her head ever so slightly towards
the window, her face is more illuminated. In fact,
with just the right angle, her eyes are perfectly highlighted.
To Sarah's credit, she patiently adjusts her pose based
on my feedback, but she always looks natural. Normally,
I just like setups where the model can move as she will,
but here, she has to move carefully based on what I'm telling
her. |
|
