TABLE OF CONTENTS

ABOUT THE AUTHOR — page 6

INTRODUCTION — page 7

Why this book?

What will you learn?

Who will find this book useful?

FOREWORD — page 8

LIGHTING BASICS — page 13

Equipment Essentials

General Process

GLOSSARY — page 14

ONE-LIGHT SET-UPS — page 18

TWO-LIGHT SET-UPS — page 35

THREE-LIGHT SET-UPS — page 82

FOUR-LIGHT AND MORE SET-UPS — page 120

CAMERA-MOUNTED FLASH — page 146

NATURAL LIGHT — page 155

CONTINUOUS (HOT) LIGHTS — page 168

© 2012 Quavondo Photography, LLC.All rights reserved.

www.quavondo.com

Content direction and editing by Lindsay MicheletIllustrations by Corey Michaud

Title ID: 3711712ISBN-13: 978-1466463844ISBN-10: 1466463848

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored, or transmitted in anyform or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopied, recorded orotherwise, without prior written consent from the author.

The information contained in this book is based on the author’s experienceand opinions. The author will not be held liable for the use or misuse of theinformation in this book

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

QUAVONDO was born in Vietnam and fled to the United States with hisfamily at the age of five. His childhood was spent working with his mother andlearning English from Bugs Bunny cartoons.

A graduate of the University of Washington, Quavondo became a self-taughtgraphic design artist. After a long freelance career with ad agencies includingworld-renowned Weiden+Kennedy, Quavondo switched gears to follow histrue passion, and now operates an award-winning commercial photographybusiness.

Quavondo resides in Los Angeles, California with his cat Athena. Honored 18times at the International Photography Awards (including top-threeplacement), Quavondo has been a featured artist on [Framed] and appearedon Make Me a Supermodel and Double Exposure with celebrity photographyteam Markus Klinko & Indrani. Quavondo is a top contributor withiStockphoto/Getty Images where his photos have twice been selected as TopTen Images of the Year.

Follow Quavondo at blog.quavondo.com.

INTRODUCTION

Why this book?I have no formal photography education. Nearly everything I know is theresult of trial and error. Five years ago, I bought my first strobes. The day theyarrived was exhilarating, until I realized I had no idea what to do next. Idesperately sought out books to demonstrate the dramatic lighting techniques Idesired to replicate, but never found my golden goose.

Out of options, I sequestered myself in a spare-bedroom studio and shot for 30straight days. Bright lights, dim lights, one light, all lights—whatever the dayinspired. During this intense period of shooting I learned invaluable lessons,including a precious handful of rules that every photographer can use to feelfree and comfortable with artificial lighting.

I want this book to be your golden goose. At its core, this is an easy-to-usetechnical handbook with lighting set-ups and simple tips you can implementright now to improve your lighting. Each chapter focuses on a type of lighting(e.g. one-strobe, two-strobe, camera flash, hot lights). At its heart, this bookand its images are meant to inspire you, with a candid look into thebackground and thought behind each creative concept, and the amusingrealities of bringing an idea to life.

What will you learn?In this book are 50 images spanning the beauty, fashion and lifestyle genres.Included are:

Concept developmentChallenges and solutionsThree-dimensional diagrams of lighting set-ups that you can replicateCamera settings and equipment used for each shotAlternate lighting optionsTips and tricks

Who will find this book useful?There is a wide variety of imagery in this book, shot both indoors and out, soall photographers can benefit from the demonstrated techniques. Anyonelooking to make the move from amateur to professional will find this an

invaluable resource. Professionals looking to kick-start the creative juices willfind inspiration and perhaps new lighting techniques to improve and simplifytheir process. Novice photographers may wish to familiarize themselves withthe glossary terms first, but rest assured, this book minimizes jargon andmaximizes utility.

Don't wait another day. Start reading, and soon, you'll feel comfortableenough to tackle any photoshoot with confidence.

My best to you,QUAVONDO

FOREWORD BY ZEMOTION

JINGNA ZHANG was born in the suburbs of Beijing, and moved to Singaporeat the age of eight. At the age of fourteen, nine months after picking up an airrifle, Jingna broke a national record, and joined the national air rifle team.Notable achievements include a bronze medal in the 10m Air Rifle event atthe 2006 Commonwealth Games, awarding her the title of 2006 Sports Girl ofthe Year by the Singapore National Olympic Council.

At sixteen, Jingna enrolled in a fashion design program, and at eighteen,picked up a camera. She eventually left both the air rifle team and fashiondesign to pursue photography full-time. Her clientele includes Mercedes Benz,Canon, Pond’s, Ogilvy & Mather Advertising and Wacom. She has alsoproduced fashion editorials for Harper’s Bazaar, Elle and Flare.

Jingna’s decorated career includes 2011 Photographer of the Year for ElleAwards Singapore, top-three placement at the International PhotographyAwards, and 2008 Overseas Fashion Photography of the Year at the BritishProfessional Photography Awards. Among others, she credits PeterLindbergh, John William Waterhouse, Kuang Hong and Yoshitaka Amano asher biggest influences.

Follow Jingna at blog.zhangjingna.com.

The essential marriage of heart and mind.It took me only a short while to learn that Quavondo not only understands thetechnical aspects of his creations, but equally as important, the love andlaughter that comprise the heart of his photos. It is this heart that shinesthrough in both his images and process.

With a wide range of images lit in different styles across the chapters, it waswith much delight that I read this book, one interesting concept after another.Here, Quavondo shares not only the technicalities of lighting, but the criticalcomponent of image-creation and conceptualization. Best of all, Quavondoproves that with the occasional exception, lighting can actually be straight-forward and is nothing to fear.

The backstory Quavondo provides for each image is one of the most excitingelements in learning about the ‘making of’ something. A photo with goodlighting is nice, but a beautifully-lit, well-concepted image is so much better,and it is our duty as photographers to explore. Matchsticks in a model’s hair?Yes please.

Quavondo not only shares about lighting itself, but his forethought andcreative process, which will inspire you, as it did me, to do a little shooting ofyour own.

Happy shooting,JINGNA

FOREWORD BY PRATIK

PRATIK NAIK has over 10 years of experience retouching commercial andeditorial imagery. His work can be seen in Marie Claire, Elle, and Zink, and hehas worked with several celebrities including Halle Berry, Paris Hilton,Cameron Diaz, Rebecca Hardy and Ellen Page. Pratik is also a mentor andinstructor, traveling the world teaching photographers and other retouchers histechniques.

Pratik has been heavily influenced by his classical training in fine art. Hebelieves in preserving the photographer’s original vision, and simplyenhancing it by removing all visible flaws, providing a final image that is bothnatural and perfect.

Follow Pratik at http://solsticeretouch.tumblr.com.

The most indispensable book of your collection.It’s not often that you get an opportunity to learn from the best, in such agiving fashion. I’ve known Quavondo for years, as a friend and colleague. Hehas always stood out among the photographers with whom I work. His talent,as truly great as it is, has always been matched by his personality andprofessionalism, which draw people to him and his work.

When Quavondo told me he was writing an educational book on photographylighting techniques, I knew right away it would be a must-have for allphotographers, as there isn’t anything like this in the field. The range of workQuavondo does is so versatile, it alone is a testament to how masterful andcontrolled he is with lighting. He has full control over any scenario. Often, heis able to see in his head what a situation calls for, and execute it right away.That ability is very rare, and it is indeed what separates good photographersfrom great photographers.

I’ve seen Quavondo teach and explain his thought process in person. The wayhe analyzes and ‘sees’ the light before a shot is taken is reflected by howaccurate the end result is. It’s as though he’s a conductor leading an orchestraof lights; what unfolds before you is nothing short of beautiful.

Before reading this book, I wasn’t sure if Quavondo would be able to translatehis frame of mind into physical form. As an artist, the intangible thoughts arenearly impossible to put down to paper. After reading this book, I wasimpressed, mostly because he was able to translate exactly what he sees in hismind into a format anyone can pick up and understand right away. Just as apoet has to convert and communicate his emotions and thoughts into somesort of prose, Quavondo has put everything he wanted to share into an easy-to-read format that everyone can understand and follow.

The best part of this book is how Quavondo reveals the story behind everyshot, before delving into the lighting details. His explanations almost makelighting seem easy, and will give you confidence to follow suit.

It’s very important to note that Quavondo isn’t just a beauty or fashionphotographer—he does it all. Because of his extensive experience in multiplegenres, this book allows you to explore each area. It gives you the freedom totake his lighting set-ups and apply them in your own way, for the specific look

you want.

This book has been long overdue, and I know my thoughts will be echoed bythose who decide to purchase it.

My best to you,PRATIK

LIGHTING BASICS

EQUIPMENT ESSENTIALSEquipment options can be overwhelming and pricey. Many industryprofessionals rely on Profoto® or Broncolor®, but in my experience, a light isa light. Color temperature shifting does occur with less expensive lights, but iseasily fixed in post-production.

When I started out, I couldn’t afford expensive lights, so I researched threebudget-conscious brands: Alien Bees™, White Lightning™, and Elinchrom®.I ended up with White Lightning; both Alien Bees and White Lightning aremade by the same manufacturer, but White Lightning is better-built and canwithstand more of a beating. I love my lights, and have had no problemswhatsoever.

How many lights do you need? In my opinion, three is perfect. One willsuffice, and two will get you far. Anything beyond three is just for pureenjoyment, which of course, is encouraged. A basic three-light set shouldinclude a:

Beauty dishStrip box (medium-size, rectangular shape)Octabox1600 watt strobe, two 800 watt strobe

and the following accessories:

Set of honeycombs, also known as gridsLight stand for each lightLight meterTwo silver bounce umbrellasReflector

If you can only afford one light, start with the beauty dish. It’s versatile andquick to set up. As finances allow, consider adding these to your collection:

Ring flashBoom arm

Additional strip boxVarious softbox sizes with grids

MY GENERAL PROCESSThe first thing I do on set is a bit old fashioned, but it works: I put my hand tomy eye and pretend I’m looking through a hole. This is how I find mycomposition, by looking for lines and angles that will bring visual interest tothe shot.

If shooting outside, I then determine where the natural light is coming from,and let it dictate how much and what type of artificial lighting I need. Indoors,I skip this step.

Next, I decide my depth of field (aperture) for the shot, based on myobjectives and surroundings. For instance, am I shooting a gown where I needto capture all the detail? If so, I’ll shoot sharp, or at a high f-stop. Or, am Ishooting a lifestyle portrait where the distractions in the background should beblurred? If so, I’ll opt for a low f-stop.

Next, I place my lights. Generally, I aim to subtly light my shots, rather thanmaking the lighting sources obvious. Finally, I use my light meter and meterthe lights to match my desired f-stop, adjusting settings like ISO and shutterspeed along the way. Then, I’m ready to shoot.

GLOSSARY OF TERMS

APERTURE (APERTURE STOP)Physical opening through which light travels. In photography, the diameter ofthat opening, also known as aperture stop, or f-stop. A lower f-number (f-stop)means a greater aperture opening which allows more light to reach the imagesensor. High f-numbers mean a smaller aperture opening, which increasesdepth of field (how far away you can shoot something while it’s still in focus).Conversely, low f-numbers mean a larger aperture opening, and a shallowdepth of field (foreground is in focus, background is blurred).

AMBIENT LIGHT (AVAILABLE LIGHT)Any light source not supplied by the photographer that is available for use. Forexample, the sun, overhead lights in an office, street lamps.

BARN DOORSet of flaps that fit over the front of a light and can be adjusted to control lightspillage.

BOKEH Pronounced “boh-kay,” the blur, or rather, the aesthetic quality of the blur ina photo. Normally refers to how certain light sources or reflective surfaces areblurred.

BOOM (ARM)Long, adjustable arm to which light is attached and positioned above thesubject.

BOUNCEReflecting light from an existing source onto the subject.

C-STAND (STAND)Adjustable metal stands with three-prong bases, used to mount lights andposition various flags, color gels, bounce cards, and silks in front of lightsources.

CAMERA CURTAINCurtains are the devices that let in and close off light coming into the camera.

For the purposes of this book, camera curtain refers to the rear curtain, or theone that shuts last. If shutter speed is too high, this device will leave blacklines across your image.

CATCH LIGHTA highlight in the eyes, from a light source, usually purposely engineered toadd a glint or “spark” to a subject’s eye and draw attention there.

COMPOSITEDThe combining of visual elements from separate sources into single images,creating the illusion that all the elements are from the same scene.

CONTINUOUS LIGHTINGSources that are always on, in contrast to flash, which fires only briefly.

DEPTH OF FIELD (DOF)Describes how much of your image is sharp. The area within the depth of fieldappears sharp, while the areas in front of and beyond the depth of field appearblurry. Shallow DOF often means blurry backgrounds.

DIFFUSERAccessories which soften output from a light source.

F-STOPNumeric increments which dictate how much light is let into the lens. Thebigger the f-number, the smaller the aperture, and the less light let in to thecamera. Bigger f-numbers mean greater depth of field, that is, an image wherethe majority of elements are in focus. Smaller f-numbers mean shallow depthof field.FILL LIGHTLight that is softer than the key light, used to fill in shadows and reduce thecontrast of a scene. Can be provided by an actual light, our bounced fromanother source using a reflector.

FLAGFabric squares placed on the sides of a light source to control lens flare andlight spillage.

GRID (HONEYCOMB)A device placed over a softbox which limits the spread of light, in varyingdegrees. A 10-degree grid spreads light at 10-degree angles, and so on.

HISTOGRAMA display on your digital camera, resembling a series of mountain peaks,which represents the maximum range of light values your camera can capture.(0 = Pure Black, and 255 = Pure White)

You can use the histogram to evaluate the exposure of your image on rareoccasions when you can’t see your on-screen test images well enough (insunlight, etc). A good image often, but not always, has a histogram spread allover.

HOT LIGHTSSlang term for studio lights that are always on, rather than triggered like aflash. Named as such for the amount of heat they generate during use.

IMAGE RIGHT/LEFTWhen looking at the image, the right or left side of it from the perspective ofthe viewer.

ISOMeasures sensitivity to light. The lower the ISO number, the less sensitive thecamera is to light and the finer the grain (less noise). High ISO settings areuseful in dark situations because they allow more light into the camera, butalso result in grainy (noisy) images. ISO is interrelated with aperture andshutter speed. A higher ISO allows you to shoot at higher shutter speedsand/or smaller apertures (higher f-numbers).

KEY LIGHTThe main light source.

LIGHT METERA handheld digital device measuring amount of light. It shows aperture (f-stop), framing rate, and ISO speed.

LIGHT STAND

Support for lighting equipment.

LOUPEA small magnification device used to make a close inspection of the reviewimage displayed on your digital SLR LCD display, particularly useful outdoorsbecause it blocks glare and shadows.

MODELLING LIGHTTungsten lamp on a flash head which helps indicate where light will fall inyour final image and also let’s you know visually when the flash has recycledand is ready for another shot.

MUAMakeup artist.

ND FILTERNeutral Density filters. Used to modify aperture, exposure time and/or motionblur in certain conditions, for example, bright sunlight.

NOISEThe amount of grain in an image, often referred to as pixilation, typically anegative side effect of image capture in dark environments.

OCTABOXOctagonal-shaped softbox, available in multiple sizes.

REFLECTORWhite or silver disc used to bounce light around; often a small, metallic conefitted over a light bulb, or a larger, round fabric held in place by an assistant.

RIM LIGHTAlso known as backlighting, the process of illuminating a subject from behind.

RING FLASHCircular flash tube which fits around the lens and produces even, oftenshadowless, lighting.

SCRIM

Material placed in front of a light to reduce its intensity.

SHUTTER DRAGSlowing down shutter speed. This lengthens exposure time which lets in moreambient light and creates a motion effect.

SHUTTER SPEEDThe length of time the camera shutter is open, determining how much lightreaches the image sensor. Short exposure times are “fast,” and long exposuretimes “slow.” Shutter speed affects movement in an image: short shutterspeeds can be used to freeze fast-moving subjects; long shutter speeds willblur a moving subject for artistic effect.

SOFTBOXCollapsible fabric lighting accessories which surround the light strobe andproduce very soft light, available in various sizes and shapes. The larger thesoftbox, the softer the light.

SPILL LIGHT (OR WRAP LIGHT)Light not falling on the subject, but instead falling on the background; alsoused to refer to excess light.

SPOT LIGHTA highly directional, often intense, light.

STRIP BOXA narrow rectangular softbox often used for fill light.

STROBEStrobe photography, known as flash photography; also, another term for“light” in photography.

THREE-QUARTER LIGHTLight coming from about forty-five degrees in front of the model. The lightreaches 3/4 of the visible form, leaving only a fraction of the form in shadow.

TUNGSTENContinuous light source with a yellow cast.

UMBRELLAFabric lighting accessory shaped as an umbrella, used to bounce and softenlight output.

Model: Michelle | Makeup: Madeline RooseveltShutter 1/60thAperture f2.8ISO 400Lens 85mm f1.2Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/silver reflector and 40° grid 8 ft from model

ABOUT THE IMAGEThis image came from the shortest shoot of my career—six minutes to beexact. Ironically, it also turned out to be a Top Ten Image of the Year oniStockphoto.

The day was gloomy and gray. I’m a movie nut, and as I stared out thewindow, I began to envision a portrait like a still from The Notebook whenRachael McAdams and Ryan Gossling are soaked with rain, defeated andemotionally vulnerable. I find a lot of inspiration in movies; they’re so full ofinteresting and dramatic scenery, it’s almost frustrating sometimes to beconfined to a still environment. But the challenge is more than half the fun.

VARIABLESThe clouds were ready to burst, but there was no rain, so we created our own.We used dark makeup that would easily run, and held a garden hose overMichelle’s head.

The emotion and pain Michelle conveys here is real: she was freezing under agarden hose in 35-degree weather. At one point, the MUA’s thumb was sonumb from holding the hose that it slipped and an ice-cold stream of waterblasted Michelle in the face. We called it quits after six minutes.

It may be obvious, but when a shoot involves water, be safe. Move cordsaway from water and elevate the plugs, so water runs down and away fromthe exposed openings.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUES To accentuate the emotion, I wanted a dark and moody image. To my liking,the background was already in shadow, so no background light was needed.The day was overcast, so harsh sunlight or shadows were not an issue, andthus, no fill light was needed. All I required was one light on Michelle to popher out from the surrounding grays and blacks.

LIGHTI didn’t require much light, and opted for an 800-watt strobe over my usual1600-watt strobes. The strobe was outfitted with a silver reflector and 40-degree honeycomb grid, both of which helped direct and confine the light toMichelle’s face. The light was placed eight feet away, raised six feet up, and

pointed down at her face. The eight-foot distance was chosen for no otherreason than it was the distance at which I could keep the light dry, undercover. Accordingly, I powered my light to work around this distance.

CAMERA SETTINGSTo draw the viewer into Michelle’s face, a very shallow depth of field (f-stop)of f2.8 was used. I chose my 85mm f1.2 lens, which is great for creatingbeautiful bokehs when shot at an open aperture. To give the rain a bit of amotion trail, the shutter speed was slowed to 1/60th of a second. This was theslowest I could go in cold weather without camera shake (i.e. my body wasshivering!) ISO was bumped up to 400 to allow enough ambient light into thecamera on the overcast day.

Once the camera settings were determined, I powered up the strobe andmetered the light on Michelle’s face to get close to f2.8.

* LIGHT DISTANCEThe distance of the light from the model depends on camera settings, ambientlight, and particularly, strobe power. Here, I could have set the light closer andturned down the power, or put it farther away and increased the power.

If you can’t afford higher-wattage lights, you can still be successful. Simplymove the lower-wattage lights closer to your subject.

Model: Femi | Hair/Makeup: Madeline RooseveltShutter 1/160thAperture f8ISO 100Lens 100mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/40° grid

ABOUT THE IMAGEThe lighting here is dramatic, yet simple to recreate. The hair and makeupwere definitely more time-intensive, and turned out beautifully. Coming intothe shoot, the MUA and I agreed on achieving an “asymmetrical” look; thatwas our one and only guideline. The MUA did the rest by creating this strikinglook and the tear of eyeshadow was added as an afterthought. It waschallenging to keep the hairstyle looking purposeful and stylized, not justcasually swept to the side; we used our fair share of bobby pins on this day.

VARIABLESThis was my very first time shooting an African American model in heavyshadow. I feared that shooting dark skin on black would cause detail to belost, requiring more than one light. But all it took was setting the power on mylights about one f-stop higher than I would for a fair-skinned model.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESMy focus here was the eye and lips. With such bold makeup, my lightingneeded to make an equally strong statement through the use of high contrastand deep shadows.

LightRather than a big softbox, I used a small, focused light source to providedirectional light without spillage. The strobe was outfitted with a silverreflector and 40-degree grid, and positioned four feet above her head and onefoot in front of her (as opposed to directly overhead). The grid provided anarrow ray of light, creating shadows on her face and body without lightingthe scene. Play around with varying grid degrees until the light falls where youwant it.

Camera SettingsAperture was set to f8 to ensure the face was captured in detail. If I’d shotwith a wide-open aperture like f2.8 and focused just on the eye, her lips wouldhave been too soft, without detail. When shooting for beauty, I tend to shootbetween f8 and f11.

ISO was set at 100, which is common in a studio setting, and will give you aclean image with little grain/noise. Higher ISOs will add noise, which is usuallyundesirable but can be acceptable in certain instances like shooting fast-

moving sports imagery or in very low-lit areas.

Shutter speed was synched to 1/160th of a second, which is a common,moderate speed, good for studio shots.

After establishing the camera settings, I metered the light on Femi’s face tomatch my desired aperture of f8. If you have problems getting to f8, adjust thepower of the strobe accordingly, or move the light closer or farther away ifyou’ve maxed the power output on your lights.

I chose a macro, 100mm f2.8 lens which is excellent for beauty shots andcaptures incredible details like pores and eyelashes.

* REFLECTORI liked that part of Femi’s face and body was lost in shadow, and opted againstbringing out the pupils in her eyes to keep the image moody. However, youcould soften the shadows and bring out her eyes by using a reflector to bouncelight from the strobe into her eyes.

Model: Jessie | Hair/Makeup: Madeline RooseveltShutter 1/160thAperture f5.6ISO 100Lens 85mm f1.2Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Large rectangular softbox w/grid, positioned vertically, 45° to left and 7 to8 ft away

ABOUT THE IMAGEThe online photography program [FRAMED]™ travels the country profilingphotographers. In Spring 2011, they invited me to participate in their Portland-based episode. I was thrilled, but slightly nervous when they asked if I couldpull together a shoot for them to tape at 9 that night considering the phone callcame in at 3, just as I was wrapping up another shoot. I didn’t want to miss theopportunity, so without a model or a concept, I gave the producer anenthusiastic thumbs up. Then I panicked.

VARIABLESWith so little time to prepare, the MUA and I were focused solely onprocuring a model and stylist. I had no time to research [FRAMED], and atthe time was unfamiliar with the program. Imagine my surprise when the firstthing they did was sit me down for an interview and ask what I was planningto “teach” the audience with my shoot: talk about deer in headlights. Or in thiscase, Asian in front of strobes.

Upon quick thought, I decided it was important to demonstrate how to createsatisfying images with only one light source. Budgets are tight for novicephotographers, and many have only one light and one lens. Landscapephotographers create brilliant images every day using only one light source:the sun. Why should it be different for studio photographers?

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESLightA large rectangular softbox with a grid was positioned at 45 degrees on imageleft, about seven to eight feet away from Jessie. The box created shadows togive the image depth, and the grid directed the light onto her, avoiding spillageinto the background.

Alternate Light Option 1Shooting black on black can be tricky because details get lost. To pop Jessieout of the background and enhance detail in the dress, a strip box could act asrim light, placed behind her on image right, pointed at her, with a flag to stoplight from spilling onto the background.

Alternate Light Option 2For fewer shadows in this image, an octabox could replace the rectangular

softbox. An octabox will spread the light further and wrap your subject more.Or, the grid could be removed from the rectangular softbox.

Camera SettingsCapturing motion affects shutter speed, and if you’re trying to freeze motionwhile keeping everything in focus, sync your shutter speed to the max,1/250th of a second. Anything higher will cause black bars to appear in theimage; this is the camera curtain. Here, Jessie appears to be captured mid-stride, but was actually barely moving, so a shutter speed of 1/160th workedwell.

Aperture was set to a moderate level of f5.6, allowing me to transitionseamlessly between full-body shots and close-ups during the shoot. ISO wasset to 100 which is standard for studio shoots. For the lens, I chose my Canon85mm f1.2; it produces dependably sharp images.

* [FRAMED]View the [FRAMED] webisode at www.framedshow.com/archives/1077 tosee the complete interview and behind-the-scenes look at the photoshoot.

Model: Ebony | Hair/Makeup: Lee’Ann GolemiShutter 1/250thAperture f5ISO 100Lens 70-200mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/beauty dish to my right, 1 ft above model

ABOUT THE IMAGEThe second year of my career was spent in New York, working with celebrityphotography team Markus Klinko & Indrani. The hours were brutal but it wasthe opportunity of a lifetime and I’m incredibly grateful for the experience. Inmy off-time, I shot as much as possible, including this image shot in downtownManhattan.

You may recognize Ebony from America’s Next Top Model Cycle 1. She wasa spitfire on the show, but in reality is very sweet and brings infectious energyto the set. After meeting her, it became my objective to demonstrate her softerside. I had already discovered the visual interest that NYC rooftops offeredmy photography, and with this shady spot, could juxtapose the grandness ofthe cityscape with the solitude of one person. The line of the wall cuts throughthe background buildings, creating two distinct worlds: one bright and cheery,one cold and dark. This was the perfect spot to reflect the emotion of theimage I aimed to capture.

For the shot, I asked Ebony to get lost in her own melancholy thoughts. Sheinstantly tuned into the feeling, and her face and body language beautifullyportray her vulnerability.

A behind-the-scenes video of this shoot is available athttp://www.quavondo.com.

VARIABLESThis picture looks like the middle of summer, but it was actually the end ofNovember and freezing cold. I was wearing a thick down coat and earmuffs,but Ebony braved the cold in a short skirt and sheer shirt. She was such aprofessional. In between shots she wrapped her body in a warm blanket. Notonly did this keep her in good spirits, it prevented unsightly goose bumps onher skin.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESMy quest was to showcase shadow and light side by side, but the sun was notcooperating. It kept hitting parts of Ebony’s body, so an assistant held up ascrim to block it.

Light

Once Ebony was in shadow, I wanted to keep her there. All I needed was atouch of highlight. It was blustery up on the roof, so I opted for a beauty dishinstead of a softbox, which held up much better against the wind gusts.

The dish was positioned slightly to my right about one foot higher than Ebony,pointed down to create a slight shadow on her face. I didn’t want the light tooverpower the scene and take away the natural feel of the shot, so I gave itjust a hint of power.

Camera SettingsTo help Ebony pop, I used a 70-200mm lens which has a nice focal length toseparate subjects from backgrounds. Aperture was set to f5, which blurredthe background slightly while preserving the interesting lines from thecityscape. Given this moderately wide aperture, shutter speed was synched to1/250th of a second. This fast shutter speed allowed less light into the cameraand controlled overexposure of the background from the bright sun. Shootingany slower would have caused the background to be overexposed. ISO wasset at 100; on this sunny day, anything higher would have also overexposedthe image.

* ND FILTERSIf I had used an ND (neutral density) filter on my lens, I could have shot at thewider aperture of f2.8 and blurred the background even more. ND filters notonly expand the range of light your camera can shoot with, but also makecolors really “pop” and are a big advantage when shooting outdoors.

Model: Jillian | Hair/Makeup: Megan RabeShutter 1/125thAperture f8ISO 100Lens 24-70mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/beauty dish 5 ft above model, pointed down

ABOUT THE IMAGEJillian purchased this beautiful gown and suggested we get together and shoot.Pittock Mansion was the ideal location: once home to Portland pioneersHenry and Georgiana Pittock, the impressive estate now owned by the City ofPortland features European design, and its grand structure complemented theregalness of the gown perfectly. To me, Jillian resembles Jennifer Love Hewitthere. Incidentally, I met Jennifer at New York Fashion Week, and not only isshe beautiful, she is very sweet.

Setting up for this shot, a man walked by with two Dobermans, and allowed usto use one of them as a prop. Ideally we would have used both, but the otherone looked as if she’d swallowed a whole chicken, and was too pudgy to bebelievable as a palace guard dog.

VARIABLESThe biggest challenge on this shoot was tourists. Pittock Mansion is a popularattraction, and shots had to be timed with nobody in the background. I shothandheld, but if I had shot on a tripod, I could have secured one good shot ofthe background without tourists, then freely shot Jillian and composited thebest of Jillian’s shots with the clean background shot.

Maintaining the dog’s focus was also a challenge, as he was distracted by hisportly sister who was snacking on treats.

With all of these variables at play, I was also concerned that the mansion’smanagement would kick us off the premises before I could get the shot, sincewe didn’t have permission to shoot on location.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESThis shot takes advantage of the sun as a light source. Jillian is positioned at aforty five-degree angle to the sun, known as three-quarter light, a popularportrait lighting technique.

LightThe harsh midday sun cast dark shadows on the image-right side of Jillian. Tocompensate, I used a beauty dish on my right, placed five feet above her headand pointed down, mimicking a less-intense sun. The light was placed farenough away to provide fill light for both Jillian and the dog, without

completely eradicating the shadows created by the sun.

Camera SettingsIdeally, I would have shot at a shallow depth of field to blur the background,but with the dog moving around, focus was a concern. To get both subjects infocus, I shot at f8, which provided enough depth of field in case the dogmoved. I would have also preferred to use either an 85mm or 70-200mm lens,but my camera was already fitted with the 24-70mm lens when the dogs cameon the scene, and I didn’t want to lose the opportunity to shoot them byfumbling with a lens change.

When using strobes, I typically sync shutter speed to 1/125th or 1/160th forstill shots, and 1/200th or 1/250th for sports photography. The only time I’llshoot slower than 1/125th is in a dark environment, to let in more ambientlight. For shots requiring a shutter speed slower than 1/60th of a second, Ishoot on a tripod to avoid camera shake.

Here, I used 1/125th of a second and given the bright sun, set ISO to 100. Imetered the sunlight on the image-left side of Jillian’s face to match mydesired f8 aperture. The beauty dish on the image right side was metered tof6.3, which lightened up the shadows just a touch.

* DON’T WAITWhen working with locations and animals, don’t wait for the perfect shot toclick the shutter. Take what you can get or you won’t get the shot, period.Also, bring treats and toys to direct animals’ attention.

Models: Chloe & Mandi | Hair/Makeup: Madeline RooseveltShutter 1/160thAperture f5.6ISO 100Lens 85mm f1.2Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/beauty dish, 15 ft off ground2) Strobe w/beauty dish, waist-high

ABOUT THE IMAGEMandi and Chloe are fantastic models. They have long arms and legs whichshow well in fashion images. At first, I had kept the models separate. Towardthe end of the shoot, I saw an opportunity for an edgy shot with the twotogether. Knowing that Chloe is a competitive yogi fueled this concept of heras a scorpion being controlled by Mandi.VARIABLESThis image was shot in the middle of a bright, cloudless summer day. If thatmakes you cringe, you’re not alone.In addition to being really bright, it was really hot. We shot in five-minuteintervals to keep the models from sweating through their makeup and clothing.On hot days, have your lights ready to go before the models are on set. Yourmakeup artist will thank you for keeping their hard work fresh, and yourmodels will thank you for not turning them into lobsters.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESHere, the sun is at a 45-degree angle to Mandi’s back (the model who isstanding). This creates a natural rim light which highlights the image-rightsides of the bodies while avoiding harsh, direct sunlight on the faces. In thiscase, the sun is directly on Chloe’s face, but her grimacing expression worksfor the shot.

LightsTwo strobes were used to complement the sun. Without them, the image-leftsides of the models would have been covered in harsh shadows. On my leftwas the key light, a 1600-watt beauty dish, powered at its maximum tocompensate for the ND filter on the lens. Without the ND filter, the sky wouldhave been completely blown-out white. The light was raised 15 feet off theground and pointed down at the models to create natural shadows. Whenusing an ND filter, or if the scenery is too bright for strobes to overcome, youmay need to move the lights closer to your subjects to achieve your desired f-stop reading.

For fill light, a waist-high beauty dish was positioned on my right, poweredjust high enough to fill in shadows.

Camera Settings

I chose a moderate aperture of f5.6; shooting any lower would have blurredone of the models, and shooting higher would have brought the trees intofocus and complicated the image.

ISO was set to 100 because of the bright sunlight. Shutter speed was at1/160th of a second, which, on this bright day, was only possible because ofthe ND filter. Otherwise, shutter speed would have been much, much faster.

I could have gone with any number of lenses, but stuck with my preferredCanon 85 mm f1.2.

* ADJUSTING FOR SUNThe sun is constantly moving. When shooting in direct sunlight, pay closeattention to its location, and make minor adjustments with your camerasettings and strobes, especially if clouds are passing by. If you don’t, you runthe risk of overexposed images and harsh shadows on models’ features.Position models so sunlight is not directly in their eyes, causing them to squint.

Model: Rania | Hair/Makeup: Amy GillespieShutter 1/160thAperture f5.6ISO 400Lens 85mm f1.2Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/silver reflector to right, aimed at ceiling2) Strobe w/silver reflector to left, aimed at ceiling

ABOUT THE IMAGERania is a nationally published wellness coach. For her publicity images, Ichose a kitchen/dining setting featuring healthy foods. I envisioned somethingbright and cheery, and Rania found this modern condo in a downtown high-rise, with big windows for natural light.

This particular shoot was a trade: my photos for a nutritional plan to obtainsix-pack abs. Her recipes and guidance were very effective; it was weekdayafternoons with Dr. Phil and a bag of Ruffles® Cheddar and Sour Cream chipsthat did me in.

VARIABLESPrior to the shoot we obtained permission to use the condo. Unfortunately, theunit we were given was up for sale and an open house was scheduled the dayof the shoot. Potential buyers were walking through the set and ourinstructions were to stay out of the way.

After setting up our first shot, the real estate agent had a sudden change ofheart, deciding our presence was too elaborate and intrusive, and asked us toleave. It seemed a shame to let the location go to waste, so instead, we gotdown to business shooting three looks in 30 minutes, then left in a big hurry.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESLightsHaving big windows on one side of the condo meant the other side was dark.To create natural-looking light on the image-right side of Rania, a strobe witha silver reflector was aimed at the top of the wall and ceiling in front of her,allowing light to bounce around and fall naturally from above, as if from anambient source.

A second strobe with a silver reflector filled in shadows on the wall behindand to the image left of Rania, brightening the room. This light was bouncedoff the wall and ceiling closest to the windows.

This shot could certainly be done with just the key light, and the backgroundlightened up in post-production. If you have to choose, the priority is alwayslighting the model.

Camera SettingsISO was set at 400 to let in a lot of light and create a cheerful environment.The higher the ISO setting, the more sensitive the image is to light. To slightlyblur background distractions and help Rania “pop,” I shot with a moderatelywide aperture of f5.6. Doing so also let in substantial light from the windows.This, combined with a high ISO, meant that only a small amount of power wasneeded from the strobes to accent the image-right side of Rania, withoutoverpowering natural light coming from the windows. Again, I went with the85mm f1.2 lens, my preferred portrait lens.

* LIGHT POWERIf you’re confused about how much power to give your strobes, there’s aneasy formula to follow. First, determine your desired f-stop. Then, power upthe strobes and meter the light to match your f-stop. Adjust power up or downuntil it matches.

Model: ThomasShutter 1/250thAperture f8ISO 200Lens 24-70mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/ beauty dish on right, 3 ft above model, 45 degree angle2) Strobe w/ silver reflector, 1 ft back and 15 ft to right

ABOUT THE IMAGEI work with ESPN HS to photograph exceptional Oregon high school athletes.ESPN delivers a framework for the story they’re writing and I createaccompanying images. The structure given to me is fairly loose, which allowsme to be both a photographer and creative director.

This image features all-star running back Thomas Tyner, who carried his teamto a state championship. Two of his friends came to the shoot with him, and Isaw an opportunity to use them as defenders whom Thomas could run over.His friends weren’t thrilled, but I promised to keep them anonymous so theycould save face with fellow teammates.

VARIABLESThomas is very soft-spoken and shy, but the shot demanded fire and intensity.When I asked for an “angry face,” all he could think and talk about wasMcDonald’s chicken nuggets. Huh? What happened to protein shakes? I guesswhen you’re this young, you can eat anything.

I used chicken nuggets as a negotiating tactic, promising that as soon as wecaptured the right shot, he’d be on his way to get them. He then asked if Iwould give him money for the nuggets—he’ll be great at negotiating a bigNFL contract someday. I never quite got the angry face, but Thomas was funto work with.

Another challenge was that all three boys came to the shoot in identicaluniforms. It took quite awhile in post-production to change out colors andremove team names from jerseys.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESTo take advantage of the high midday sun, I positioned Thomas so the sunwould rim the image-left side of his body. But with his back to the sun, thefront side was void of light.

LightsTo compensate, I used a beauty dish as the key light on the front image-rightside, three feet above Thomas’ head and pointed down to mimic natural sun. Iopted not to place the light directly in front of Thomas because that wouldhave destroyed shadows and flattened any dimensionality in the image. I

rarely use a light straight on, it’s almost always 3/4 left or right.

For extra kick, a second light was used to rim the image-right side of his bodyand shoes, as well as the players on the ground. Without it, player number 6would be completely dark because Thomas’ body is blocking the key lightfrom hitting him. The rim light was a strobe with a silver reflector positioned afoot behind the subjects and 15 feet to the right.

Camera SettingsAnticipating that Thomas would be running, I synced the shutter to 1/250th tofreeze the motion. Aperture was set to f8, ensuring a sharp, detailed imagewith good depth of field. To make the sky and the grass burst with color, Iused an ND filter on my lens.

With these three variables combined, I needed maximum output from mystrobes. Even at maximum power, the image was a bit dark, so I increased ISOto 200 to let more light into the camera. I could have also moved the lightscloser to the subjects and kept ISO the same, but opted not to because I likedhow the light was falling on the subjects.

For this shot, I used my wide-angle Canon 24-70mm f2.8 lens to includeample environment. This lens doesn’t blur the background much, but that wasfine because the background buildings were far away.

* STROBE POWER AND SUNIf you’re shooting mid-day, use a powerful enough strobe to match oroverpower the sun at its peak.

Model: Jillian | Hair: Alison Binford | Makeup: Jennifer GillShutter 1/125thAperture f8ISO 100Lens 24-70mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Ring flash2) Strobe w/strip box placed on ground, pointed up

ABOUT THE IMAGEJillian is one of my favorite models. Not only does she have a keen sense ofher body lines and angles, she also moves fluidly and offers a wide range ofposes to shoot. Furthermore, she’s an excellent collaborator, incrediblycreative, and has a genuine love for fashion and design.

We admittedly had no plan going into this shoot. Jillian arrived with a corsetand glittery tube top which inspired this pin-up style shot. I have a closet fullof various fabrics to be used as backdrops or wardrobe pieces, and pulled outa black satin piece to complement the shimmery fabric of the corset, then laidit over a bench.

VARIABLESON THIS DAY, THE HAIR STYLIST, MUA AND I WERE ALL READYTO GO WHEN THE ORIGINAL MODEL CALLED LAST-MINUTE TOCANCEL. JILLIAN CAME TO OUR RESCUE. THE HAIR STYLISTMISTOOK JILLIAN FOR THE ORIGINAL MODEL, ASSUMING SHEWAS JUST AN HOUR LATE, AND GAVE HER THE SILENTTREATMENT UNTIL I EXPLAINED THAT JILLIAN HAD ACTUALLYSAVED US. IT WAS PRETTY FUNNY TO WATCH.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESLightsTo achieve a high-sheen, pin-up look, I used a ring flash attached to the end ofmy lens. Wherever I pointed the camera, the light followed. If you’ve neverused a ring flash, it’s one of those fun things that you must have in your bag oftricks.

Using a ring flash, you can create beautiful catch lights in the eyes forportraits. The light source is uniform, wrapping evenly around your subjectand limiting shadows. Unfortunately, ring flashes are easily misused, and oneway to fail is by using the flash on its own. If done poorly, ring lighting createsan unsightly shadow halo behind the subject. To avoid this, the backgroundmust be far enough away from the subject, and a secondary light must be usedto fill in some of the shadow. Ring flashes are strong lights, requiring minimalpower output.

For my second light, I placed a strip box on the ground behind the bench,

pointed up slightly at the background, creating an upward gradient of light.This also created separation between the bench, Jillian, and the background,all of which are black.

Camera SettingsAperture was set at f8; there were no background distractions to blur, and itallowed me to capture all of Jillian and the silk fabric in detail. Shutter speedwas at 1/125th and ISO at 100, fairly standard studio settings. I chose theCanon 24-70mm f2.8 lens here because the studio space was small and Ineeded a wide-angle lens to capture the scene.

* RING FLASHThe trick with using a ring flash is to complement it with another light sourceor two. Ring flash by itself often looks hokey.

Model: SamShutter 1/100thAperture f4ISO 100Lens 24-70mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/beauty dish high above model, 3/4 to left2) Strobe w/silver reflector behind model

ABOUT THE IMAGEThis was the final set-up of a three-day shoot at Smith Rock in Bend, Oregon.The team and I hiked up and down a canyon trying to locate a certain spot Ihad scouted four weeks earlier, only to find that I had forgotten where it was.We finally found what I thought was the spot, but I couldn’t replicate the testshot, and began to have doubts. We looked around for options, and happenedupon this expansive view that worked perfectly for our rock climbing concept.

There are variations of this shot where Sam is looking up and grimacing, but Iprefer this version because in it, Sam embodies masculinity by exudingstrength and control as he pauses mid-climb to chalk his hands. I’m sure mostclimbers don’t look down when they’re chalking, but as Sam’s perfectlycoiffed hair and chiseled abs might indicate, this wasn’t meant to be aneditorial shot.

VARIABLESSmith Rock encompasses 651 acres on the Oregon high desert plateau, whichhovers 3,000 feet in elevation. Lugging around photo gear, particularly whenlost, is no easy feat. Leaving time and energy to get in and out of our shootlocations was a major factor.

Rain started to fall as we were setting up for this shot, and I had no plasticbags to cover the lights or batteries. Luckily it was just drizzle, but I shouldhave come prepared.

On the first day of shooting we had a rock climbing guide, but on this last daywe had Sam go at it alone, without ropes. Safety was a big concern. One slipmeant serious injury. Thankfully Sam was strong enough to hold himself withsuch ease.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESShooting in extreme locations like this means letting go of the typical controlyou have over where lights are placed. In this case, I evaluated the ambientlight, then determined the most secure places for my lights, given the roughterrain.

LightsI had my strongest and tallest assistant stand behind me on a large boulder and

hold a beauty dish as the key light. The light was attached to a stand which heheld like a boom arm over my head, because I needed three-quarter light highabove Sam, on image left.

Further down the cliff, a second light was placed at the edge to rim Sam’sbody from the back, helping him pop out from the background. Thissecondary light was a single strobe with a silver reflector, powered two stopshigher than the key light.

Camera SettingsI shot at f4 to blur the background a bit. As for lens, I could have used a50mm f1.2 to create a buttery bokeh effect for the background, but opted forthe 24-70mm to include more environment in the shot. Plus, I was in aconfined space, and the 50mm would not have given me room to frame in therock’s edge.

There was no way to meter the light for this shot, so I used my camera’shistogram and image on the LCD screen to judge lighting. Shutter speed wasset to 1/100th of a second. With no motion involved, there was no need toshoot any faster. Also, the sky was getting dark and a faster shutter speedwould not have let in enough ambient light for the mountain range in thebackground. ISO was set at 100, which might seem low for such an overcastday, but preserved the moodiness of the sky that I was going for.

* CHANGE IT UPDon’t get stuck in the mud. If you see something that inspires a better shot,it’s OK to ditch your original idea.

Models: Paul & DougShutter 1/160thAperture f5.6ISO 100Lens 16-35mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/beauty dish 12 ft high on right, pointed down2) Strobe w/ silver reflector 25 ft to left3) Silver reflective boards

ABOUT THE IMAGEPaul (sliding into home plate) is a professional baseball player turned model.To prepare for our sports shoot, I did a quick Google search on baseballimages, which revealed shots taken primarily from the perspective of someonestanding on the ground—nothing like the angles I was imagining in my head.Admittedly, I watch no baseball. But if I did, this is the view of home plate I’dwant to see, and I set out to achieve it.

VARIABLESIt wasn’t until I asked Paul to slide into home plate that he revealed he was apitcher, not a batter, and his experience sliding into home was minimal at best.I had him slide home several times with varying techniques. I even had himcollide a few times with the umpire. I don’t think either guy particularlyenjoyed that part.

Speaking of colliding, the angle of the shot required me to stand on a plankpropped up by two step ladders. Paul slid into home just a few feet from thestep ladder, narrowly missing it on several occasions.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESLightsI imagined this being lit as if in a stadium, under game lights. As the key light,I placed a beauty dish 12 feet high on my right, pointed down. A second lightwith a silver reflector was positioned to the far left of the players, about 25feet away. No diffusers or modifiers were used because I wanted harshshadows on the ground, like stadium lighting. Using a modifier would alsohave weakened my light source.

Direct sunlight behind me created disruptive shadows on the ground from thestep ladders and my body. To get rid of them, I placed two long silver boardsdirectly below me. Not only did this minimize the awkward shadows, itbounced rays from the secondary light back to the players. To further get ridof my shadow, I increased the power of the key light to overpower the sununtil my shadow was no longer visible.

Camera SettingsTo give the image action and life, I shot at 1/160th of a second, allowing forslight motion blur instead of freezing the motion. I rarely use my 16-35mm

lens, but for this shot, needed a wide angle of the scene. Aperture was set atf5.6 because I was shooting into the ground and didn’t need much depth offield. Also, with action, the image didn’t need to be sharp. Had I wanted acrisp shot, I would have shot at f8 or higher and changed shutter speed to1/250th. It was bright out, so ISO was kept down at 100.

* AI SERVOWhen shooting sports, set your camera to AI-Servo to track movement;otherwise, you will have issues focusing the image.

Model: Jillian | Hair/Makeup: Megan RabeShutter 1/80thAperture f6.3ISO 100Lens 70-200mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/silver reflector slightly to left, 10 ft up, pointed down2) Strobe w/silver reflector nearly in front of model, about 6 ft off ground

ABOUT THE IMAGEEvery photographer has an image they consider the cornerstone of theirportfolio; a favorite. For me, this is that image. I was thrilled wheniStockphoto chose it as a Top Ten Image of the Year.

The concept rattled around my brain for months, but I needed the right propsto pull it off. After mentioning it to Jillian, she scoured her garage and cameup with this great retro bicycle and oversized jet black umbrella. Her wardrobeturned up the polka dot halter top dress—the perfect 50s complement to thebike. The finishing touch was the striking updo and makeup provided by ourMUA.

VARIABLESI had a clear vision of my desired shot, but had not scouted a location.Everything was packed into the car; we were all dressed up with nowhere togo. After driving country roads for nearly an hour, we discovered this long,secluded stretch that offered an expansive view for our background.

It began to rain as we set up, so we worked quickly because, once again, I wascaught without bags to cover my lights and generator. I’m sure I’ll learn thislesson eventually.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESLightsTwo lights were used for this shot. The key light was a strobe with a silverreflector located slightly to my left, positioned 10 feet up and pointed down.No modifier such as a softbox or beauty dish was used to spread the light;instead, I moved the light back about 20 feet to spread the beam over agreater area.

The fill light was a strobe on a two-foot stand inside the back of my SUV,protecting it from the rain, placed almost directly in front of Jillian. This strobewas powered just enough to fill in the darker shadows on the face and body.

Camera SettingsTo compensate for the dark sky, I shot at 1/80th to let in ample ambient lightfor the background. I used a 70-200mm lens and aperture of f6.3 to blur thebackground and bring focus to Jillian. ISO was set to 100, preserving the

moodiness of the sky.

To heighten the drama of the image, the sky was further darkened in post-production, paint chips and scratches on the bike were cleaned up, and Jillianwas made more pale to emphasize the contrast between her and thebackground.

* GENERATORSI used a generator to power the lights instead of my usual battery packs. Witha generator, I can use modelling lights to gauge where light will fall withoutworrying about batteries running out of juice. On this day, I needed reliablemodelling light to get my focus because the sky was getting dark. The thing tokeep in mind about White Lighting battery packs is that you can’t use themwith modelling lamps; they don’t have enough juice to power both themodelling lamps and flash.

Model: Elizabeth | Hair/Makeup: Madeline RooseveltShutter 1/60thAperture f7.1ISO 100Lens 24-70mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/beauty dish to right, 8.5 ft up, pointed down2) Strobe w/silver reflector pointed at back wall

ABOUT THE IMAGEI love shooting redheads because they have pale skin which is excellent forcontrast. Before this shoot, I went to a local costume shop and rented thiswhite dress, thinking it would complement Elizabeth’s hair well. After somestudio shots, we jumped in the car and drove around looking for a setting thatpiqued our interest, and might offer stark contrast to the dress. We soon foundthis burned-out building; it was a golden opportunity.

VARIABLESWe didn’t exactly have permission to be on this property, and wanted to drawas little attention as possible. Before setting up, I sat in the car and analyzedthe scene, planning where to put lights and from which angle to shoot. In time-critical situations like this, it also helps to tell the model exactly what youwant. Normally, a model finds his or her character as a shoot unfolds. But onthis day, I gave more direction than usual, asking Elizabeth to imagine she hadjust lost everything she loved in a fire.

No sooner had we set up than we had 13 spectators. We shot for 10 minutesand called it quits while ahead. Without spectators, I might have been so boldas to crawl through the holes in the wall and shoot inside.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESLightsThe key light was a beauty dish directly on my right, about 8.5 feet up andpointed down. I could have used a softbox, but needed to set up and breakdown fast. A softbox would have taken too long to put together, whereas abeauty dish simply clamps on to the strobe.

A second strobe added light to the background scene. It was fitted with asilver reflector and pointed at the back wall, powered low so as not to lookobvious. Often times the best lighting happens when a viewer can’t pinpointfrom which direction the light is coming, or if light was added at all. My aim isnearly always to blend artificial lighting seamlessly with the natural scene.

Camera SettingsI shot at f7.1 to get ample detail out of the background. Shutter speed wasslowed to 1/60th of a second to let in ambient light for the background. Ashallow depth of field might also have worked well, but there wasn’t enough

time to find out.

ISO was set at 100. I chose the Canon 24-70mm f2.8 wide-angle lens tocapture as much of the interesting background texture as possible.

* TRESPASSINGWhen trespassing on property to shoot, use a beauty dish to speed yourlighting set-up.

Model: Haylee | Hair/Makeup: Roze NguyenShutter 1/80thAperture f5.6ISO 100Lens 70-200mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/silver reflector on right, 7 ft up, pointed down at model2) Strobe w/silver reflector placed low about head height

ABOUT THE IMAGEBelieve it or not, I came up with this concept while lighting a match in thebathroom. I’ll let your imagination fill in the rest of the details. As I stood infront of the mirror and looked at the flickering light, inspiration hit. Inspirationcomes at odd times and places, so be ready. Keeping a pad and pen next toyour bed helps too. Weird dreams make for stunning photo concepts.

As I searched for the perfect model, Haylee came to mind from a previousshoot. Her pale skin and petite frame provided a provocative contrast to thebad attitude I wanted to portray. As with any project, timing was crucial. Icaught Haylee just as she was preparing to move to Germany. Ironically, Imoved to New York three days after this shoot.

VARIABLESI lit the matches, blew them out, and placed the burned sticks in her hair, thenadded the flames in post-production. Haylee was kind enough to let me burnher shirt.

Prior to makeup, I had to make the choice to either dirty up Haylee’s skin orleave it clean. I chose the latter; charcoal-covered skin felt cliché.

The old-school gas can was a last minute bonus from my zealous neighborwho loved to watch the outdoor shoots.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESI lit this image with two lights, and could have used a third to brighten thealleyway. Instead, I kept the alley dark to heighten the contrast with theburning matches.

LightsThe key light was a strobe with a silver reflector, placed on my right aboutseven feet up and pointed down at Haylee. I added a second strobe with asilver reflector to fill in the

shadows a bit, powered two stops below the key light. This light waspositioned perpendicular to the wall and pointed at Haylee’s chest, three feetoff the ground. Any higher up and it would have created shadows, rather thanfilling them.

I opted for strobes with silver reflectors, instead of softboxes or umbrellas, tocreate harsh light and crisp lines for the shadows. The image needed to betense; bare strobes with silver reflectors attached are a great way to achievethat look. A beauty dish would also have worked.

Camera SettingsTo draw the viewer’s eye to Haylee, I created a shallow depth of field byusing a zoom lens, the Canon 70-200mm, combined with an f-stop of 5.6. A50mm, 85mm or a 135mm lens would also have worked well for this shot.These lenses create a nice bokeh effect with the background. Shutter speedwas slowed to 1/80th to let in ambient light from the alley. ISO worked well at100.

* CANON L-SERIES LENSESNearly all my lenses are Canon L-series. When I started out, I couldn’t affordthe L-series and used less expensive options. Once I made the leap, I couldn’tbelieve the difference. The sharpness, color and overall image quality with anL-series lens is far superior. For a complete list of must-have lenses, see myblog post at http://blog.quavondo.com/2011/09/24/which-camera-lenses-should-i-get.

Model: McKenzie Hair/Makeup: Madeline RooseveltShutter 1/125thAperture f4ISO 400Lens 24-70mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/small softbox on left, 1 ft above model2) Strobe w/silver reflector on left, 1 ft from ceiling, pointed at upper wallsand ceiling3) White foam board down low, angled up

ABOUT THE IMAGELingerie shots aren’t my passion, but I aim for a bit of class when I do them.In my opinion, seeing less skin leaves more to the imagination, creating a moreprovocative image.

Valentine’s Day was just around the corner, so I purchased red roses and silksheets. I keep a big collection of costume jewelry on hand, and pulled out thebracelet and earrings to add a touch of glamour.

VARIABLESMcKenzie is a budding young model, and was accompanied by her mother tothe shoot. I was a concerned this might inhibit her ability to fully immerseherself in the scene; but once I pulled out the camera, I could see my worrieswere unfounded. She was extremely professional.

The mirror in the background could have presented a challenge, but I used itto my advantage, bouncing light from it. Mirrors become tricky when your aimis a moody, low-lit shot. In that case, aim lights away from them.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESThere are three big windows on image left, rendered useless because it wasdark outside. I had to bring out the strobes.

LightsThe key light was placed to my left, elevated a foot above McKenzie’s head. Iopted for a small softbox, instead of a beauty dish, to create soft shadows.The room was still too dark, so a second light was added to lighten up theatmosphere. This fill light was a strobe with a silver reflector, raised up a footfrom the ceiling. It was pointed into the corner of the room, away fromMcKenzie, to bounce its light off of the walls and ceiling and onto the walland mirror behind her.

With light bouncing off it, the mirror became a third light source, rimmingMcKenzie’s shoulder and hair. Without it, I might have placed a strip box onimage right and aimed it along the wall, lighting the back wall and grazingMcKenzie’s image-right side.

Even with two lights and the mirror, image right was a little dark. To lighten it,

a white board was placed four feet away from McKenzie, down low, andangled upward to bounce a hint of light onto her face, without hitting herlower body. This allowed me to maintain some of the shadows.

Camera SettingsTo achieve a shallow depth of field and minimize the distraction ofbackground props, aperture was set to f4 and shutter speed to 1/125th of asecond. I then metered the light to match the f4 setting. ISO was set to 400because the room was naturally very dark and I needed to let in more light.My Canon 24-70mm f2.8 lens worked best in this small room, providing theright amount of background scene.

In photography, there are many means to the same end. Varying combinationsof ISO, shutter speed, aperture and light power can be used to achieve thesame image. For example, to create this scene at 1/60th of a second, the lightscould be powered down, or aperture increased.

* BOUNCING LIGHTFind unique ways to create light. A light source doesn’t have to come strictlyfrom a strobe. Use the reflective surfaces of walls, mirrors, fabric or anything you have at your disposal.

Model: Megan | Hair: Kira Pinski | Makeup: Terri LodgeShutter 1/20thAperture f4ISO 1600Lens 35mm f1.4Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/beauty dish on right, at model’s height2) Strobe w/ strip box 5 ft to left of model3) Smoke machine

ABOUT THE IMAGEPaloma Soledad has designed for several Hollywood pictures, includingCoraline, Cabin Fever, Hostel, Existence, and The Flintstones. She contactedme to shoot her line, requesting images that were bright and contemporary. Iagreed, provided she let me have a little fun at the end of the shoot. For me,her intricate designs inspired darker, more intense scenes. When I saw thisparticular dress, I had a vision of a high-fashion gargoyle.

Megan was on the edge of a tall building, in very high heels. All of us, buildingmanager included, were nervous. To keep her balanced on the ledge, a lightstand was slipped under her arms and in front of her stomach, held in placeby assistants on either side. They applied slight pressure with the stand againstMegan’s stomach for a sense of security. I determined my composition and setthe lights before asking Megan to assume her precarious position.

VARIABLESThis was shot the evening before Thanksgiving and it was cold! It snowedduring the shoot, an anomaly in Portland to say the least. Given the long dayall of us had already put in, and the weather, our time to play around with thisshot was limited. I feared overstaying our welcome with the buildingchaperone, who was required to be with us at all times.

I needed things to go smoothly and quickly, so naturally, the generator I’dbrought to power the lights and smoke machine wouldn’t start. Megan froze aswe searched for a solution. Finally, my assistant ran long extension cordsacross the roof from inside the building to give us power.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESLightsThe key light was a beauty dish placed slightly to my right, about the sameheight as Megan. I didn’t place it high up like usual, because a bright lightsource coming from above in the middle of the night would have rung false, asopposed to during the day when it could mimic sunlight. Instead, I placed thelight lower, imagining it was a light source from the building.A second light was used to rim Megan’s back. This light was tricky to setbecause of the narrow walkway in which we were confined. I aligned a stripbox with the edge of her left shoulder, and placed it five feet to the left, so thelight only grazed her. This strip box served a dual purpose by illuminating the

fog from the fog machine, which might otherwise have gone unnoticed.

Camera SettingsIt was near pitch black up on the roof, so I shot at f4; I had originally intendedto shoot at f1.4 to let in as much light as possible, but decided an aperture sowide open would chance the focus. To let in enough ambient light, I had todrag the shutter, so speed was set at 1/20th of a second. The only way to shootthat slowly is on a tripod. I rarely shoot on tripod because it requiresdetermining composition ahead of time, instead of letting it happen organicallyas with shooting hand held.

Even with a very slow shutter speed, the entire background wasunderexposed. In a rare move, I bumped ISO to 1600 to let in ambient lightfrom the cityscape. When shooting at such a high ISO, the image is guaranteedto have substantial noise. I accepted this because I envisioned the final pieceto be somewhat raw.

Here I chose the Canon 35mm f1.4 lens, which I rarely use; it’s mostappropriate for photojournalism. I’d chosen it because it allowed me to shootat f1.4. Once I decided to change my aperture I kept the lens since I hadalready framed the shot with it.

* ISOWhen shooting in pitch black, don’t be afraid to crank up your ISO along withusing a lens like the 35mm which enables you to shoot at f1.4, or the 50mmwhich opens up to f1.2.

Model: Maggie | Hair/Makeup: Madeline RooseveltShutter 1/100thAperture f11ISO 100Lens 24-70mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/silver umbrella behind me on left, 6.5 ft high2) Strobe w/silver reflector and red gel on 1 ft stand, aimed at walls andceiling3) Opaque board 2 ft in front

ABOUT THE IMAGEIt’s fun to watch someone experience this image for the first time; theyinevitably turn their head sideways. The purse always throws them off—maybe it’s crazy glue!

For a short time, I lived in a 1917 Craftsman bungalow with a creepybasement. But what’s scary on one man’s laundry day is perfect for the sameman’s photoshoot. The original concept for this shot was Maggie in a rundownChinatown motel, with red neon light pouring through the window. Whileshooting, Maggie put her foot on the wall and the idea clicked. I asked if shecould hold herself up with both feet on the wall. Thank goodness she’s inshape!

VARIABLESThe biggest challenge here was for Maggie, holding herself off the groundwithout appearing to strain. I wanted it to look effortless, as if she werecasually standing around. It was also difficult to get the right perspective andlighting on the purse so it looked like it belonged in the same photograph.

If I could shoot this again, I would use a tripod and have Maggie alternateputting her hands on her hips, never touching the sink. Then I wouldcomposite the images in post-production so she truly appeared to defy gravity.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESLightsFor the key light, I used a strobe with a silver umbrella behind me on the left,about six and a half feet high. Using the umbrella to bounce light gave me awider spray of light. Test shots revealed too many shadows were being lost, soI placed an opaque board two feet in front of the umbrella to diffuse the light.

To simulate neon light, I placed a second strobe with a silver reflector on aone-foot stand inside the back room, and put a red gel over the reflector.Instead of pointing the light directly through the door, I pointed it up at thewall and ceiling to bounce it around and wrap the room more evenly.

After the basement shoot, I set up the purse shot in my studio. I had tomaintain the direction of the light source from the original image, as well as

consider the red light bouncing off the wall. The purse was shot on a seamlesswhite background. The key light was placed to the left of the purse, four feethigh, to create a natural drop shadow at a believable angle to the original shot.The red light was placed to the right of the purse, powered very low. I used asmall umbrella and made sure the bounced light barely skimmed the purse,and a flag to prevent red light from reaching the opposite end of the purse.Both images were combined in post-production to yield this final image.

Camera SettingsThe room held a lot of visual interest, so I wanted everything sharp and setaperture at f11. I rarely shoot over f8; it usually feels too much like a point-and-shoot when everything is in focus. I prefer to direct the viewer’s attentionby using a moderate or shallow depth of field to blur certain areas.

Since the original image was shot at f11, depth of field with the purse was notan issue. This made my job a lot easier. It would have been awkward had Ishot the original at something like f4 and composited in a sharp purse.

The Canon 24-70mm f2.8 lens allowed me to capture a good deal of thebackground. Shutter speed was set to 1/100th and ISO at 100; both settingsallowed ample light for the scene.

* COMPOSITINGWhen compositing images in post-production, keep the f-stop consistentamong the images, or you run the risk of the final image ringing false.

Model: MaxShutter 1/80thAperture f8ISO 100Lens 24-70mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/silver reflector and 40° grid, placed on the right about 3 ft higherthan model’s head, pointed down2) Strobe w/strip box on C-stand 1 ft above model’s head, angled to left,grazing shoulder

ABOUT THE IMAGEMeet my NYC roommate and Broadway/television/film star, Max. This imagewas taken on Max’s birthday while he was in town on leave from the nationaltour of Xanadu. Low on cash, I offered up free headshots as a birthday gift.

The baby grand piano in our living room was perfect for a portrait shot. Ipictured Max as Billy Joel’s piano man, brooding over a stiff drink whileplaying for the minions. After setting it up, we decided against including theglass of whiskey. The simplicity of Max and a piano felt more truthful.

VARIABLESMy friend Ben was in town visiting and planned to assist, but was waylaidwith dinner plans. Max had his own birthday dinner plans, so we had less than15 minutes to shoot. Thankfully, I knew what I wanted and Max was happy tooblige. Being a great actor, I needed only tell him the emotion I was trying toachieve, and he did the rest.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESLightsSetting a moody tone meant limiting the light that reached Max. To create thisspotlight look, I used a strobe with a silver reflector and a 40-degree grid asthe key light. The light was placed four feet image-right of Max, three feetabove his head and pointed down.

With just the key light, the piano and image-left side of Max’s face werecompletely dark. To bring detail back to these areas, I used a strip box on asmall C-stand behind Max on image left, against the wall. I wanted only a softrim on Max, not full light. To achieve this, I aimed the light toward me so thatit only grazed Max’s image-left shoulder. I then raised it up a foot above hishead so the light could reach the piano keys.

Camera SettingsThere were no distractions in the background to blur, so I shot at f8 to captureeverything in detail. Shutter speed was set to 1/80th of a second to let in a tinybit of light to the background, and help separate Max from the wall. ISO wasset to 100. Originally I had planned to include more background, and thuschose my Canon 24-70mm f2.8 lens; my favorite shot ended up being thissimple portrait.

If you wanted to brighten the wall without compromising mood, a third lightcould be used in a couple ways. The first option is to add a strip box lightbehind Max on the floor, pointed upward, with just a hint of power. Thiswould provide additional separation between Max and the wall. Or, place thatsame light on a boom arm above Max’s head, and point it down along thewall, like a spotlight for art.

To achieve a brighter wall with just the original two lights, the strip box couldbe moved away from the wall, turned around, and pointed back at the wallbehind Max, having the edge of the light skim his image left cheek. This wouldremove the light source that is hitting the piano keys, so a reflector or whiteboard would be needed on image left to bounce rays from the key light ontothe arm and keyboard.

* LIGHT MODIFIERSAlways have a variety of light modifiers in your bag, you never know whichones you’ll need.

Model: Angelique | Hair/Makeup: Christie SayerShutter 1/125thAperture f4ISO 100Lens 24-70mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/reflector on left, behind curtain, 7 ft high, pointed at wall corner2) Small softbox on right

ABOUT THE IMAGELiving amidst the hustle and bustle of NYC with over eight million otherpeople occasionally gets lonely. It was coming on Valentines Day, so Idecided to create an image that combined both ideas; a high-fashion Valentinetragedy. I pictured a beautifully dressed woman moping around her bedroom,looking extremely sexy. I’m sure this happens all the time.

Angelique was more than a pleasure to work with, and she offers a unique,exotic look. I was thrilled to see her in a recent ad for Ciroc vodka.

VARIABLESThis was one of those times where I had a very clear picture in my head, anddemonstrated to Angelique exactly how I wanted her to pose. Of course, Ididn’t look nearly this good when I did it. Setting the perfect location for theroses and styling the dress took a bit of work; it’s amazing how details like theway a dress falls, the wrinkle of a bedspread, or the bunching of flowers canimpact a shot.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESThe background windows let in some light, but not enough to create the brightroom I wanted. They were also distracting; I needed a hint of their outline, notfull detail. To block them, a sheer curtain was clamped to a backdrop standand placed five feet in front of the windows, like a curtain.

LightsThe key light was a seven foot-high strobe with a silver reflector, placed threefeet away from the wall on the left side of the curtain. The light was pointed atthe wall, away from Angelique. A blown-out look was created by lightbouncing off the room corner, descending naturally as if coming from outside.The curtain acted like an oversized softbox, diffusing the light.

The curtain light was powered high, and cast dark shadows on the image-rightside of Angelique. To provide fill light, a small softbox on my right waspointed directly at Angelique’s head, powered just enough to slightly lightenup the shadows.If you have only one light, a similar shot could be achieved using any whitesurface in front of Angelique to bounce light from the main source, like areflector, white board or sheet, rather than using a softbox. A mirror might be

too intense.

Camera SettingsTo further blur the background, aperture was set at f4. ISO was set to 100 andshutter speed to 1/125th of a second. I used my Canon 24-70mm f2.8 lens tocapture a wide angle of the scene.

* AMBIENT LIGHTAnalyze and use the existing light from your environment to build from;accentuate it rather than fight it.

Model: OttoShutter 0”6thAperture f5ISO 400Lens 24-70mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/silver reflector and gel, 5 ft to left, 1 ft above model, pointeddown2) Strobe w/silver reflector and gel, 2 ft to right, at face

ABOUT THE IMAGESanta Claus never visited me in Vietnam, but I don’t hold a grudge. When heasked for a shoot, I simply asked for a Lamborghini as retroactivecompensation.

One path to a successful stock portfolio is holiday imagery. This was mysecond series of Santa photos, and I wanted it to stand out from imageryalready available. While digging through old Christmas ornaments, I cameacross this charming wooden horse with a Bon Jovi hairdo, and it sparked adesire to create a series of candlelit, antique-looking images. Initially, theSanta Claus casting call yielded disappointing results. Then, Otto’s face cameacross my desk. He exudes a gentle presence and is an incredibly graciousmodel; he was the perfect choice.

VARIABLESSimulating candlelight with strobes is no easy task, made tougher with nokerosene left in the lantern. To get the look, we put wood shavings in thelantern and lit them on fire. The shavings created a ton of smoke and burnedout in a matter of seconds, so we repeated the process about 20 times until wehad captured the shot. Lighting techniques

Examining the test shot revealed that both sides of Otto’s face were too dark,so I added one light on each side.

LightsBoth lights were strobes with silver reflectors, covered with yellow/orangegels to match the hue of the candlelight.

On image left, the light was five feet from Otto and one foot higher than hishead, pointed down. Power was set just high enough to match the brightnessof the candle, creating a soft rim on his shoulder and hat. On image right, thelight was two feet from Otto, pointed at his face. This light had less powerthan the other, just enough to lighten up shadows without compromisingmood.

Camera SettingsI bumped ISO to 400, making the camera more sensitive to light in the dark

environment. Rather than shoot wide open, I set aperture at f5, keeping someof the lantern and horse in focus. Plus, when shooting this dark, a shallowdepth of field makes it difficult to get the focus.

To capture the candlelight, I set the camera on a tripod and dragged theshutter to 0”6, which is .6 seconds. Slower shutter speeds are often denotedthis way, as opposed to fractions. Shooting with the Canon 24-70mm f2.8allowed me to get both close-ups and wider-angled shots.

* WIRELESS TRIGGERWhen dragging the shutter extremely slow, use a tripod and a wireless trigger.Without a wired or wireless trigger, you will get slight camera shake frommanually pressing the shutter.

Models: Lisa & Shay | Hair/Makeup: Madeline RooseveltShutter 1/125thAperture f5.6ISO 100Lens 24-70mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/ octabox, 9 ft up2) Strobe w/ silver reflector, 5 ft up3) Strobe w/ strip box, 5 ft up, horizontal

ABOUT THE IMAGEI met Ken Tomita on a location scout. Ken owns Grove, a company thatcreates beautiful bamboo cases for iPhones, iPads, and MacBooks, as well asart. Ken approached me to photograph the iPhone cases, wanting to marryfashion with the product line. I had complete discretion to concept theimagery, and naturally, bamboo entered the picture.

During the shoot, it was suggested that I capture the models together. Seeingthe two stand side-by-side reminded me of the old adage, “opposites attract.”I also noticed that one model had a light brown case, the other, dark. Thus, Iwent about determining an action that would emphasize the attractionconcept.

VARIABLESThese are actually non-models. Lisa is a friend of Ken’s and Shay is a Groveemployee. Although neither is a professional, given clear direction and plentyof feedback, they performed beautifully. Shay is wearing my jacket here. Younever know what you’ll find on set that you can use.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESEven on this summer day, the thick bamboo prevented any natural light fromfiltering through, so it had to be recreated.

LightsI lit the models first, using an octabox on my right, raised nine feet up andpointed down. Then, I lit the scene. On image left, I placed a strobe five-foot-high, with a silver reflector in back of the bamboo, to mimic sun peekingthrough the leaves. On image right was a five-foot-high horizontal strip boxpointed at the bamboo in the back, which also served as rim light for Shay.

Camera SettingsOn a count of three, Shay jumped and Lisa pulled. For just a bit of movement,I shot at 1/125th of a second. Completely freezing the shot would require1/250th. ISO was set to 100 to avoid blowing out the few bright areas wheresunlight was coming through.

To help fade the bamboo, I set aperture to f5.6, rather than f8 or above, whichwould have kept everything sharp and been too busy. If your goal is morebackground blur, f5.6 on a 24-70mm lens won’t do it. Using a 50mm or 85mmlens would help, but require you to back up much further to include the sameamount of environment in the shot.

To capture a similar image with only one light, use an octabox and shoot ontripod using a wireless trigger. Take two separate shots: one of the models,using the octabox in the same position I had here. Then, one of theenvironment, with camera settings adjusted to let in more ambient light. Keepf-stop at f5.6 for both. Merge the two in post-production.

* PRIORITIESLight your models first. Then, determine and adjust your scene lighting basedon the light offered by the models’ light.

Model: Maddi | Hair/Makeup: Madeline RooseveltShutter 1/160thAperture f8ISO 400Lens 24-70mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/octabox on boom arm, 10 ft to my right, 15 ft from model, 2 ftabove model’s head2) Strobe w/silver reflector and red gel on left, 3 ft high3) Strobe w/silver reflector and blue gel on right, 3 ft high4) Flag

ABOUT THE IMAGELia Griffith is a visionary who designs couture gowns made entirely frompaper. As a graphic designer, a paper company’s advertisement came acrossmy desk, boasting the use of their product in Lia’s gowns. The image stuckwith me. After making the jump to photography, I contacted Lia, who justhappened to be looking for a photographer. Our personalities clicked rightaway.

My studio at the time was too small to do justice to the grandeur of Lia’sgowns, so we rented a larger space. I settled on this studio because theexposed beams, cracked wood and concrete provided a compelling contrastwith the dress’ feminine qualities.

On shoot day, I wandered around and found a ladder tucked away in a closet.It seemed like the perfect prop to let Lia’s long dress flow naturally. Then, Idrew on my experience in New York where I found several doorways andstairwells in old buildings that led to nowhere. I merged the two together tocreate this concept.

VARIABLESThe ladder had no means of supporting itself in the middle of the room. Thismeant shooting on tripod and compositing images together. Shooting on tripodrequires determining the composition ahead of time, which isn’t mypreference, but was necessary.

For the main shot, Maddi stood on an apple box, and posed with the ladder.Then, I shot only my assistant on the image-right side of the ladder, holding itat the same angle. This provided a clean shot of both sides of the ladder. Wecame close to getting the angle of the ladder exact in both images, and fudgedthe difference when combining them in post-production.

I ended up using three images to create the final shot; the two mentionedabove, and a third which was used for the floor. I decided against wanting redand blue light spilling onto the floor, so I comped in a test shot of the plainwood.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESLights

The key light was an octabox on a boom arm, placed 10 feet to my right, 15feet in front of Maddi, and two feet above her head. The background of whitewalls was initially uninspiring, so I added two strobes with silver reflectors andcolor gels. On image left, a three-foot-high light with a red gel was positionedjust out of the shot and pointed at the image-right wall. On image right, a lightwith a blue gel was placed under the key light and also pointed at the rightwall, but at an angle that didn’t overpower the red light. A flag was used withthe blue gel to keep the tinted light from spilling onto Maddi and the dress.

Camera SettingsI metered the light to f8 to capture the detail in the dress. ISO was set at 400;the room was fairly dark, and I wanted to see every crevasse in the walls andfloor. Shutter speed was 1/160th of a second; I didn’t need to go any slowerwith ISO being so high. The Canon 24-70mm f2.8 lens gave me a nice amountbackground scene.

I would also have enjoyed shooting a more open set-up, perhaps f3.2 with a50mm f1.2 lens, to melt the whole scene. The focus would be strictly onMaddi’s face. I would shoot lower, to help Maddi appear grander, and reduceexposure on the image-left beam.

* TRIPODIf you’re shooting on a tripod, block it off somehow; ultimately someone willkick it and you’ll lose your composition.

Models: Alex & PoochShutter 1/125thAperture f6.3ISO 100Lens 24-70mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/beauty dish on left, 7 ft high, pointed down2) Strobe w/strip box on right, on 3 ft stand3) Strobe w/silver reflector behind car, pointed at wall

ABOUT THE IMAGEI met Alex shooting an ad campaign for Yeyo Tequila. It was like discoveringmy long lost brother, but with bigger muscles and more tattoos. He hadrecently become the proud owner of a bulldog, so we shot something thatcombined the adorable pup with Alex’s passion: fast cars.

VARIABLESWorking with animals is tough; their attention is all over the place. Puppiesare especially energetic and squirmy. We had to get the shot quickly, so Alexheld still while I focused on the dog. After getting the dog shot, I focused onAlex.

I thought I would composite the best images of Alex and the dog for the finalimage, but luckily I didn’t have to. Alex held the exact pose I wanted thewhole time, so it became only a matter of finding the best shot of the dog.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESAchieving the “tough guy” look meant using shadows to add mood to thescene. There’s a lot to look at in this image, but my focus is Alex and the dog.

LightsThe key light was a strobe with a beauty dish to my left, about seven feet high,pointed down. For rim light, a strip box was placed in front of the car on athree-foot stand. This light was powered two stops above the key light, givingAlex a hard-edge rim on image right to separate him from the background, andhighlighting the front edge of the car.

The area behind the car was nearly pitch black. To add dimension, a third lightwas placed behind the car and pointed up at the wall, powered three stopsbelow the key light—just enough to bring detail out of the background. Thislight was a strobe with a silver reflector.

Camera SettingsThe body shop had some unsightly elements, so I set aperture to f6.3 andmetered my key light to match; this gave me a good amount of detail from thetwo subjects with a slight background blur. The rim light was metered twostops higher, and the light behind the car three stops lower.

In case the dog moved, I set shutter speed to 1/125th; any slower and I wouldhave ended up with motion blur. ISO was set to 100. I used my Canon 24-70mm f2.8 lens to capture a good amount of the interesting backgroundscene.

* SETTING MOODTo keep shadows black, set ISO at 100. Anything higher will open up theblack values too much.

Model: Sam | Hair/Makeup: Christine LewisShutter 1/200thAperture f8ISO 100Lens 100mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/small softbox on left, 2 ft above model’s head, pointed down2) Strobe w/strip box on 4 ft stand3) Strobe w/strip box on 4 ft stand

ABOUT THE IMAGEI first saw Christine Lewis’ makeup work on Model Mayhem. Her talent andartistic flare were impressive. Since then, her career has skyrocketed, and herwork can been seen in national magazines including Zink, one of my favorites.Working with Christine is pure joy; our ideas flow seamlessly.

This look began with the idea of gluing fake eyelashes far above the lash line.Christine used black eyeshadow to fill in the gaps, and the rest of the lookmorphed from there. I refer to this final look as “The Devil Inside.” Sam’sface was made slightly more pale in post-production to emphasize the strugglebetween dark and light.

VARIABLESMy primary challenge with this shot was deciding in which direction to takethe lighting; do I go dark, matching the intense mood of the makeup, or light,to capture its detail? I opted for the latter, wanting to bring out every subtlenuance in the makeup design and emphasize the dark vs. light concept.

Everything I shot during my last three months in New York, including thissession, was stored on a brand new external drive that failed one week aftermoving. Luckily, I had begun post-production on this one image, so it was alsostored on my laptop; this was the only image saved.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESLightsThe key light here was a small softbox on my left, raised two feet above Sam’shead, pointed down. For the background, I used two strip boxes on four-foot-high stands pointed at one another. The boxes were flush with the wall, fivefeet behind Sam. To avoid blowing out the background, the boxes werepowered three stops below the key light. These lights also provided Sam witha soft rim.

For a moodier shot, the key light could be changed to a strobe with a silverreflector and 40-degree grid, placed in the same location. A white foam boarddown low on my right would bounce a bit of light from the strobe up to Sam’sear and jaw line.

In place of the two background lights, a single strobe with a silver reflector

and 20- or 30-degree grid could be placed directly behind Sam, pointed at herback. This would create a rim outline of her head and upper body. I wouldalso suggest changing to a black seamless background.

Camera SettingsI shot at f8 to capture the detail in Christine’s work. For beauty shots like this,I use my 100mm f2.8 macro lens; it’s not an L series, but a pretty great lens atabout one-third the cost. ISO was set to 100. Shutter speed was set to 1/200th.Originally, I had set the speed to 1/125th, but found that my test images werea little bright. Instead of lowering the power output on each light, I simplyincreased the shutter speed, saving time.

* BACK-UPDon’t rely on external drives to back up your work. Instead, invest in a serverthat protects against drive failure. I use a DroboPro™.

Model: MichelleShutter 1/125thAperture f8ISO 100Lens 24-70mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/silver reflector and 40° grid in back left, 7 ft high, pointed atneck/shoulder2) Strobe w/silver reflector and 30° grid at right, 6 ft high3) Strobe w/silver reflector to left at model’s eye level

ABOUT THE IMAGEOccasionally I surf Craigslist for prop ideas. I happened upon this blackwooden throne and lugged it home, thinking I would create a series with it. Ionly used it twice before moving to New York, and it is now in my garageholding up bags of cat litter, firewood and snorkeling gear.

The throne felt like something out of The Godfather, so Michelle and I joinedforces to create a mobster-styled fashion image.

VARIABLESThe toughest part of this shoot was the second-hand smoke. Neither Michellenor I smoke, but I really wanted smoke streams in the shot. We both coughedup a storm, and my studio smelled for over a week.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESWhen shooting blacks in the dark, I simply start in a pitch-black room andbegin revealing things with each light until enough detail is showing. I wantedMichelle to be mysterious, which meant keeping most of her face in shadow.

LightsTo start, I placed a strobe with a silver reflector and 40-degree grid in the backon image left, seven feet high, pointed down at Michelle’s neck and shoulder.A second strobe with silver reflector and 30-degree grid was placed directlyon her image-right side, six feet up. I chose a smaller grid for this light toreduce the lit area and avoid light spilling onto the background. With the thirdlight, my goal was to catch her eyes a bit. I placed a strobe with a silverreflector to my left and used minimal power to preserve the shadows.

Camera SettingsI wanted everything in detail for a dark shot like this, so aperture was to f8.Shooting at a shallow depth of field in the dark might work for a fine-art nudeshot, but would not have shown nearly enough detail here to draw in theviewer. ISO was kept at 100 to preserve the blackness of the shadows. Shutterspeed was 1/125th, a standard studio setting. I used my trusty Canon 24-70mm f2.8 lens to capture the height of the throne.

If this shot is too dark for your liking, replace the third light with a smallumbrella attached to a strobe. Place it at shoulder height on image right,

barely powered up. The light will fill in some of the shadows aroundMichelle’s eyes and face without completely eradicating them, and bring outthe details in her clothes and mid-section.

* CARVING BLACKThink of an all-black scene as a block of marble. Use lights to chip away at theblock until you have carved your masterpiece.

Model: AlexShutter 1/160thAperture f5ISO 100Lens 85mm f1.2Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/silver reflector, 20° grid and red gel on left, 7 ft high, pointed atback of head2) Strobe w/silver reflector and 40° grid on right, 7 ft high, pointed at back ofhead 3) Strobe w/beauty dish on boom behind model, 10 ft up and pointed at wall

ABOUT THE IMAGEI shot this as a demonstration during a lighting/retouching workshop stagedwith Solstice Retouch. The morning of the workshop, my original model calledto cancel. I had 12 photographers on their way, and had to think fast.

Alex came to my rescue. There was no time for wardrobe, but Alex hasimpressive tattoos which I used to our advantage.

VARIABLESWith the last-minute cancellation, I had no lighting set-up planned specificallyfor Alex. But seeing him with his tattoos made me think “I wonder what itwould be like to run into this guy in a dark alley?” I went with it, and createdthis back-alley shot.

During this workshop I taught seven lighting set-ups, using variouscombinations of lights and diffusers. My teaching objective for this particularset-up was how to use bounce, gels and grids.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESI imagined this shot as a silhouette, rimming Alex’s chiseled physique with astreet lamp and neon sign. I also thought he would appear menacing if mostfacial detail was hidden.

LightsTo simulate a neon sign, I placed a strobe with a silver reflector and 20-degreegrid on image left, covered with a red gel. It was seven feet high, pointeddown at the back of Alex’s head. On image right, I opted for a 40-degree gridon a strobe with a silver reflector, and no gel. Using a larger grid on the rightallowed more light to escape the strobes, creating a thicker rim of light on hisface and shoulders and avoiding an overly symmetrical light set-up.

To mimic a street lamp, I used a beauty dish on a boom behind Alex, raised up10 feet and pointed down at the brick wall at an angle. This also created ahighlight on the top of his head. This light was powered three stops below therim lights, just enough to highlight the wall without creating a major hot spot.

To bring out more detail in Alex’s face, a reflector could be used to bouncelight to his face from the 40-degree grid on the right.

Camera SettingsI shot at f5 to blur out the background and draw the eye to Alex. ISO was keptat 100 to preserve the blacks, and shutter speed was set to 1/160th. Here, Iused the Canon 85mm f1.2 lens, my preferred lens for portraits.

* SYMMETRYJust as the “Rule of Thirds” applies to photo composition, its general conceptcan be applied to lighting: by making the light more powerful on one side ofyour model, you create dynamic, dimensional images.

Model: Allegra | Hair/Makeup: Madeline RooseveltShutter 1/125thAperture f7.1ISO 200Lens 100mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/silver reflector and 30° grid on image right, 6 ft high, pointeddown at model’s face2) Strobe w/strip box, same height as #1, pointed at knees3) Strobe w/silver reflector, barndoors, gel and flag, pointed at wall4) Black foam board as a flag

ABOUT THE IMAGESidLab Hair Couture makes hair products, and contacted me to do something“crazy” for their advertising. As inspiration, they sent me some illustrations. Ithought, “why not combine actual illustrations with photos?”

For this project, I commissioned the very talented Kent St. John. I sent him myphoto selects, and he created the illustrated characters. His drawings werecomposited with my images to create the finished pieces.

The room we were shooting in felt dark and confined, almost like a dungeon;so I had Allegra remove her shoes and pretend to be waiting for someone tocome to her rescue. Madi had perfectly applied the lipstick, but it felt too neat,so we smeared it.

VARIABLESOnce on set, we discovered the storage room in which we were shooting hadno electricity. I had no flashlight, so I ran an extension cord into the pitchblack room, set up one of my lights, and turned on the modelling lamp so Icould set up the shot. Scouting and setting up a shot in the dark is definitelynot easy, nor recommended.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESAlthough SidLab makes hair products, the client was focused more oncreating mood than showing hair detail. This was music to my ears, becausefor these shots to work, they needed to be dark.

LightsMy key light was a strobe with a silver reflector and 30-degree grid on imageright, six feet high and pointed down at Allegra’s face. I used a grid with thekey light to prevent it from bleeding into other areas of the photo.

A vertical two-foot-high strip box used for fill light was placed directly to theleft of, and at the same angle as, the key light. I pointed the fill light slightlymore at the knees and powered it very low to add dimension to the lowerbody.

For the background, I used a strobe with a silver reflector and barndoors,along with a bluish-purple gel to help set the mood. This light was two feet

high, placed on image left against the wall. I put a flag up to stop the blue tintfrom rimming Allegra.

Camera SettingsAperture was set to f7.1; since my background was a wall, I wasn’t concernedwith blurring any distractions. ISO was bumped to 200 to open up the blacksand allow me to composite illustrations onto the walls in post-production.

Shutter speed was set at 1/125th. I used the Canon 100mm f2.8 macro lensbecause we initially started with close-up shots, and I decided to keep it on asI backed up for wider-angle shots.

* LIGHT CONTAMINATIONUse barndoors and flags to seal off areas that you don’t want the light tocontaminate.

Models: Joey & Rocky | Hair: Terri Lodge | Makeup: Madeline RooseveltShutter 1/160thAperture f8ISO 100Lens 24-70mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/octabox on right, 12 ft high, pointed at models2) Strobe w/strip box behind male model on right3) Strobe w/silver reflector and blue gel under stairs

ABOUT THE IMAGEIn 2009, the Calgary-based iStockphoto® video department shot a film abouta movie star on the path to self-discovery. I was asked to play a photographerin the film, and we set up a real shoot for them to capture.

I did not see our location until the day of the shoot. Our time frame was short,and I had to think fast on set to develop an image concept. On our tour of thebuilding, we found a gutted room under construction; in it was a staircaselying on its side. I was once again reminded of the old buildings in New Yorkwith stairwells that led nowhere, and decided to craft my concept around thestairs.

Building on Joey’s role as a movie star, I used the stairs as a “red carpet.” Ipictured the models dressed up for the event of a lifetime. Emotionally, Ipatterned the shot after Joey’s role in the movie: she’s elevated above Rockyto emphasize her stardom, and is pulling away from him to discover her ownpersonal journey.

Joey is wearing a paper couture design by Lia Griffith.

VARIABLESIt was odd shooting stills while being filmed, because of the clashing lights.The film crew let me get the shots I needed, then had me reenact certainmoments as pick-up shots. I left their lights on, and adjusted for the differentcolor temperatures between their hot lights and my strobes in post-production.

It took three assistants to get the dress just right. One held a fan, one ruffledthe front and one flipped up the train. After 10 attempts, we finally achievedour desired look. The models stoically held their poses while we did our work.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESLightsI shot this standing on a ladder. For the key light, I placed a strobe with anoctabox on my right, 12 feet high, pointed down at the models. A three-foot-high strip box was added behind Rocky, to act as rim light and prevent hisdark suit from being lost in the background. I wanted just a bit of rim light, soI used a very low power setting, three to four stops below the key light. A third light was placed under the stairs. It was a strobe with a silver reflector

and blue gel, to bring a bit of detail to the image bottom. The choice of bluewas somewhat random, though I thought it would contrast nicely with the redof the dress. A red light might also have worked, but no light would have beenboring.

Camera SettingsWith the film crew’s hot lights on set, I kept my aperture somewhat narrow, atf8. Otherwise, too much light would have been let in and the imageoverexposed. Shooting at f8 also allowed me to capture the set detail.

To partially freeze the flow of the dress mid-air, shutter speed was set at1/160th. ISO was set at 100 to preserve the blacks of the shadows, and I chosethe Canon 24-70mm f2.8 lens to capture a generous portion of the scene.

* ND FILTEROne of the reasons I chose a narrow aperture was to avoid light contaminationfrom the film crew’s hot lights. However, using an ND filter would haveallowed me to shoot wide open.

Model: OttoShutter 1/125thAperture f8ISO 100Lens 24-70mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/small softbox to left, 9 ft high, pointed down2) Strobe w/large rectangular softbox and grid outside windows, 10 ft high,pointed down3) Strobe w/silver reflector and 40° grid on right4) Black foam board

ABOUT THE IMAGEHere is a second image from the old-fashioned Santa series. Ken Tomita ofGrove provided his warehouse for the shoot, built the entire set from scratchand brought in non-electrical tools as props. I wrapped the presents, boughtthe lantern and rocking horse at an antique store, and provided wooden toys.Frost was sprayed on the windows to lend a wintery feel.

After shooting stills, I captured video of Otto painting toys in the workshopand uploaded it to iStockphoto®. Surprisingly, it was selected as “Video of theWeek,” which fueled my desire to further explore the world of motiongraphics.

VARIABLESFor this shot, I envisioned Santa in his workshop, making toys by candlelightin the early morning hours. Combining candlelight and strobes can be tricky.To achieve the right look, I shot on tripod so I could combine the same imageexposed at two different levels into one final shot during post-production.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUES

LightsFor Otto’s key light, I used a small softbox on my left, raised up nine feet andpointed down. To create moonlight, a large rectangular softbox with a gridwas placed outside the windows, 10 feet up and pointed down. Using a gridallowed me to direct the light downward, and keeping power low matched theintensity of real moonlight. Black foam boards placed outside the windowsgave the impression of night.

With only these two lights, the right side of the image was dark. Tocompensate, I placed a three-foot-high strobe with a silver reflector and 40-degree grid on image right, highlighting the gift bag, rocking horse and saws.

After shooting Otto, I shot just the environment without using strobes, tocapture the candlelight. In post-production, I combined the candles from theenvironment shot into my hero shot of Otto. I couldn’t have done it all in oneshot because the strobes would have washed out the candlelight. I then addedblue tint to the windows for a wintery feel.

Camera SettingsAperture was set to f8 so I could capture the detail of the set. ISO was set at100 to preserve the moody feel. Shutter speed was 1/125th. Again, I used theCanon 24-70mm f2.8 lens to capture a wide scene.

* COMPOSITINGYou can composite an image to marry artificial light with natural, ambientlight to achieve the perfect setting.

Model: Natalie | Makeup: Madeline RooseveltShutter 1/160thAperture f8ISO 100Lens 100mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/octabox 3 ft from face, pointed down2) Strobe w/silver umbrella on left, bounced off of wall3) Strobe w/silver umbrella on right, bounced off of wall

ABOUT THE IMAGEThis shot was inspired by a lipstick ad campaign I saw on television. I spentabout $200 at a crafts store on props I thought might look sensuous orprovocative, and complement the bright red lipstick.

VARIABLESWe had trouble controlling drool out of Natalie’s mouth during the shoot,which is something I hadn’t anticipated. However, the real challenge wasretouching. Macro shots with this much detail show every flaw, and cheapfaux diamonds have a lot of flaws. For close-up beauty shots, you’ll need agood retoucher in your corner because every single detail shows.

Shooting macro beauty shots seems simple, but in fact is quite difficult.Cropping in so close, it can be hard to make the composition visuallyinteresting, especially when focusing on only one facial area. Before youshoot, flip through several magazines or websites, looking for inspiration andseeing which angles have successfully been done. Never copy shots in total,but let them inspire unique work.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESLightsI anticipated glossy lipstick having a lot of highlights, and opted for a largelight source to create a nice big hot spot on the lips. An octabox acted as thekey light, placed nine feet high and pointed down. If I had used a beauty dish,the reflection on the lips would have been a smaller, circular highlight, whichwould not have looked as impressive. The key light was fairly close to Natalie,just three feet from her face. The closer the light source, the more it wrapsaround the subject, yielding fewer shadows.

To brighten the background, two strobes with silver umbrellas were placedfive feet off the ground, one on each side of Natalie. Light bounced off theumbrellas on to the back wall at minimal power, enhancing the whitebackground without blowing it out.

Camera SettingsAperture was set at f8 to capture detail, and shutter speed was 1/160th of asecond. My Canon 100mm macro f2.8 lens worked great, though I’m excitedto use my new Canon 100mm macro L series lens next time. ISO was kept at

100.

* MODELLING LIGHTTo get creative with one light, play with shadows. Turn off all lights, then turnon only the modelling lamp from a strobe. Move the light around and observewhere the shadows fall. This gives you an idea of how the strobes will behavewhen you fire them. Experiment and have fun!

Model: Alexandria | Hair: Alison Binford | Makeup: Jennifer GillShutter 1/125thAperture f6.3ISO 100Lens 24-70mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/silver umbrella 5 ft high, 4 ft to model’s right, aimed at rightshoulder2) Strobe w/beauty dish, 5 ft high, pointed at face3) Strobe w/silver umbrella far back behind model, pointed at left shoulder

ABOUT THE IMAGEThis was Alexandria’s third photo shoot. She’s a natural, and has lent hertalent to some of my favorite portfolio shots.

The idea for this “wood nymph” concept began with the fur blanket wrappedaround her body, a piece of fabric from my collection. The MUA applied falseeyelashes to complement the fur, and we began to see a fairytale-likecharacter emerge. The hair stylist used leaves from my yard to enhance herbeautiful design, and our wood nymph was born. We envisioned Alexandriarunning through a fantasy forest filled with twinkling fireflies, and thiswrinkled green fabric background fit the bill perfectly. When hit with light, thefabric’s vertical lines resemble clusters of small trees.

VARIABLESAlexandria positioned her body as if dashing through the woods, but she isactually standing still. To resemble a running motion, we used a fan on myright to add movement in the hair. The fan was an industrial-strength modelpurchased from a hardware store; even the lowest setting was very powerful.If I had to shoot this again, I might opt for a hair dryer to create softermovement and to preserve the hair design.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESTo mimic sunlight filtered through forest trees, I kept the image fairly bright,using shadows to define hair and face.

LightsThe key light was a five-foot-high strobe with an umbrella on image right. Thecenter of the umbrella was aimed at the image-right shoulder and positionedfour feet away, wrapping light around the face and hitting the background. Abeauty dish was then added on my right, five feet up and pointed down at theface. The beauty dish added fill light while preserving the shadows.

Behind Alexandria, a strobe with an umbrella was used to reflect light ontothe image-left shoulder, highlighting the hair and giving her a rim. This lightwas positioned far back to also cast light on the background. White foamboard was used underneath the beauty dish to reflect light from the backumbrella onto the face, which also provided catch lights in the eyes.

Camera SettingsThe background fabric only worked if significantly blurred; shooting at f6.3was perfect, given how far back the fabric was placed. I could have gonemore shallow, but for a beauty shot, needed the entire face in focus. Shutterspeed was set to 1/125th and ISO at 100. I used the Canon 24-70mm f2.8 lens.

* FANSUsing any household hair dryer is a great start for creating wind-blown hair,but requires close proximity to the model, someone to hold it, and will quicklydry out a model’s eyes. They’re also too weak to create motion in clothing. Asyour budget expands, choose more powerful fans that allow you to control theair flow with a variety of settings and distances.

Model: Melrose | Hair: Naoko Eguchi | Makeup: Christie SayerShutter 1/60thAperture f8ISO 400Lens 85mm f1.2Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/strip box 25 ft to model’s right, aimed at model2) Strobe w/small softbox directly at model’s right, aimed at waist3) Strobe w/beauty dish, 7 ft high, slightly to my right

ABOUT THE IMAGEWhen Project Runway winner Leanne Marshall needed photos of her latestline, I jumped at the opportunity. I had previously shot Leanne’s entry photosfor the competition, and was thrilled to photograph her work again. Mel Roseturned in a stunning performance. She’s another America’s Next Top Modelalum, having reached the final two spots.

The dress that Mel Rose is wearing here has a strong color profile. I opted toshoot in this corner where a nice array of both bright and pastel colorsbalanced it nicely.

A behind-the-scenes video of this shoot is available atmy website http://www.quavondo.com.

VARIABLESLugging photo gear around New York on a location scout is no easy task. Ihighly recommend finding an assistant who lives in New Jersey...they have thecars. Thankfully, designer Jordan Betten, of Lost Art, graciously lent us hispenthouse. It had a working elevator, a luxury in New York.

Our time at Jordan’s was limited. Leanne was preparing for New YorkFashion Week, and couldn’t be with us to oversee the styling. It fell to me toquickly determine which pieces to shoot and how to accessorize them. I was abit nervous about making choices Leanne would approve of.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESLightsTo simulate natural window light, a strip box was placed 25 feet on imageright, in front of the windows, aimed to highlight Mel Rose’s right side. Thestrip box alone didn’t light the whole scene, so a fill light was used to brightenthe background. The fill light was a small softbox pointed directly at MelRose’s image-right side, at waist level, powered one stop below the key light.

For more punch and additional catch light in the eyes, I added a beauty dishseven feet high, slightly to my right, pointed at Mel Rose’s face. This light waspowered below the others, so as not to disrupt the shadows they created.

Camera Settings

To capture the detail of Leanne’s dress, aperture was set at f8 for ample depthof field. Despite plentiful windows, the middle of the room was dark, so ISOwas bumped to 400 and shutter speed slowed down to 1/60th of a second.This let more light into the camera and softened the blacks in the shadows. Itmight seem like using these settings would overexpose the image, given myuse of three lights, but the lights were powered fairly low.I chose my Canon 85mm f1.2 lens here, one of my favorite lenses for fashionportraits.

* COMPOSITIONLighting is important, but so is composition. Look for vertical and diagonallines to bring visual interest to your shot, but be wary of them intersectingyour subjects’ heads.

Model: Rodney | Grooming/Makeup: Madeline RooseveltShutter 1/320thAperture f8ISO 100Lens 24-70mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/small softbox on 12 ft boom, 3/4 to my right2) Strobe w/strip box low to ground, pointed up3) Strobe w/silver reflector, pointed up4) Black foam board

ABOUT THE IMAGEI used to imagine all professional athletes as outspoken and flamboyant, butmany that I’ve photographed have been shy and reserved. However, RodneyStuckey of the Detroit Pistons was not one of those. Rodney danced, sang, didimpersonations, made faces and had us rolling all night.

VARIABLESRodney is over 200 pounds of pure muscle, but I wanted to get him airbornewithout too much strain. There were no immediate prospects for a medium-size trampoline, and a large backyard-sized option was out. I had to use asmall one and hope it didn’t buckle under his weight.

Rodney tested the trampoline and it seemed to hold, so we proceeded. Soon,he became comfortable and went a little nuts with 360-degree spins and thelike. After 15 minutes, the trampoline broke and Rodney almost fell on me. Ihad a brief heart attack, but he wasn’t hurt. I’m still counting my lucky stars.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESLightsFor the key light, a small softbox on a boom created a 3/4 light to my right. Itwas raised about 12 feet to compensate for Rodney jumping.

For supporting light, only Rodney’s image-left side was rimmed. I didn’t wantto rim both sides and make the lighting too symmetrical. For the lower body, Iused a strip box. For the upper body, a strobe with a silver reflector wasplaced next to the strip box and pointed up. Both lights were at a height ofthree feet. The upper body light was powered two stops below the strip box,avoiding the top rim being too bright. To keep the rim lights fromcontaminating the background, a black foam board was placed between themand the background.

Camera SettingsWhen shooting motion, always change your setting to Al-Servo, so the camerawill anticipate movement. Aperture was set at f8 to ensure everything wassharp. ISO was set to 100.

Shutter speed was cranked to 1/320th of a second to make sure I frozeRodney in midair. You’re thinking, “don’t cameras only sync up to 1/250th?”

They actually can go higher, but the curtain becomes visible in your shot.However, being shot on an all-black, I didn’t have to worry. The curtain isthere on the image’s edge, but can’t be seen.

I chose my Canon 24-70mm f2.8 lens because it gave me a wide-enough angleto capture Rodney in full within the confines of a studio setting.

* BUILDING BACKGROUNDShooting Rodney jumping from a low angle, I quickly realized that mystandard black seamless background paper would not provide the necessarycoverage. Our solution was taping black paper to the ceiling, creating a blackroom.

Model: Megan | Hair: Ambrosia Carey | Makeup: Madeline RooseveltShutter 1/200thAperture f2.8ISO 100Lens 85mm f1.2Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/ octabox, 10 ft up2) Strobe w/ small softbox, 4 ft behind and 8 ft up3) Strobe w/ silver reflector above smoke machine4) Strobe w/ strip box

ABOUT THE IMAGEAmbrosia is a visionary hair stylist; this was our second time collaborating onentry photos for the North American Hairstyling Awards (NAHA). Shecreated these stunning hair pieces for the Avant Garde category.

Unfortunately, our schedules were so tight that the first time we met to discussconcepts was the actual shoot day. I had never seen the hair pieces, and hadno clear plan or vision. After seeing the hair designs alongside wardrobe,inspiration struck and I sent my assistants to gather branches. The vision thatmaterialized was of lost girls walking through a cold, desolate forest. Myintern had the idea to paint the branches silver, which reflects the lightbeautifully.

VARIABLESThis was shot in a salon, which meant lots of mirrors. Having shot in thelocation the year before, I brought along several black foam boards to coverthe mirrors. Otherwise, controlling light sources would have been a headache.

Our biggest challenge was creating the forest background. The branches werecumbersome and we didn’t have anything to position them at the desiredangles. Eventually, my assistants sat on the ground behind the models andheld the branches, which generated a positive side effect: the heavy brancheswere constantly swaying, creating an organic scene that changed from shot toshot. One of the assistants simultaneously triggered the smoke machine withhis foot.

It was all a bit haphazard, but the images turned out well. However, Idefinitely recommend having a plan of attack before shoot day, especially in astudio setting with limited design resources.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESLightsFour lights were used for this shot. The front light was an octabox attached toa boom arm on my left, 10 feet high and pointed down at Megan. I chose theoctabox to generate a large area of light.

For hair light, a small softbox was positioned on image right, four feet behindMegan and eight feet high, pointed at the back of her head.

For back light, I placed a strobe with a silver reflector directly above thesmoke machine on the ground, bouncing light off the smoke and generating arim on the image-right side of her body.

Finally, a strip box was added on image left behind Megan, to rim her otherside.

Camera SettingsI shot very shallow at f2.8; this blurred the branches so they enhanced, ratherthan distracted from, the hairstyles. The eye is drawn directly to the face andhair. To compensate for the large amount of light let in by the wide aperture,shutter speed was set to 1/200th of a second and ISO at 100.

I chose the Canon 85mm f1.2 L lens to further blur the background, creating abuttery bokeh. A 50mm f1.2, 135mm f1.2, or 70-200mm f2.8 lens will alsocreate the same effect. A tilt shift lens might also generate an interesting shothere.

* BLACK REFLECTORSWhite foam boards and reflectors are great for reflecting light; but black“reflectors” or foam boards are perfect for sucking light out of areas, helpingto define the model’s shape against light backgrounds.

Models: KC & Mischa | Hair/Makeup: Madeline RooseveltShutter 1/125thAperture f6.3ISO 400Lens 85mm f1.2Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/beauty dish on my left, 10 ft high, pointed at models2) Strobe w/silver reflector and red gel inside house, pointed at front door,angled up at ceiling3) Strobe w/silver reflector and red gel, 25 ft to models’ right, pointed at house4) Strobe w/silver reflector and red gel on left, under entry way, angled atceiling

ABOUT THE IMAGEOne night while driving on the freeway, I saw huge flames lapping against thesky. I pulled off the nearest exit and made my way to the burning house,arriving just ahead of the firefighters. It was something out of a movie; theheat from the flames could be felt for blocks. After that night, I becameobsessed with creating this image. My vision was of a still from Backdraft:dark, moody, heroic, and dangerous.

The problem was finding a burned house; most are torn down soon after thefire. It took me over a year, but driving on a country road one afternoon, I sawthis house, burned but still standing. Forty eight hours later, the crew, modelsand I were on location. As trespassers, we had to work very quickly. Thishouse is next to a major thoroughfare, and all eyes were on us.

VARIABLESThere were three key elements needed to “make” this shot. First, legitimatefireman gear. Craigslist offered pieces, but never a complete outfit. Ihappened to have a friend who had just entered fireman training, and heloaned me a suit.

Second, location. This was the true challenge. Ideally, I required a houseengulfed in flames, but when I attempted to set up a live burn with the firedepartment, they wouldn’t let me any closer than 500 feet. I could havecomposited an existing picture of a burning home in post-production, butpreferred to shoot as much of the home on location as possible. I went to thebackup plan: finding a house that was partially burned down.The inability to shoot a live fire led to the third key element: flames. Icontracted an excellent retoucher to create most of the flames and combinedher work with mine.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESTo help post-production flames look authentic, I brought a smoke machine onset to mimic live fire. Red gels were also applied to all strobes used to light thehouse.

LightsThe key light was a beauty dish on my left, 10 feet high and pointed down atthe subjects.

The smoke machine and a strobe with a silver reflector and red gel wereplaced inside the house. I pointed the inside strobe up at the ceiling anddirected it toward the front door.

Two additional strobes with silver reflectors and red gels were used tohighlight the house. One was positioned 25 feet on image right, pointed at thehouse. The other was placed under the entry way. This light was bounced offof the ceiling, allowing a red glow to blanket the porch. Power was kept lowon this light, to avoid drawing too much attention to the doorway.Camera SettingsF-stop was set to f6.3; I didn’t want the whole house in sharp detail,competing with my subjects. Being shot in early morning, it was fairly darkoutside, so ISO was bumped to 400 to pick up any possible ambient light.Shutter speed was set to 1/125th to partially freeze KC’s walking movement. Iopted for the Canon 85mm f1.2 lens because it creates a nice separationbetween the subject and the background.

* COMBINE MULTIPLE EXPOSURESTake a series of images at exposures above and below what you believe to becorrect, then combine multiple exposures to get the perfect shot. This is mostapplicable when shooting an outdoor scene with both dark and light elements.

Model: Natalie | Hair/Makeup: Amy GillespieShutter 1/160thAperture f5.6ISO 100Lens 24-70mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/large rectangular softbox and grid on boom, 3 ft high, pointed atground2) Strobe w/strip box 1 ft high, pointed at ground3) Strobe w/small square softbox 10 ft high on my right, directly above model4) Strobe w/strip box 10 ft high on my left, directly above model

ABOUT THE IMAGEI’ve always loved swimming pool/water beauty shots. My aim was to put aunique twist on it by shooting directly above, so the models appeared to befloating on, rather than submerged in, the water.

VARIABLESThe biggest problem was procuring a kiddie swimming pool in the dead of anOregon winter. No store was carrying anything remotely resembling a pool.Luckily, I posted a request for one on Facebook and someone responded.

My assistant and I picked up the pool on the morning of the shoot, brought itback to the studio and pumped it full of hot water. We soon discovered holesin it, but couldn’t find them and patch them up. Thus, we ran the wet/dryshopvac for the entire shoot. It was very loud, making it difficult to get into“sexy” mode.

To create depth in the pool, the bottom was covered with a big piece of fabric,which inadvertently covered the cartoon dinosaurs on the bottom as well.

Finally, I had to figure out a way to safely shoot from above, using whateverwas available in the studio. I placed tall ladders on either side of the pool, andbridged them with a 2x6 wood blank. I don’t weight much, but was prettynervous that the board might break under my weight and I’d fall, injuring themodels, myself and my equipment.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESLightsThe key light was a large rectangular softbox with a grid, placed at the top ofimage left. The softbox was three feet high, attached to a boom arm, pointedat the ground by the pool, then angled up to skim Natalie’s body. I chose tobounce the light off the studio floor, rather than point it directly at her, for amoodier shot. Using a grid let me limit the light that reached Natalie, andprevent it from spreading out, also keeping the image moody.

A horizontal strip box on a one-foot-high stand was added to the top of imageright and pointed toward the ground, similar to the key light but powered low,highlighting only the image-right arm.

With only two lights, the image felt flat, so two more were added to highlightthe water and create catch lights in the eyes. These two lights were placed 10feet directly above Natalie, one on each side of me, and pointed straightdown. To vary the catch light shapes, I used a small square softbox on theright, and a strip box on the left. Both were powered very low, just enough toallow for reflections in the water and the catch lights.

Camera SettingsDepth of field was not an issue, shooting directly into a pool a few feet below,so I chose a moderate aperture of f5.6. Any aperture would work; a smalleraperture (higher f-stop) would require more light power, and vice versa for alower f-stop. ISO was set to 100 and shutter speed to 1/160th, both standardstudio settings. I used the Canon 24-70mm f2.8 lens which allowed me tocapture a fairly wide-angle shot at close range.

* INDIRECT LIGHTYou don’t always have to point the light source directly at your subject. Useindirect light. Bounce it, skim it, diffuse it. It will do wonders for your lighting.

Model: Fallon | Hair/Makeup: Jennifer GillShutter 1/160thAperture f6.3ISO 100Lens 24-70mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/silver reflector and silver umbrella on my right, 5 ft in front ofmodel, angled at shoulder2) Strobe w/silver reflector and silver umbrella on my left, 5 ft in front ofmodel, angled at shoulder3) Strobe w/beauty dish, 7 ft high on left4) Strobe w/silver reflector using barndoors and blue gel at top left ofbackground

ABOUT THE IMAGEThe crown on Fallon’s head, an old Christmas decoration, was the inspirationfor this Ice Queen design. To create the look, I bought fur from the fabricstore and snow from an arts and crafts store. The background is insulationmaterial lit to resemble icicles, an idea I took from an amazing Dutch beautyphotographer. The talented MUA put everything together; the finished designwas better than I’d hoped for.

VARIABLESFallon was shy; this might have been one of her first shoots. But hernervousness led to a fragile, soft look that was perfect. Ice Queens are sweet,beautiful girls who are in fact cold blooded and heartless. Fallon’s baby blueeyes and pale skin initially give you a sense of peace; it’s only when you lookdeeper into the eyes that you get a chill.

When I began my career, I shot mostly beauty close-ups. Today, I wouldincorporate fashion into the story and shoot this as a series of both close-upsand full-body shots.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESI pictured Fallon in a castle of ice, with bright light reflecting evenly aroundher.

LightsTo create the effect, both Fallon and the background were lit with the samelight source, so they blended together. I decided on a strobe with a silverreflector and silver umbrella on each side of me. Both lights were placed fivefeet from Fallon, at eye level, and angled so the center of the umbrellaspointed at her shoulders. This wrapped the light evenly around her body andlet it spill naturally onto the background, without harsh shadows.

A beauty dish was positioned seven feet up on my left, adding extra catchlights in the eyes and creating natural shadows on her face under the nose,lips, and jaw. This light was powered low, just enough to accent the face.

The background material wasn’t feeling “cold” enough, so I added a strobeoutfitted with a silver reflector with barndoors and a blue gel, to create an icylook. The barndoors confined the light to the top left of the image. If I’d had a

fifth light, I would have done the same thing to the right side of thebackground, but I only had four lights on set that day.

Camera SettingsAperture was set to f6.3; I didn’t want the viewer to make out exactly whatwas in the background, but felt that anything more open would have been tooshallow to capture the design detail. To further blur the background, I couldhave moved it further back from Fallon. Shutter was set to 1/160th and ISO at100. The Canon 24-70mm f2.8 lens was used here, not for any reason otherthan it was the only L-series I owned at the time. I recommend it as your firstL-series purchase; it works well for a wide variety of photography, includingfashion, beauty, and photojournalism.

* EVERYDAY INSPIRATIONBe inspired by what’s around you. As I was decorating my house forChristmas, I saw this icy crown and the Ice Queen idea was born.

Model: QuavondoShutter 1/160thAperture f7.1ISO 100Lens 85mm f1.2Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/beauty dish to right of camera, 10 ft high, pointed down2) Ring flash directly behind camera, 6 ft high3) Strobe w/strip box at back4) Strobe w/strip box at back

ABOUT THE IMAGEThis fashion shoot set-up was created as part of the iStockphoto® moviedescribed earlier, but took place in a different location. The scout told me he’dfound a large wall fan in one of the rooms, which conjured up Hollywoodmovie-style scenes of people crawling through life size wind tunnels. I spenthours imagining the great shots I would get.

When I got on location and saw this fan, I was more than disappointed. It wasnothing like I’d imagined. To make the image feel bigger, as well as createdepth and interest, I added lights and stands into the shot. Using Live Viewmode on the camera, my assistants moved the lights in and out of frame untilwe achieved the right look. The set-up had a nice behind-the-scenes feel, so Ihad a crew member press the shutter for me while I stood in. In the image withthe actual model, the background lights are turned on and the floor has a layerof water on it, which provided a cool reflection.

VARIABLESIt was the middle of winter in an empty storage facility with no heat.Everyone was freezing. My jacket provided no reprieve; I should have been infull snow gear. In the shots with the model, the wall fan was turned on,making it even colder. We used the hot lights for heat, but I should have hadreal heat lamps on set.

This image was shot on tripod. Again, it’s usually not my first choice, but thesuccess of the image depended on the distances of the light stands and modelsbeing perfectly set.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESLightsWithout the hot lights turned on, there were four lights at play. To the right ofthe camera was the key light, a beauty dish raised up 10 feet and pointeddown. A kicker light directly behind the camera made everything pop a little,especially the stands and my jacket. This light was a ring flash six feet high,and also added extra catch lights in my eyes.

I was flanked with strip boxes on five-foot stands, positioned toward the backand aimed at each other, to provide light along the wall while giving me a rim.A fun idea would be to use a smoke machine here, and let the beams from the

hot lights penetrate the smoke. For that, only two strobes would be needed:the key light, and the image-left strip box, for rimming my back, leg and arm.In fact, with the hot lights turned on, it might not be necessary to have anyadditional light! I love how many options there are for lighting a scene.

Camera SettingsI shot on tripod at a shutter speed of 1/160th of a second. Shooting handheld, Iwould have used 1/200th because my hands were shaking from the cold.

Aperture was set to f7.1. I considered shooting more shallow, but needed tocapture the wardrobe detail. ISO was set at 100. I used the Canon 85mm f1.2lens; it’s one of my favorites and created a nice separation between me andthe wall.

* CATCH LIGHTSRingflash lights provide a great source for even lighting and creating goodcatch lights in the eyes.

Model: Megan | Hair/Makeup: Brenna ScarrotShutter 1/125thAperture f8ISO 400Lens 24-70mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/strip box on 3 ft stand2) Strobe w/strip box on 3 ft stand3) Beauty dish on 7 ft stand4) Beauty dish on 7 ft stand5) Large rectangular softbox on a 6 ft stand6) Strobe w/silver reflector and a red gel

ABOUT THE IMAGEThis shot was done as a collaboration with Project Runway winner SethAaron, Solar World and Portland Fashion Week.

A few days prior to the shoot, reps from the managing ad agency came toPortland for a location scout. We had three types of locations in mind: astudio, an overgrown cottage, and a shipping dock warehouse. The variety inlocations gave Solar World the flexibility to place the final images in a widerange of publications.

VARIABLESIt took awhile to figure out an organic way to bring the high-fashion look ofSeth’s design together with solar panels.

The concept I envisioned was a futuristic spaceship corridor, with Megan as abeautiful extraterrestrial. Unfortunately, the idea came to me with very littletime left before the shoot. I asked the Solar World design team if they couldbuild a 10x10 room made with solar panels, and they graciously did so. The“room” was actually three panels, with the fourth wall left open for me toshoot.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUES Solar panels are reflective, so the lighting had to be as even as possible, or elsehotspots from the lights would have been easily visible. In some instanceswhere I was shooting straight on, you can see exactly where the lights wereplaced. I had to be very aware of my angles and the lights’ reflectionsthroughout the shoot.

Although the solar panels give off a nice purple hue in the image, in realitythey are pitch black. With the dress also being black, the panels needed to behit with a large amount of light to create separation between the two.

LightsThe “spaceship” was lit using five lights, all powered to the same wattage.First, I placed a strip box on either side of me, low to the ground on three-footstands. Above the strip boxes on seven-foot stands were beauty dishes. Forthe middle area, I used a six-foot-high large rectangular softbox behind me.

When moving in for tighter shots, I left the lights where they were and addeda strobe with a silver reflector and red gel to my right, creating the effect of ared “alarm” light.

Camera SettingsAperture was set at f8 to ensure the detail in the solar panels and dress werecaptured. ISO was bumped to 400, letting in maximum light and opening upthe blacks. Shutter speed was set to 1/125th. I opted for the Canon 24-70mmf2.8 lens to capture a good amount of the environment.

* ISOBump up your ISO to get more details out of black and/or dark areas of yourimage.

Models: Emma, Alex, Mark, Jon, Michelle | Hair: Ambrosia Carey | Makeup:Madeline RooseveltShutter 1/125thAperture f8ISO 100Lens 24-70mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/silver reflector and red gel, behind bar2) Strobe w/silver reflector and red gel, behind bar3) Strobe w/strip box, 5 ft up, at models’ backs4) Strobe w/strip box, 5 ft up, at models’ backs5) Strobe w/octabox directly above models6) Strobe w/silver umbrella, 6 ft up7) Strobe w/silver umbrella, 6 ft up8) Strobe w/strip box down low9) Strobe w/strip box down low

ABOUT THE IMAGEJon and Alex of Yéyo Tequila approached me to shoot their inaugural adcampaign. To help establish its position in upscale clubs and lounges, we shotin Couture Ultra Lounge, in Portland. Owner Mark, as well as Jon and Alex,were used as male models.

This shot was taken at the main bar, the back wall of which is lacklustercompared to the rest of the club. We threw two lights covered with red gelsbehind the counter to add color and interest. The vase of branches on the leftwas used to add depth and texture, as well as some height, to avoid an overlysymmetrical image.

My idea was to showcase the dichotomy between a roughneck personality(portrayed by Alex with his tattoos), and the more refined businessman,played by Jon. Yéyo Tequila is a bridge between the groups, a fine liquor forall to enjoy.

VARIABLESGroup shots are challenging. Wardrobe, placement, posture, expression,makeup and hairstyle must all be complementary. Add to that three men withno modeling experience and it gets even trickier. When shooting non-models,it is vital to clearly articulate your vision and give constant feedback. This wasone of the rare times I precisely posed each model instead of letting it happenorganically.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESWorking with non-models, I left nothing to chance. I set my camera on atripod and shot the scene in three separate pieces—each couple, then thebartender. I combined the three shots into one final image. This allowed me toperfect each scene, rather than manage six individuals at once.

LightsThe shot took nine lights. Two strobes were placed behind the bar with silverreflectors and red gels for mood. Strip boxes were placed on both sides behindthe bar, five feet high, pointed at the backs of the models to provide rim light.

To achieve a glamorous but realistic club setting, I positioned an octabox on aboom directly above the models, pointed down to mimic ceiling light. In front

of the bar on both sides was a six-foot-high strobe with umbrella, used tocreate fill light. Finally, the bottom of the bar felt too dark, so a strip box wasplaced on either side down low, powered just enough to bring details out ofthe shadows.

Camera SettingsAperture was set to f8 to ensure all models and the Yéyo Tequila bottle weresharp. Although shooting on tripod, I set shutter speed to 1/125th; I knew Iwould later shoot handheld and wanted to avoid changing power settings onthe lights. ISO was set at 100. The Canon 24-70mm f2.8 lens allowed me tocapture the wide-angle scene.

To read more about how this image was compiled, visithttp://blog.quavondo.com and search Yéyo.

*CAMERA SETTINGS FIRSTAlways determine camera settings before you start powering up lights.Otherwise, you’re compromising the creative boundaries of the photo byadjusting camera settings to fit your lights. Lights simply enhance the creativeobjective.

Model: AustinShutter 1/160thAperture f11ISO 400Lens 16-35mm f2.8Canon® 5D Mark II

ABOUT THE IMAGEThis was my first underwater shoot, done for ESPN HS. I was excited aboutthis new challenge, but hesitant because I’m not a strong swimmer. I rentedunderwater housing for my Canon 5D Mark II and had to decide ahead oftime which lens to use for the entire shoot; there was no way to change lensesonce we got started. There was also no time to practice with the equipmentprior to the shoot. I literally dove in.

VARIABLESThis was definitely the most difficult shoot of my career. For each shot, Iwould submerge myself, hold my breath, compose the shot, have the subjectswim by, and take the photo. My body was drifting all over the place becauseI had nothing to hold me down. Getting the composition right took severalshots.

For my next underwater adventure, I will certainly rent scuba gear. Holdingmy breath as long as I could for each shot was pushing my body to adangerous limit.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESLightsLighting for this shot was basic, so there is no diagram: I used the two strobesattached to the underwater casing, one on each side. I’ve seen underwaterlighting setups look like movie sets, but I was operating without theHollywood budget and used what was available.

This shot was composed to take advantage of the swimming pool light, whichrims the lower part of Austin’s body and highlights the underside of the water.I tried pointing a light down into the water from above, using my assistant tomanually trigger it and hoping it would magically sync with my shot frombelow. After ten tries, we gave up.

Camera SettingsThe camera setting was changed to AI-Servo, allowing the camera toanticipate motion. It was fairly dark in the water, so ISO was bumped up to400 to allow in ambient light. I could have gone higher, but wanted to keepthe image clean from grain. Aperture was set very narrow at f11, allowing fora greater depth of field and to narrow the margin of error in focusing. Shutter

speed was set at 1/160th to semi-freeze the action. I used the Canon 16-35mmf2.8 lens to give me a wide-angle shot in a tight space.

* SCUBA GEARIf you’re not Aquaman, use scuba gear for underwater shoots!

Model: HenryShutter 1/60thAperture f5ISO 400Lens 24-70mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/beauty dish or small softbox to left, 11 ft high, pointed down2) Strobe w/strip box, behind on left

ABOUT THE IMAGEHenry is a formal Mr. International who needed portfolio shots. On this day, Iarrived on set and realized I had forgotten the wireless trigger for my lights—there was no way for my camera and lights to communicate.

VARIABLESLugging my gear through Manhattan and up to the rooftop of a buildingwithout an elevator, only to realize there was no light trigger, definitelycramped my mojo. I evaluated alternate solutions. First, daylight.Unfortunately, it was early evening on an overcast day, so ambient light wasvery limited. The next best thing was my Canon® 580EX flash.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESWhen using on-camera flash, I suggest not pointing the flash directly at thesubject, unless your objective is a paparazzi look. Diffuse the flash bybouncing it off a ceiling, wall or white board. In this case, I was outside,without the use of walls or ceilings, and transporting a white board arounddowntown Manhattan is pretty much impossible without a van or truck.

A great, inexpensive tool I use for diffusing flash light is the Gary FongLightsphere. The Lightsphere attaches directly to your flash, and bounces lightaround a plastic cone before letting it out, generating a much more even, softlight, like an umbrella would.

LightsFor this shot, I pointed the flash straight up, powered it to the max, and usedthe Lightsphere to bounce it around before reaching Henry.

Here’s how I might have lit this shot with strobes: for the key light, either abeauty dish or small softbox to my left, raised 11 feet up and pointed down atHenry. For rim light, a strobe with a strip box behind Henry on image left, togive his body a little rim light, but not so much as to make the shot lookartificial. The diagram below shows this proposed lighting set up. I wouldleave the camera settings as-is, to allow in as much light as possible, andbarely power up the strobes.

Camera SettingsTo let in a good deal of ambient light on this cloudy day, I set ISO to 400 and

slowed shutter speed to 1/60th of a second. Aperture was set to a moderatelevel of f5, which kept Henry sharp and provided a nice blur to the busybackground. The Canon 24-70mm f2.8 lens was used to capture a nice amountof scenery.

* REMEMBER THE BASICSDouble check that you have all necessary gear, including the trigger, beforeheading out the door.

Model: KeabyShutter 1/125thAperture f5ISO 400Lens 70-200mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

ABOUT THE IMAGEThis image was used in Habesha Fashion Magazine, an Ethiopian publicationfeaturing Keaby as a breakout model.

Walking around Central Park, we saw this beautiful tree with vines drapingdown and it immediately transported me out of New York and to someplacetropical. I envisioned Keaby exploring a jungle. I love how the vines createshadows on her face.

VARIABLESCentral Park is extremely busy; it was difficult to get a clear shot withoutpeople in the background, and we didn’t have the budget to hire security andrope off an area.

In addition, shooting under a tree like this on a sunny day can be challengingbecause you have to expose for two sources: the dark area under the tree, andthe lighter surrounding environment. Exposing only for under the tree blowsout the environment. Conversely, exposing for the surrounding environmentleaves the subject underexposed.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESLightsTo stay nimble while trekking all over Central Park, I left my strobes at home.Beneath the tree, Keaby was underexposed compared with her environment. Iexposed for the environment, then used my Canon® 580EX flash to providefill light for Keaby. Again, I pointed the flash straight up, and used the GaryFong Lightsphere to diffuse the harsh flash and create soft portrait light.

Camera SettingsTo blur the vines into a buttery background, I used the Canon 70-200mm lensand shot at f5 for shallow depth of field. Shutter speed was moderately fast at1/125th of a second, allowing in a hint of light and avoiding the flash fromoverpowering the scenery. ISO was adjusted to 400 so the dark area under thetree would be more sensitive to the flash. That way, I didn’t have toovercompensate with the power of the flash, which would have lookedunnatural.

There is no lighting diagram for this shot; the light source was simply on-

camera flash.

* EXPOSUREExpose for the environment and then add a fill flash for the subject, to createa natural shot that blends together perfectly.

Model: Lavenda | Hair/Makeup: Terri LodgeShutter 1/50thAperture f4.5ISO 100Lens 70-200mm f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) 6x4 reflector on left down low, pointed up

ABOUT THE IMAGELavenda is an excellent model, photographer and actress, with an exotic flair.Our first shoot together was memorable, to say the least. We were shooting ona dock and I fell into the water; my assistant had to pull me out by mybackpack, saving my equipment, and me, from disaster.

This photo was taken on the grounds of a local hotel. We initially intended forthe shoot to be a “sexy mom” series, but somewhere along the way left outthe kid and just went with “sexy.” While exploring the grounds, I saw thismaintenance cart and envisioned a scene from Can’t Buy Me Love, minusPatrick Dempsey.

VARIABLES

We were not given express consent to shoot on this property, so it was guerillaphotography at it’s best: roam, shoot and avoid people. I had to travel light;the only lighting tool we had was a collapsible reflector. We also had no placeto do hair and makeup, or change clothes. Our homebase was the car and westuck close, shooting in nearby locations.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESLightsThe MUA stood to my left and held a 6x4 reflector, providing fill light onLavenda’s face and catch lights in her eyes. The reflector was down low andpointed up, to fill out the shadows at the top of the cart.

Camera SettingsThe background was busy; to blur it I used my Canon 70-200mm f2.8 lens.Aperture was set to f4.5 for a slight background blur, and shutter speed at1/50th of a second. Normally I don’t go below 1/60th because of camerashake, but the 70-200mm lens has image stability (IS), so I was able to push itto let in enough ambient light. Alternatively, I could have bumped up ISO andshot at a faster shutter speed, avoiding the need to worry about camera shake.I had to decide very quickly, and went with the slower shutter speed. ISO wasset at 100; anything higher would have blown out the image on this bright day.

* HINTGet a waterproof backpack. You’ll thank me.

Model: JillianShutter 1/60thAperture f1.2ISO 100Lens 85mm f1.2Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Strobe w/umbrella, using modelling light only

ABOUT THE IMAGEJillian asked me to shoot a glamour series for her to give as a Christmaspresent to her boyfriend. I had never shot anything of the sort, but was excitedto meet the challenge.

My objective was to create timeless, classic shots. I wanted the “sex” to besubtle and sensual, making the viewer linger and get lost in the image.

I didn’t know going into the shoot that I would only use natural light; but onceI saw the light coming through the windows, it inspired me to create thisbacklit shot.

VARIABLESWith a lack of dramatic artificial lighting, I had to rely heavily on thecomposition of the shot to tell the story. I used the windows and the shapesher body created to find my composition. The sharp lines of the windowshades contrasted nicely with her soft curves.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESLightsThis was shot in the afternoon, and good natural light was available throughthe window. I didn’t use strobes for fear of ruining the naturally occurringbacklight, so I had Jillian lay on white sheets to bounce a bit of light onto herbody. For greater detail in the face and body, a white board or reflector couldbe used to bounce light from the windows.

Sometimes with backlighting, cameras search for focus. In this case, I actuallydid set up a strobe with an umbrella, but didn’t use the strobe. Instead, I usedthe modelling lamp to help the camera focus on Jillian.

To produce this shot using artificial light, strobes with silver reflectors andbounce umbrellas could be placed outside each shaded window, raised highup, and pointed down to mimic sunlight. The strobes would need to be farenough away from the windows to engulf them in broad-reaching light. Thewindow shades would essentially act as a soft box, diffusing and softening thelight from the strobes.

Camera Settings

The speed of the Canon 85mm f1.2 lens allowed me to shoot at a wide openaperture of f1.2, focusing solely on the crest of her body and melting away allother detail. Shutter speed was slowed to 1/60th of a second. Anything slowerwould have resulted in camera shake.

ISO was set to 100. To achieve a similar shot with a slower lens (one whereminimum aperture is f2.8), ISO could be bumped to 400, allowing more lightinto the camera.

* COMPOSITIONTo help find my composition, I squint my eyes so everything becomes shapes.

Model: TrendsShutter 1/60thAperture f2.5ISO 400Lens 85mm f1.2Canon® 1Ds Mark III

ABOUT THE IMAGEDon’t laugh, but this shot was inspired by one of my favorite video games:Def Jam: Fight for NY, the best fighting game ever! Since discovering it, I’vewanted to create my own subway image with a rapper. Imagine how excited Iwas when rap artist Trends came to me needing pictures for his new album

while I was in New York. This was my chance!

First, I fulfilled his request, which was to shoot on a rooftop in Times Square.Afterwards, I suggested we head down to the subway. He had no idea what Ihad in mind, and I figured if he didn’t like it, we’d already secured the shotshe wanted. This was more for me and my artistic itch.

VARIABLESIn New York, when doing a shoot of any kind using tripods or stands in apublic arena, you must have a permit from the city...which I did not.Furthermore, I didn’t have the budget to shut down a subway train, so decidedto pack light and shoot on the fly.

People always seem to ask how we secured this shot with the doors open. Washe coming or going? Did he leave with the train? Actually, none of the above.What I did was observe the subway system in the days leading up to the shoot.In doing so, I found a train that stopped for roughly two minutes at the end ofits line. When it arrived, the doors opened for passengers to disembark, andthen shut for a few minutes to transition drivers. When the new driver was set,he or she opened the doors for passengers to get on, before closing one lasttime and leaving.

We waited on the platform; as soon as the train arrived, Trends got on beforethe doors were shut for the driver transition. I would then set up for my shotand wait until the doors opened. Trends got off the train before it left.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESI anticipated it being dark in the subway and brought along a tripod. Shootinghandheld would have been too risky; we had one chance and I didn’t wantcamera shake.

LightsNo strobes were used for this shot; only light from sources inside the train.The interior light gave Trends a nice rim on the head and shoulders. I askedhim to pull his hood forward so that his eyes would remain in shadow.

I don’t think I could have created this same shot using strobes. First, there wasno vertical space for me to position my lights and create a downward rim on

Trends. Second, using a key light to brighten his front would have cast oddshadows on him from the doors opening up. It would also have removed theinteresting shadows that in my opinion, “make” the image.

Camera SettingsI wanted shutter speed around 1/40th-1/60th of a second, and ultimately wentwith 1/60th because I didn’t want Trends to have to stand perfectly still, nordid I want motion in the doors.

To minimize any distracting details of the train’s ads and stickers, aperturewas opened wide to f2.5. Any wider might have risked the focus. To help getthe right exposure, ISO was bumped to 400. The Canon 85mm f1.2 lensworked well for separating Trends from the background.

* SIMPLICITYSometimes existing light creates the best shadows. Strobes aren’t required tocreate dramatic images.

Model: RaquelShutter 1/80thAperture f5.6ISO 400Lens 35mm f1.4Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Reflector on my left, down low

ABOUT THE IMAGELess than a month after moving to New York, I landed this shoot with culticon Raquel Reed. We had planned to shoot in a studio, but I saw this fireescape in the back alley and decided it would be much more interesting.

After our shoot, Raquel took me for Southern food at one of her favoriteplaces. She did not wear this outfit, but I do believe she wore turquoise.

VARIABLESHigh heels and fire escapes do not mix well. We had to take extra care thatRaquel didn’t sprain or break an ankle. Keeping people safe on set is always apriority, especially when it comes to the talent.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESLightsThere was no space for strobes, so we used natural light. When shooting withnatural light, I first determine my desired composition, then determine thedirection of the available light. If necessary, I bring in a light enhancer such asa reflector or white board if the available light isn’t sufficient on its own.

In this case, I felt something was missing just using natural light, so to add ahighlight, a reflector was used to bounce natural light up to Raquel’s body andface. The reflector was down low on my left and pointed up at an angle thatshowed catch lights in her eyes.

Camera SettingsHorizontal distance was very tight on the fire escape, so I used my 35mm lens.I rarely do, but it’s a great lens to use in close quarters. I have manycolleagues who love the 35mm; I just happen to favor other lenses.

Ambient light was also limited, so I bumped ISO to 400. To reveal some of thefire escape detail, I chose a mid-range f-stop of f5.6. Then, I adjusted shutterspeed to get the f5.6 exposure, which landed at 1/80th of a second.

* LOOK AROUNDThere may be better, more appropriate places to shoot depending on theclothing or props you want to emphasize.

Model: Megan | Hair:Ambrosia Carey | Makeup: Madeline RoosveltShutter 1/100thAperture f8ISO 400Lens 90mm TS f2.8Canon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) Fresnel 2000 watt hot light to my right, on ground

ABOUT THE IMAGEThis image was shot as part of the series from page 90, but with a differentbackground and using continuous lights rather than strobes. Continuous lights,known as hot lights, do not flash, but rather provide a continuous light source.I enjoy shooting with hot lights because what you see is basically what youget. Hot lights also provide a unique feel, like a movie set.

As you might recall, my first time seeing these hair pieces was the morning ofthe shoot. As the day wore on, I became fascinated with the shadows I couldcreate with their angular shapes. My original vision for this series was tocreate dark, creepy images in which the shadow was its own entity. I wouldcombine two shots together: one of the model, and then another of theirshadow. But not a shadow that matched the model’s original pose: a different,menacing shadow. I never got around to swapping out the shadows, but willsomeday.

VARIABLESFor these shots, the Canon 90mm TS f2.8 tilt shift lens was used to draw focusto the hair, and I played with various amounts of tilt in each shot. Shootingwith a tilt shift can make it difficult to be precise with your focus. It’s a greatlens for architecture and landscape, but when used for other purposes, takespatience and work, since tilt shift lenses don’t have automatic focus.

To help get the precise point of focus, I shot on a tripod. Using the Live Viewmode on my Canon 1Ds Mark III, I zoomed in and manually focused onMeredith’s face.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESLightsTo maximize the height of the shadows, I set a Fresnel 2000-watt hot light onthe ground at my right, pointed up at the model.

This shot could also be accomplished with strobes, but it would have beendifficult. To get the camera focused, the model needed to be lit; with strobes,that means using the modelling lamps. At the distance I was at, the modellinglamps weren’t powerful enough to cast good light.

Camera Settings

Given the potential focusing issues with the tilt shift lens, I set aperture to f8for ample depth of field. To yield this exposure, ISO was set to 400 andshutter speed to 1/100th of a second.

* HOT LIGHTSHot lights are widely used for motion video. If you’re considering shootingboth still and motion, hot lights are a great investment.

Model: Meredith | Hair/Makeup: Amy GillespieShutter 1/80thAperture f2.8ISO 400Lens 100mm f2.8LCanon® 1Ds Mark III

Key1) 100 watt light, 4 ft on right, below eyes2) 60 watt light, 4 ft on left, above head pointed down3) 100 watt light on left4) 60 watt light on right5) 1000 watt ARRI light6) 2000 watt Fresnel light

ABOUT THE IMAGEAmy Gillespie, a very talented MUA, wanted to do a series of makeup shotsusing different colored wigs for each look. I was in the middle of writing thisbook when she came to me with the idea, and thought it would be a funchallenge to tackle the shoot with only hot lights, then write about it.

VARIABLESFor this shoot, I didn’t want to use professional-grade hot lights that costupwards of $1,000. Instead, I wanted to try out something that everyphotographer can have access to: plant grow lights. (Now that Colorado andWashington have passed the bill, there may be more photographers with growlights out there.) They have silver cones which mimic the silver reflectors usedwith strobes, and you can attach color gels to them. Hardware stores andgarden nurseries sell them for about $7 each. Purchase light bulbs of varyingwattages and swap them out as you need more or less power. Be sure tochange the color balance on your camera to tungsten when using these hotlights. If you forget, color balance can also be adjusted in post-production.

LIGHTING TECHNIQUESLightsI purchased seven plant lights and packages of 40 watt, 60 watt, and 100 wattbulbs for this shoot. For my key light, I used a 100 watt light four feet fromthe image-right side of Meredith’s face. The light was below her eye level tocreate catch light in her eyes.

To the left of her face, I used a 60 watt fill light, about a foot higher than thekey light, pointed down at the face.

For rim light in the back, I used a 100 watt light on image-left and 60 wattlight on image-right. It’s really up to your eye to decide how much wattageyou’ll need. With smaller wattages, position the lights closer to the model. Ifyou use a more powerful bulb, your light can be placed further away. Whenusing hot lights, the placement of lights is basically the same as when you usestrobes. Instead of powering up or down your lights, you just have to movethem manually closer or further away. In this shot, I didn’t use any color gels,thinking it would be too much with the green colored hair.

Creating light textures in the background was by far the most challenging taskof the shoot, because I lacked the proper tools. I used my ARRI 1000w and a2000w Fresnel light and hung objects in front of them to create shadows, but itdidn’t look right. Finally, we covered them with foil paper from the delidownstairs and cut out patterns in the foil. A light was placed on either side ofMeredith and pointed at the middle behind the model to project some lightpatterns into the background.

Camera SettingsMy most powerful light source was the 100 watt bulb, which I used as my keylight. To get the correct exposure, I had to shoot wide open at f2.8 and crankISO up to 400.

* HOMEMADE HOT LIGHTSIf you can’t afford professional hot lights, try going to any hardware store ornursery for plant grow lights. They make perfect hot lights on a tight budget!

CLOSING WORDS

I hope this book inspires you.Thank you for purchasing Quavondo’s Photography Lighting Techniques. Ihope it was exactly what you’ve been searching for, and that you feelempowered to try a wide variety of lighting techniques. Please emailcomments or suggestions for future books to q@quavondo.com.

Best wishes,QUAVONDO