Lighting and Posing - Maks Danilin

This week I was able to get my hands on a new lens.  The 85mm 1.4f nikkor made for some great bokeh and very sharp images.  The bokeh created great backdrops to complement the model.  I spent a few hours with the model, shooting outdoors and indoors, attempting to use the different light to my advantage.

The first shot was taken outdoors.  I like how the background is out of focus creating a warm filter effect.  For this shot I darkened the background slightly to keep the attention on the model.  I played with the highlights and shadows to bring some color to her hair to match the scenery and fur on the hood.  I increased the saturation slightly to give the skin a nice tone and followed with a surface blur to smooth.  I used the dodge and burn techniques to create some contrast in parts of the face, such as the eyes, lips, and hair.  I also played with some make-up techniques that I learned from a photoshop tutorial.

This next shot was also taken outdoors.  Playing with the new lens, I was inspired to create backdrops out of ordinary objects.  The model is standing roughly 15 feet in front of a large tractor.  The yellow paint created a nice contrast to the white jacket and brown hair.  I played with the highlight and shadow levels to bring the light into the models face and match tones in the shot.  I again used the dodge and burn tools to draw the eye to certain aspects of the models face.  I noticed that darkening the eyebrows and lightening the eyes created a nice effect.

 These next shots were shot indoors with incandescent lighting where instead of full lighting I wanted to play with shadows.  I went for a high contrast, while still appealing to the eye, to emulate the works of the artists I chose.  I decided to darken the left side of her face to create a harsher shadow effect.  I used several techniques to perfect the models skin to my liking.  I also decided to leave a little color in the models eye to give the shot life.

 This shot I decided to do a close-up of the model's face.  After studying how Karsh posed women model's, I found that he used more light than in his male models.  I decided to used a bit more lighting to create a nice soft look.  I surface blurred the skin and sharpened the hair, eyes, and lips.

With every model I have worked with so far, they all have brought a little something personal to the pictures.  This model is on her way to becoming a doctor and wanted to incorporate the lab coat and stethoscope into the shot.  After playing with different poses, we decided to use this ones because it epitomizes the journey to becoming a doctor. Tiring and hard.  I used curves to get the lighting right on her face and wanted to keep the seriousness look in her eyes.  I like how the white lab coat jumps from the black background, however doesn't taken away fro the models expression.








It was a beautiful day today and I had the opportunity to go shooting again.  Figured I would add some more to my post.  I am still learning about the depth of field and trying to get comfortable to a fixed lens(no zoom).  For these shots I played with the highlight/shadow levels to get the light on the model just right.  I also dimmed the background a bit, as the reflection from the water was distracting.  

 This next shot, I had the model sit on a rock with her head turned down and away from the light.  The highlight and shadow levels really do wonders and helped bring out the perfect hues and colors in the subject.  I also darkened the water background and adjusted the saturation, resulting in more of a blue-ish tone.  I love how the branches, water, and rock give the image a serene feel.