About technique and more.

All people that …… are ……. WORD!!!

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Must be the weirdest title I ever used for an article.
You can fill in the blanks yourself, but let me start by doing one that I wrote this article about.

 

All people that don’t meter are stupid……
And before you explode and start mailing me, please read on.
Every week I get a few mails from people that have seen me using a meter and they are always in 2 camps. 1 group will try to convince me that they love the work I do but advise me to stop using a meter, the other group wonder why there are so many people out there on the web, on youtube, on training sites etc. who still struggle without a meter.


It’s no secret that I love to use my meter, in every workshop there is some attention to the meter and how to proper use the tool. And there we go already please do remember that the meter is just a tool. In the end it all boils down that we tell a story with our images, move people with our images or/and make something interesting for other people to enjoy, endure or love. That’s photography. Using a meter is just a tool to get to that end result.

 

First things first
Don’t read this as if I say that you shouldn’t use a meter, no way.
I strongly (and really read STRONGLY) believe that if you’re into photography, and you don’t even have to be a pro, you will have to use a meter to get accurate and constant results. I really don’t care if people say that they get great results without meter, my answer to them is “you will get there quicker and probably even get better results when you DO use a meter”. But in the end, and please do remember this…. you can make shitty images with a meter and great work without. But let’s look at some things I want to clarify.

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Styling….Part I

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I’ve already talked about the styling in a photo shoot many times. Simply put it’s easy to just put a model in front of the camera with a jeans and top, often a photo can be much more interesting when you add a little bit of styling to the image. Let’s take for example this image from Corine:

Not only did Corine choose a “fake” fur coat, but she added some nice red gloves matching the color on her lips. The combination of those two makes the image much more “special” than one of the parts alone. By adding some mood to the light I made the image complete. One can always argue if the blueish tint is the best choice, or if a more warm tone was a better choice. In the end however that will always be the choice of the photographer (or client).
In the next image Corine choose an outfit that reminded me of the 20’s with a modern twist.
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Styling…. Part II

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Today part II of a small segment on styling, continuing where I left yesterday.

 

In the following shots of Corine I opted for a more warm tint.

When Corine entered the set with this outfit I immediately knew that I wanted to have a warm look in the final image. In our studio we have several walls painted in different colors and patterns, for this image I opted for a wall that is painted dark brown with lighter accents. This combination works really well for the basis of this shot. For the final look I used Alien Skin Exposure 3 to get the real warm look which blends the colors nicely together.

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Grab someone…..

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I love to play, not only with light but most of all with expressions and looks.
Of course models are fun to shoot, but also sometimes try to just grab someone you know and drag them in front of your camera, however the trick is to let them do something “special” “weird” or “funny”…. the results can be great and even portfolio material.


Many thanks to my students who had the guts to stand in front of my camera 🙂
Thanks guys.