Frank Doorhof

Results from the Landschaftspark workshop with Nadine

May 16, 2023/in blog/by Frank Doorhof

This weekend it was time for an awesome workshop.
The location: Landschaftspark Germany (Duisburg Nord). For Photo + Aventure festival
An awesome location where I taught a workshop a few years ago. The plan was to come back the year after but Corona had other ideas. So after a few years… this weekend it was finally time to visit this amazing location again.

For a location like this we of course want some fabulous styling and a great model, so we brought Nadine with us 😀
With Nadine, we always know we get some kick-a$$ styling and great poses.

Gear is also essential when working on location. In Landschafstpark we can expect some locations that will be very bright but also some very dark areas. Luckily the Hensel Porty system has no problems with any location you throw at it.

The first set in this workshop is shot with our fiberglass Rogue umbrella.

The nice thing about this umbrella is that it’s very sturdy due to the fiberglass. And on location, an umbrella is easy to bring and has loads of options for lighting your model. And on the Porty we can even shoot in the bright sunlight without any problem.

The first set we did outside with one of the buildings in the back.

For the next set, we move “inside”.

I’m using the 14″ reflector and a slightly smaller reflector to really focus the light on Nadine.
By adding a blue gel I added a touch of color and mood to the set.

We still had a few minutes left before lunch so I quickly set up another option by using the nice structured wall and one strobe under an extreme angle. By moving around the model you can get some cool results very quickly.

After lunch, we decided to take some shots in a beautiful part of the park where you can really work with some nice angles.
I started with the light straight at Nadine as a sort of fill-in flash.

There is nothing wrong with this setup but I really wanted some more drama and “oompf” in my shot, so we moved the strobe to the side and got these results.

When we saw these shots we knew we still had more than enough time to add at least one more set. But how do you improve this I thought?

We decided to go for a location where we could let Nadine interact with the building and use the sky a bit more prominent with some strong shadows and leading lines.

The next shots were done with one strobe with the 14″ reflector and grid.

Sometimes we have these amazing shots and we are happy and stop.

But …..
Over the years I’ve learned that you should always also try different angles. And believe it or not, in most cases those images are at least as good. But often a lot better. The reason is that we as photographers often chose an angle that feels “natural” and it can create breathtaking shots. But when we start to experiment with stranger angles or simply move to the other side….. it often is a lot more interesting.

I absolutely love teaching workshops so I never stop exactly at the time the organization sets 😀

That meant that we decided to not go back to the meeting room but add another strobe with a red gel, move the whole set a few meters to the right, and ended up with maybe my favorite shots of the day.

Many thanks to Nadine for the awesome styling and posing.
Annewiek for filming the whole day (video will be uploaded tomorrow)
And of course the Photo+Adventure organization for inviting me over.
But not to forget the awesome group of students, we had a blast 😀

If you also want to visit a workshop visit www.fotografie-workshops.nl for the agenda.

Tip : The most simple location can be awesome

June 15, 2016/in blog, Visions and technique/by Frank Doorhof

Often I hear photographers complain about the lack of great locations…
I always tell them “the best locations are in your head, and often right in front of you”.
Somehow it sometimes seems that if there isn’t a great location the creativity is gone, or is it just that……

In my opinion every location is great to photograph, but I often do look for certain extras like contrast, grunge (rough) and color, OR the lack of it. The more rough the better in all honesty, on the other hand something really static and modern can also be awesome, as you can see there is always something if you WANT to see it.

As I joke I sometimes say “put on your photographers eyes and hunt, don’t look for opportunities but try to find uses for what you see” this is a different mindset but often helps a lot.

Now if you add a little bit of styling to it (or a lot like in this case) you’re on the way to a great shot.
These shots were done during a workshop in Manchester with Nadine, a very simple light setup with one Elinchrom beauty dish with grid straight at Nadine. The wall didn’t look like much but I loved it, and seeing the responses from the attendees as soon as the images came in… they did too.

Tip : Hiding backgrounds

May 12, 2016/in blog, Visions and technique/by Frank Doorhof

While working on location you will sometimes find awesome backgrounds, and sometimes…. well less interesting (and that’s putting it mildly).
Now not in all locations it’s possible to use smoke or change the background, for example for the simple reason everything else is cool and interesting. So how do we solve this.

A very simple trick (and easy to do) is to use a very strong backlight, mimicking the sun, a window… or just a very strong backlight (whatever you want). This way we overpower the background and fill it with light but also “draw” more detail in (in this case) the staircase leading up to the light.

Setting this light up can be tricky, make sure you feather it so you don’t blow out detail, and if that’s not possible, maybe aim it more up so it blows out the ceiling but not the rest, and just crop that part of in your composition, it isn’t a matter of just “throwing” a light source somewhere and blast it with light, it does take some planning. But when it works it actually never really disappointed me.

For much more tips, techniques etc. check out my book “Mastering the model shoot” or our instructional videos (also available via this site).

New Ultimate weekend in Emmeloord February 26/27 2016

December 19, 2015/in blog, News etc, Visions and technique/by Frank Doorhof

This is without a doubt one of the most intense workshops I teach, and probably the only one like this on the market.
In 2 jam-packed days you will learn anything you want to know about model photography with a small group of attendees in our own studio in Emmeloord.

Topics range from :
Shooting on location and in the studio, working with sets you can build yourself, styling the model/sets, finding the right angles, adding motion, working with smoke, tips and tricks for lenses and gear to spice up the shoot, duo and single model shoots, building complex lighting sets or keeping it simple, mixing light sources, advanced and easy metering, calibrated workflow and much much more.

And that’s just the shoot part… 😀
I also discuss the complete workflow after the shoot including many tips for Photoshop, Lightroom, Capture One and plugins (or without), and new this time is a complete run-through of integrating mobile devices in your workflow for traveling photographers (or coach retouchers)

But it doesn’t stop there….
You will also get loads of business tips to build your brand PLUS every day starts with an intense Q&A in which the attendees can ask whatever they want and get the answers during the Q&A or everything is incorporated into the workshop.

As you can see this is a very complete workshop so we were not able to jam this all into 2 normal days… that’s why the ultimate weekend actually runs a lot longer.

Day 1 :
10:00-21:00 including a nice diner with our team in a local restaurant (according to some this alone is worth the admittance :D)

Day 2 :
10:00-16:00 (17:00)

For more information and bookings check : https://frankdoorhof.com/web/tours/ultimateweekend/
If you already did an ultimate weekend we have a very special “Illumine” discount, contact us for this.

some of the previous results