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    Thursday 29 September 2011

    do u bring the studio to the shower or vice versa??

    29 September 2011
    Mohammadpur, Dhaka, Bangladesh

    weird question.... but we did face that question and opted for a weird solution..... we decided to bring the shower to the studio.... well, sort of.... my client (Lamisa) was happy as long as she had her hands and body wet and covered in foam.... we only had to make sure that the whole shoot was done within as little time as possible, so that she doesn't catch cold.... she was already suffering from a little bit of that....







    anyway, we did the crazy stuff.... set up the white backdrop to make her float in the frame.... and used the same light setup as the previous shoot.... this made sure that there wasn't any distracting shadow under the bathtub and there was enough DoF to cover Lamisa with the shower bowl....











    this time I was using the 70-210mm to be able to compress the frame as much as possible.... I wasn't covering the whole length of the bathtub, so vertical shooting was possible, and so was the use of a tele.... I was facing some problem with the setup, as it was more suited to the earlier shoot, where I was shooting one frame at a time.... but this time, I couldn't afford to lose a frame.... but I did.... hmm..... may be I would have to find another setup for this kind of a shoot....

    this was the first part of the shoot.... there's a second part coming up..... and we have a plan to do a third part soon enough, with a little bit of different flavour....

    stay tuned for more....

    Wednesday 28 September 2011

    lets do a Halsman in the digital age!

    25 September 2011
    Mohammadpur, Dhaka, Bangladesh

    I had always been a great fan of Philippe Halsman's works..... his Dali Atomicus alone stirred my imagination many many times.... I always wanted to do something like that in the real world.... when I say in the real world, I mean achieving something like that without digital manipulation..... Halsman did that one in 28 attempts!.... and he was not sure whether it turned out right, as there was no LCD view available at that time!.... doing this today would be so easy!..... I'm sure that most would like to do this in Photoshop and make it absolutely perfect.... but where's the fun in that?..... where's the experience of achievement in that?

    so, there we go..... we decided to do this in our little makeshift studio.... we don't have Dali or his paintings to feature in the shot..... and we also decided not to use water or cats or any other rather ungainly flying objects, as we would be throwing all of that towards Lamisa.... yes, thats right, towards my lovely little daughter Lamisa..... we rather used some of her softest dolls to throw at her.... things that wouldn't even hurt a newborn (well, possibly!).....







    a white backdrop was a must to remove clutter.... and it was also much easier to edit out rusty spots on the white backdrop..... two light sources were necessary, as one would cast big shadows on the subject as well as on the backdrop.... small aperture needed to make the flying dolls at least somewhat in focus, otherwise they won't be understood as dolls.... one light source was my Elinchrom Ranger in the "Lazy Light" configuration.... and on the other side, I used three YN-560 flashes shooting through a 4'x4' DIY diffusion panel (gotta find a name for this combo!).... the three lights would ensure enough power to eliminate the shadows even at f11, which was the aperture I was shooting.... each flash was probably at 1/4 power to ensure enough flash duration..... the Ranger had no problem with flash duration either.... so, the flying dolls would experience no motion blur.... the YN flashes were all in optical trigger mode, and the Ranger was triggered by Elinchrom Skyport radio trigger.....



    my wife was throwing the dolls from behind me, so all the dolls were going in one direction..... there was no other option..... and the size of my studio forced me to do this in vertical frame..... we attempted a total of 25 attempts before we had to call it a day because of some unavoidable circumstances.... it wasn't perfect, but we knew that it might never be so.... yet, we tried it 25 times.... its that try, that effort, that make is something to remember..... if I had done this in Photoshop, I would never have taken the pleasure of writing a blog on this..... the best part of it was that we had a lotta fun.... :)

    much much more to come.....

    Monday 26 September 2011

    Ideas of the Week: Week 4

    Week 4: 17 September - 23 September, 2011




    just sharing my ideas, findings and activities in one page at the end of each week... you might have been busy this week, not being able to see all the materials I've shared online during the week...

    the weekly update "Ideas of the Week" allows the readers to browse through my stuff in one go... I'll summarise all the blog activities of mine in Blogger.com and Wordpress... would also compile all my best shares through Twitter.... and in this compilation would be a summary of my micro-blog in Tumblr.... my photos in Flickr would also be shared along with any other online activities....

    BIG NEWS!!
    Ideas_R_Bulletproof is now officially a commercial effort!!

    this week had been a particularly special week for me, as I've finally been able to launch my commercial venture on people photography.... there's a Facebook Page now dedicated to this business.... my wife would be partnering me in this effort..... from now on, the weekly updates would also contain activities from this page....







    My blog posts on Blogger.com:




    a very intimate work; something very personal..... one picture; thousand memories....


    on assignment..... this time its just a follow-up session..... previously we did a session with the same family.... back then it was a maternity photo-session..... but this time, it was a newborn session with Nuzhat..... just a follow-up.....




    this was a session planned long ago, but my laziness kept me from making this a reality..... at last we did it...... child or brainchild??








    My Tumblr micro-blog:






    this is no political office..... the confusing facade of a state-owned bank in Dhaka....

    please don't squeeze!!.... an observation of simple human behaviour....

    history of the ruins.... exactly what we don't want our city to look like....

    waiting for the festivals..... on the coming weeks that would contain some of the most colourful events....

    looking for that look..... on the interesting use of celebrity endorsements...

    you start off where I finish..... a remembrance from an old photowalk at Dhanmondi...

    the human touch..... evidence of human spirits everywhere....

    what could go wrong??..... on some of the unsung heroes of aviation....







    My Twitter shares:


    New Feature now online: Cambodia Land Issues by John Vink

    National Geographic Space Pictures This Week: Sun Halo, Galaxy Swarm, More

    Pub, Uganda.... National Geographic Photo of the Day

    Magnum Photos: Today's Pictures: The Debate Will Be Televised


    Earthshots Photo of the day: Smile! You’re in the Arctic! by Vadim Balakin

    Magnum Photos: Today's Pictures: Babies!

    Grasshopper, Honduras - National Geographic Photo of the Day

    Planes, Trains and Automobiles – 28 Views For Inspiration in DPS

    Earthshots Photo of the day: Prayer Flags and Monastery by David Lazar

    Are You Using These Techniques to Capture Ambience in Your Photographs?... from Lightstalking.com

    Winter Carnival, Saranac Lake, New York– National Geographic Photo of the Day

    Magnum Photos: Today's Pictures: Railroad Stations

    Earthshots Photo of the day: Fairy Bonsai by Adam Gibbs

    Magnum Photos: Today's Pictures: Broadsheets and Tabloids

    USA. Boston, Massachusetts. 1974. Team mascot and player, English High School... Magnum Photo of the Week

    Sharks, Bahamas – National Geographic Photo of the Day

    Earthshots Photo of the day: Skimmer aggression by Isak Pretorius

    Earthshots Photo of the day: Ash and Warmth by Erik Harrison

    Street Scene, Rio de Janeiro - National Geographic Photo of the Day

    19 Impressive Landscape Photos of Cliffs from Lightstalking

    Cenotes, Chichén-Itzá, Mexico – National Geographic Photo of the Day

    Eyeballs: The Definitive Collection of Incredible Closeups

    Desert Crossing, Rajasthan, India – National Geographic Photo of the Day

    Using Leading Lines for Captivating Composition: Lightstalking

    Scott Kelby blog: The Heartbreak of Losing a Full Memory Card

    Breathtaking Colors of Autumn from Lightstalking.com

    Earthshots Photo of the day: Stormy Sunrise by Jim Lundgren




    Photo of the Week.....I'll come up with a single photo from all my shoots out of the whole week and feature it here.... this week, its my favourite shot from the photoshoot with Lamisa.....


    the wise child!!



    Thursday 22 September 2011

    child or brainchild??

    22 September 2011
    Mohammadpur, Dhaka, Bangladesh

    it was a plan for some time.... but somehow the opportunity was not presenting itself.... and adding to that, I was also lazy enough to present it from starting.... Lamisa in a setting of wisdom was the idea.... the wise child of .... uh... um.... wherever..... and with some unique books of great volume, I wanted to create that contrasting environment around her.... somehow, it just happened today.... my long-lasting laziness gave way to some energy and with that energy I mustered the weighty stuff....









    haven't had the time to read books for a long time..... there was a time when I was an avid reader.... still remember being the last person at the Mumbai airport boarding the plane just because I had to spend the last penny at the airport bookstore!!..... well, those are memories now.... with no real reading in the horizon, this is what the books could do best for me....






    anyway, down to the dirty..... technical stuff.... I used my "Lazy Light" this time... didn't want to tweak too much with the lighting.... just the basic... the main thing about this shoot wasn't about lighting... it was rather the subject that took a front seat; alone.... used f11 for sufficient depth, and that was one of the reasons to use that light.... its also a light that gives speed in my hand.... I didn't miss a single moment in the shoot....






    lot more to come soon enough....

    Wednesday 21 September 2011

    just a follow-up.....

    09 September 2011
    Mirpur, Dhaka, Bangladesh

    we did a previous session with this family last July..... this isn't just another family.... a very close one; indebted to them for life.... we tried to pay off some of that debt through a short photo session, trying to capture the emotions of an expecting mother..... and it was just a matter of time before the expecting mother's emotions were converted into a mother's emotions.... a couple of months made a real difference in the whole nature of relationship in that family.... it was now a newborn's family....

    with the photo subjects changing, we thought of changing the setup as well.... but thinking of the stance of the family from the progressiveness point of view, we decided to stay on the conservative side; not experimenting too much... we kept things simple and mostly straight forward....

    we decided to make some exclusive portraits of the Nuzhat, the baby, before taking other photos.... at 24 days, Nuzhat had nothing more to do than to sleep most of the day.... she had a bit of fever during the day, which meant that she was crying most of the day.... as the parents told us, she just calmed down not too long before our arrival and had some badly needed sleep.... now, when we arrived, she was fresh and energetic... but we needed her to sleep to bring out those cool photos.... so, we put all our efforts to put her to sleep again!.... and we were successful.... that said, we completed the job as quickly as possible... used to lights.... one Lastolite 24" Ezybox Hotshoe softbox aimed at a while fabric hanging from the window.... this achieved a complete white backdrop.... a 28" Westcott Apollo softbox acted as the main light.... used a Sigma 150mm macro lens to flatten perspective within the confined room....








    Nuzhat had her meal before we could shoot again... and for the shoot with her mom, we used the Apollo as the main light and used the Lastolite as a hair light....





    for the last shoot of the day, with the parents, we used one light, the Apollo only.... and used a 34" collapsible reflector from the other side to cut some shadows.....



    well, that was a much shorter session than the previous one we did couple of months back.... less complicated.... quick and dirty!

    a lot more to come soon enough.....

    Monday 19 September 2011

    one picture; thousand memories....

    17 September, 2011
    Kazipara, Dhaka, Bangladesh

    I had been postponing this shoot for more than a year now.... but thanks God that I've finally completed this.... feeling relieved....

    Nazmun Nahar is my aunt; my mother's elder sister.... a strong personality known to a lot of people.... she had been a teacher for most of her life; lighting candles; and also leading others to do the same.... she had been the mainstay of Manipuri School for decades.... now, into her retirement, she still seeks that please in her work.... joining a much smaller school.... but doing the same thing.... teaching....



    she had walked most of her path alone.... the school had been her life.... that had kept her busy for most of her life.... she had always been a popular member of our family.... well qualified and opinionated.... she is known in the family as Pakhi (meaning "bird").... indeed she had been independent all through her life..... she had been through quite a lot of medical procedures of late, which left her much weaker than before.... her discipline keeps her going.... her mental strength and willpower are exemplary, even today...





    today, at an advanced stage of her life, she holds her mother's (my grandma) portrait intimately and finds all the similarities.... grandma hasn't aged a day since that photo was taken.... but that picture and others like that bring out all the lovely memories.... its just a few pictures we leave behind... but each picture holds thousands of memories....

    the lighting setup was simple for this shoot.... just a single light.... a YN-560 inside a Westcott Apollo 28" softbox.... my favourite "window light"....Elinchrom Skyports used as trigger...

    this is a series I am currently doing with the senior members of my family.... I need that determination to complete it.... hope I don't lazy again!

    much much more to come....

    Sunday 18 September 2011

    Ideas of the Week: Week 3

    Week 3: 10 September - 16 September, 2011




    just sharing my ideas, findings and activities in one page at the end of each week... you might have been busy this week, not being able to see all the materials I've shared online during the week...

    the weekly update "Ideas of the Week" allows the readers to browse through my stuff in one go... I'll summarise all the blog activities of mine in Blogger.com and Wordpress... would also compile all my best shares through Twitter.... and in this compilation would be a summary of my micro-blog in Tumblr.... my photos in Flickr would also be shared along with any other online activities....



    My blog posts on Blogger.com:




    last blog from Rajshahi tour..... exploiting some gel filters, in playing with gels....


    I'm getting spoiled by the quality light from the Ranger + 50cm x 120cm softbox combination... spoiled by the light....




    strobist on assignment..... Siffat and Arafat's brilliant couple expecting.....  more of a matter of time....








    My Tumblr micro-blog:






    under the shadow of freedom?..... on the waning respect people are showing to our iconic monuments..

    washed in whites!!.... remembrance of a photowalk at kashbon one year back....

    banana time!!.... on the abundance of banana cultivation in some parts of the country....

    Chalan Beel..... life in one of the most unique places.....

    this is no noticeboard!..... weird facade in the City of Dhaka....

    hanging life..... some risky practices in transports in Dhaka....

    the human touch..... evidence of human spirits everywhere....

    suffocated!!..... the growing difficulties of living in Dhaka....







    My Twitter shares:




    Bondi Beach, Sydney, Australia... Travel Photo of the Week -- National Geographic

    Earthshots Photo of the day: Leopard Ascent by Morkel Erasmus

    Earthshots Photo of the day: Elephant Sunset by Brendon (@#!/AP_Adventures)


    The Dazzling Colors and Shapes of Cactus in Lightstalking.com

    Creating Beauty in the Mundane: Great Photos of Park Benches in Lightstalking.com

    Magnum Photo of the Week: FRANCE. Hauts-de-Seine. Parc de Sceaux. 1987 by Josef Koudelka

    Earthshots Photo of the day: Tides Melody by Rui Vieira

    9/11: The 25 Most Powerful Photos - LIFE Magazine

    Magnum Photos Today's Pictures: Fashion Week

    Girl on Swing, Bangladesh – National Geographic Photo of the Day

    Magnum Photos Today's Pictures: Classic New York

    Earthshots Photo of the day: That Magic Place by Roberto Bertero

    The photographer who sits outside of @BHPhotoVideo everyday with his Polaroid by lightenupshoot

    Wedding Photography – 21 Tips for Amateur Wedding Photographers from DPS

    Colosseum lights - National Geographic Photo Contest 2011 - National Geographic

    Scott Kelby : National Geographic Guest Blog featuring Joe McNally

    Climbing Wall, Singapore – National Geographic Photo of the Day

    800mm lens output!!... Earthshots Photo of the day: Bear Necessities by Stephen Oachs

    Sun Storms Trigger Sky Shows: National Geographic

    Ballerina, Kazakhstan – National Geographic Photo of the Day

    Light & Composition: Volume Three, Available Today From L&C Online Store | Light and Composition

    A Joyous Dusk by Kamrul Hasan pho2circle Photo of the Day

    Earthshots Photo of the day: Victoria Falls by Brendon (@#!/AP_Adventures)



    Photo of the Week.....I'll come up with a single photo from all my shoots out of the whole week and feature it here.... this week, its my favourite shot from the photoshoot with Siffat and Arafat..... a huge thanks to them....

    intimacy.....



    Friday 16 September 2011

    more of a matter of time....

    10 September 2011
    Uttara, Dhaka, Bangladesh

    Siffat and Arafat had been great friend of us for a long time...... very frank and opinionated.... and couple of great brains as well.... brilliant students and great friends to us and to each other..... we had been planning this session for quite a while.... ever since we learned the news of Siffat, we we looking forward to this day..... two brilliant brains were bringing another brilliant brain to this earth.... so, it was more a matter of time..... once we were able to manage some holidays, it was set....






    the idea was to do some individual frames for Siffat and then to do some couples shoot.... also thought about some conceptual stuff, if possible.... we traveled light for some reason.... so, we needed to be sure what we would do.... we didn't take a black backdrop, so, we needed to improvise for that.... but we did take a white backdrop, which we hung from a window.... a 28" Westcott Apollo and 24" Lastolite Ezybox Hotshoe softbox went with us as the main light.... also took a couple of extra lights to light the backdrop.... all in all, 4 speedlites (2x SB-900 and 2x YN-560)... used only one set of Elinchrom Skyport as the trigger and receiver, and the rest of the flashes were in optical trigger more (SB-900 in SU-4 mode and YN-560 in S1 mode)....









    the white backdrop stuff were shot with 2 YN-560s on the ground lighting up the backdrop... the Westcott Apollo was the main light for most shots... the Elinchrom Skyport was inside it as its design implied that the flash had to be inside the softbox.... optical trigger modes don't work with it.... when I used a black background, used a second light in a Lastolite 24" Ezybox as hair light.... that was mounted on a Manfrotto monopod and hand-held (sometimes by my wife, and other times by Arafat... volunteering!!).... for the couples shoot with white backdrop, used two softboxes from two sides to illuminate both the subjects.....









    the SB-900s go into hibernation, which causes problems regularly.... I have to see whether there is a mechanism to turn off the hibernation thing.... the YN-560s are much better as dumb flashes.... SB-900, as it seems, is too smart for dumb photogs like me!!.... the room was a perfect one for photography.... it was long and helped me to which to a longer lens (70-210mm).... that, in turn, helped me to reduce the required size of the backdrop....

    anyway, a lot more coming up in a flash!!