Mohammadpur, Dhaka, Bangladesh
this is a technical blog for my strobist friends.... dark-haired people in front of a dark background always creates a separation problem... there are times when I would go without that separation, but there are times when that separation really improves the image... its not just for the dark hair..... one-light solution creates a shadow on the subject that really gets mixed with a dark backdrop.... so, that back-light cuts the shadows on the dark edges, creating the separation....
I've tried that separation in different ways.... sometimes using a bare speedlight, sometimes a snooted or gridded speedlight or sometimes even a softbox.... the softbox creates the best separation, if flash power isn't an issue... it spreads the light more evenly, while softening at the same time.... a bigger light source, so it gives more options to the photographer...
bare speedlight works as well, but flaring is always a potential problem... snooted or gridded lights work nicely, restricting light within a very small area, preventing flares... but as it restricts light, it gives a smaller area to put the subject... this is a particular challenge when you are dealing with an unstable subject.... when I was doing this third birthday photoshoot with Lamisa, I knew I would be pushed to keep her within the area covered by the gridded back-light... it was difficult keeping her within a reasonably workable area.... we needed to improvise... as we had that big hand-made "three" as the prop, we made sure that she was close to it.... we just controlled the prop, and she was automatically there in the lighted area.... it wasn't that simple doing it though..... but we reached home in the end!
Lisa, my wife, worked hard creating that "three"..... Lamisa was so happy to feature with it.... this photoshoot was done at midnight... she usually goes to bed by that time.... but the lure of a photoshoot with that new favourite thing of her kept her interests awake.... I used the black backdrop to create that contrast of colours.... in the end, the colours were important to us.... after all, it was Lamisa, a 'colourful' personality!!
now, the lighting setup.... the main light was the Elinchrom Ranger + Simpex 50cm x 120cm softbox on left.... a YN-560 (with grid spot) was on an improvised adapter attached to the DIY backdrop stand.... it was triggered in optical trigger (S1) mode, while the Ranger was triggered with a Skyport radio trigger....
a lot more to come....
