back to the big whites.....

10 February 2012
Dhaka, Bangladesh

if you had been following our blog, you probably know how Tahani smashed that pile of cream!!.... well, that wasn't the end of the session for her though.... we also wanted some photos of one-year-old Tahani in her playing mood with her own possessions... one very important part of Tahani's session was that she was able to walk, with some help, of course.... we wanted to make sure that particular skill didn't get missed out, as that was actually one of the most important traits of her age....

Tahani was quite at home with her toys.... and she wasn't put off by all that photoshoot arrangements.... that was a huge plus.... but we did have to give way to her to get some rest mid way during the session.... and that rest allowed us to finish the session on a really successful note... Tahani was truly amazing... she was really expressive and spontaneous.... we just ensured that she was within the frame, as that became bit of an issue for some moments.... but we were able to handle that with ease with the help of Tahani's parents, who had been really wonderful....

now the boring technical bit.... for this whole session, we wanted to have a high-key sort of lighting.... no clutter.... hadn't shot on white backdrops for some time.... it was nice to be back to the big whites!!..... for this to work, we set two lights aiming at the white backdrop..... the YN-560s were inside the softboxes without their diffusion covers (a Lastolite 24" Ezybox Hotshoe and a Westcott 28" Apollo).... the softboxes ensured an even flow of light without falling on our little subject.... and key light was a third YN-560 flash inside a Shashinki 24" softbox.... one Elinchrom Skyport radio trigger was used on one flash and the others were in optical trigger (S1) mode.... the whole shoot was done with a 50mm f1.4 lens on a D700.... took the risk and shot in a fairly shallow DoF (f2.8-f3.2) to get a good enough recycle time with the flashes.... that put a challenge on getting a proper focus, as Tahani wasn't really in her static mood... but it turned out fine, especially because the faster recycle allowed for more moments to be captured...

a lot more to come.....

three lights and a bit of bokeh....

10 February 2012
Dhaka, Bangladesh

Tahani just turned one and it was time for us to prepare.... this strobist assignment had its own challenges and uniqueness.... we prepared ourselves for a cake-smashing event... each one-year-old has his/her own style when it comes to handling a big pile of creamy yummies!!... and we knew that Tahani would have her own style as well... and while Tahani was thinking in her mind what on earth was going on in their house, we proceeded with the set-up!!....

anyway, Tahani didn't get her excitement going at first.... she was more like at a loss.... but after a bit of encouragement from her parents, she got herself going..... and once she proceeded with it, there was no stopping her!!.... before the session was over, she had cream all over her body.... but it was fun like no other.... she had a field day with her freedom.... it was her day and there was nobody to stop her!!

big thanks to Tahani's parents who showed all the enthusiasm and spontaneity to make this session happen.... I was still a bit out of sorts from the prolonged illness... but didn't want the moment to slip away.... that child would have these pictures as a treasure for the rest of her life.... so, I decided to give priority to things that should get priority.... and we are glad that we did....

now the boring tech stuff..... we wanted an illuminated backdrop, but didn't want it absolutely washed out.... there had to be some degree of separation between the backdrop elements and our little subject... the first separation was provided by the aperture; as we used a pretty wide aperture with the 50mm lens on D700.... f3.2 created just enough DoF to put backdrop elements out of focus, yet keeping enough in focus to let us know what they were.... and the second separation was provided by those subdued lights.... two lights on the backdrop.... two YN-560 flashes in two softboxes (Lastolite 24" Ezybox Hotshoe and Westcott 28" Apollo).... kept the diffusion on the softboxes to keep harshness away.... the bokeh on the elements needed to be as soft as possible.... using a second light on the backdrop also had the aim of eliminating shadows, which might have made the bokeh a bit harsher and more prominent than desired....

the main light was another YN-560 in a Shashinki 24" softbox.... used only one Elinchrom Skyport radio trigger to trigger one flash.... the others were in optical trigger (S1) mode.... the room had a lot of light, but not enough to give it a good direction... so, we couldn't shoot in available light, rather needed to bring the available light down..... 1/200sec shutter solved most of the problems, although some remained....

a second part of this shoot is coming up..... so, stay tuned!!

getting along with newborns....

23 November 2011
Mohammadpur, Dhaka, Bangladesh

its been a while that I had been able to write a blog.... had been busy like hell.... the new business effort of ours has kept us on our toes.... we had received lots of responses from our friends.... and they extended their helping hands to spread the words.... we're really indebted to all those....

our newborn photography efforts have brought us a big audience within a short time.... we don't want to boast, but we haven't come across such efforts in Bangladesh so far.... anyway, this is just the start and there are much much more coming up... we are getting calls on a regular basis from parents of babies of all ages.... a lot of them have lamented that their children have already passed the newborn age (up to 6 weeks).... but we must assure them that moments are never lost with babies as long as they stay babies.... and we are here to make sure that the moments are not lost....

we have learned many things with newborns as we work along.... hope to share those little bits and pieces of experience in more detail in coming blog posts.... newborns are a challenge to photograph, but also great fun.... their adorable appearances make any photography efforts worth it....

 

had not been able to write the technical stuff for some time..... so, just thought it won't be bad to share some of those, although not in a lot of details....  the first two pictures were done using a single softbox with a single YN-560.... if I'm not wrong, the first one was done with a Lastolite Ezybox 24" Hotshoe softbox and the next one was done with Westcott 28" Apollo softbox.... the third image was done with the above two softboxes combined.... I wanted a bathing in light for that image... so, although flat, the lighting was intentional...

 

the last four images were done using a single light source.... an Elinchrom Ranger RX + Simpex Pro 120cm x 50cm softbox.... I simply love this combination because of the control it gives...I've used several lenses for these images.... depending on their perspective, aperture requirement, convenience, and DoF, I've used an ultra-sharp Sigma 150mm Macro, cheap Nikkor 28-80mm and the superb Nikkor 50mm 1.4... in all of the cases, Elinchrom Skyport was the trigger for these strobist stuff....

please don't forget to watch our Newborn Photography Album in Facebook....

a lot lot more to come.... 

once in a while....

22 October 2011
Mohammadpur, Dhaka, Bangladesh

motherhood is a once in a while thing for most.... its one of those extraordinary times when a person discovers the biggest gift she got from her creator.... these extraordinary times last for a short while and leave a deep impression.... on last Saturday, we were after some moments that would live in memory and leave a deep impression....







huge thanks to Sadia Sharmin.... Sadia, a very accomplished artist, is one of those people who own the frame.... she had displayed her works of art in well-publicised exhibit... and to aid our effort even further, her exhibit was all about her experiences during her first-time pregnancy.... artists are great subjects with their creations.... they easily create a bonding between the photograph and the viewer.... its almost like subjects within subjects.... their creations not just characterise their creators, but also help the viewer to find the very purpose of the photograph.... its only been a day since I had a first ever session with an artist... now, I have two experiences.... and they are both unique....





as an artist, Sadia's creative help made our photo-shoot doubly effective.... she was full of ideas... her perception about framing and lighting made the session so much easier for us.... and how can I ever forget to give huge thanks to Firoze Bhai for making the couple shots so much more intimate.... their first child, Israar, was a bit on the edge at times, but he was managed, mainly by his Dad.... the group shot was very challenging... it wasn't the perfect one, but it was satisfactory in the end considering the 'availability' of Israar....













on the technical end, the first setup (first three pics) was based on two lights.... control of light was the key here... I used an arch between two rooms to control the spill of light on the back wall... Elinchrom Ranger + 120cm x 50cm Simpex softbox was the key light.... SB-900 + Westcott Apollo 28" softbox was the edge light....

the second setup (next two pics) was a bit more challenging.... used the Ranger as the key light and used an SB-900 with a grid-spot... the photo with Sadia and Israar was done almost instantaneously... and as Israar was much more difficult to manage, I just clicked away as the chance arrived....

the third setup (next six images) was much simpler.... two lights on two sides... Ranger + 120cm x 50cm softbox and SB-900 + Westcott Apollo 28" softbox... the third shot in this setup was the result of the SB-900 not coping up.... it was an accidental discovery, more or less... but the shadows and contrasts created by the one-light setup gave the whole thing a different mood....

much much more to come....

arts and artist....

21 October 2011
Gulshan, Dhaka, Bangladesh

the type of portrait that I like most is probably environmental portrait... I almost invariably get attracted to the environment that somehow defines the subject... its one of the easier ways to talk about a person.... sure it gets complicated sometimes, and sometimes it isn't even possible... but I do look for an environment around a person.... almost always....

I've always wanted to photograph artists.... I tend to get fascinated by their ways of thinking... their eyes are not like others.... its almost like an extra sensory perception.... and not being in contact with a lot of artists, I grew an interest of photographing artists.... several months back, I got to know that one of my young colleagues possesses the unique abilities of an artist... the moment I learned about his special skills, I decided to photograph him....



but deciding to photograph and actually doing it turned out to be quite far from each other.... it took several months to finally reach an agreement on a specific date and time.... in fact, it was instigated by the coming departure of one of our esteemed colleagues for a far-away country.... Riad, my young colleague, is also a great cook... he decided to invite some of our co-workers to taste his superb dishes.... I gave my consent without a delay... well, not for the feast though... rather I took the opportunity to have the portrait session that we had been planning for so long.... and reaching there, I discovered that his multi-talented hands.... the steaks were awesome!!



I instantly got stirred by the disorganised nature of his room.... there's an absent-mindedness about him... his mind doesn't live in this world for the whole day for sure... the arts hanging and lying around his room instantly catches attention of a visitor... heavily inspired by comic books and characters, his works carry marks of his individuality and uniqueness.... not being an art critic myself I only took note of his philosophies behind some of his most favourite works... I somehow enjoyed that session even though I couldn't relate to all the words he uttered!... its the honesty with which he described and critiqued his own works that fascinated me...



anyway, the portrait session was not too simple, but not that complex either.... it was evening and the sun was down.... so, there was no question of using ambient light..... used a Westcott Apollo 28" softbox as the main light with an SB-900 inside.... another SB-900 was with a grid-spot, illuminating the art-cluttered wall.... used a Nikkor 20mm lens to bring all of that environment in the frame....

I tried to keep the whole shoot as representative as possible... moved around a few things including covering up an air-conditioner unit with an art-piece... also photographed Riad with his unfinished works.... doing some final retouch.... with the same setup.... in the same way and place where he actually does it.... the whole shoot was done within a very short time.... its only the setup that took a bit of time... big thanks to Riad for the lovely evening.... and also for being so spontaneous with the session.... his enthusiasm in explaining his works gave me cues about arranging the frame and lighting...

a lot more to come....

perfect memories in an imperfect world.... part four-B

15 October 2011
Mohammadpur, Dhaka, Bangladesh

well, well, well..... thats it... this is the end.... the last of the last.... this is part two of part four and last of four!!..... the long shoot delineation of the session with Arif and Tajia comes to a close.... feeling relived, and also feeling a little sad, considering there won't be another blog on this wonderful session from tomorrow... anyway, it was a privilege doing this shoot and also a pleasure writing about it....

part one explored the contrasts and commonalities within a specific context.... part two and part four-A showed conflict.... part three showed contrast of interest; yet respect for each other.... and the last part would show how it all glues together despite all the contrasts and conflicts... its the ultimate thing in a relationship.... a relationship isn't a relationship unless there's emotion in it... this bunch of emotion keeps the wheels rolling for years; decades.... and how does emotion do that?.... yep, that what this part is all about....














now the boring technical stuff.... absolutely nothing more to add to the setting used in the prevision setup.... three-light setup against a black backdrop.... there's always a play of light and shadow.... never tried to shoot the daylight out of moody images.... anyway, would've loved to have a bigger studio to control the light even further... for now, you gotta struggle a bit with it....














the last part of the shoot was on request from Tajia... this was her idea... she had seen similar posing in her parents' old images.... she wanted to relieve that... such a cute idea.... instantly loved it... its always good to listen to photography subjects... you never know they may come up with the best ideas.....






their story was so simple in its nature and so honest that we instantly fell in love with the ideas... its the simplicity of our life's small stories that move us most and also give us the most amount of pleasure.... but we tend to forget them over time... this whole effort was tailor-made for Arif and Tajia so that they can remember those simple stories.... we have dramatised the whole affair and made them part of an experience, which would surely give them a stronger memory.... and to help them remember, the pictures will be at their side... may be years from now, these pictures would be able to bring a bit of smile at the corner of their eyes.... may be...

and oh, those surprises in the images were actual surprises!!... the expressions were dramatised for sure... but those surprises were presented just moments before the shoot... :)

more stories coming up...