Rest In Peace Steve Jobs…
October 5, 2011 – 7:03 pm | by J. Rodriguez
| Posted in » Extinguishing the tone – 90 Day B&W Project Day 4
October 4, 2011 – 9:44 pm | by J. RodriguezI was crossing by this extinguisher in a beautifully lit hallway downtown and I said to my self “This image has to be Day 4”!
Nicely lit by the sky-light in the building. Didn’t have to adjust the setting much. 
Camera Settings: Canon 7D w/ 50mm Canon Lens - F2.8 | Shutter 1/80 | ISO 500 for Non-Grain | No Flash and PSD for Border and Watermark.
Chase Jarvis interviews Sir Mix-A-Lot
October 4, 2011 – 7:30 pm | by J. RodriguezJust sharing a little media content here brought to you by a killer Photographer named Chase Jarvis. Here he gets into a killer interview with the ever so popular Sir Mix-A-Lot. So take some time, get ya snacks and chill for an hour as these two guru’s share their insights.
Please be sure to use the Share button below
October 4, 2011 – 6:11 am | by J. Rodriguez
Please be sure to share the 90 Day B&W Project blog posts.
I am writing everyday for the next 90 days to close off the year of 2011 and pay homage to the first style of photography that inspired us all into this trade. I’ll be shooting all sorts of things, people, locations and more. Please be sure to share the blog posts, share on twitter, post the URL on Facebook and more.
I thank you all for the encouragement, the inspiration and respect. Keep shooting!
-Jay
90 Day B&W Project Day 2 & 3 – Random Shooting
October 3, 2011 – 6:34 pm | by J. RodriguezDay 2 was a total blank to me, lack of inspiration and disappointment at both of my teams for losing games both on the same day. I suddenly came across an old key-chain hanging on my key rack collecting dust. I brought out the Canon 7D, the 105mm Lens and started shooting until I got an interesting angle. Nothing big to brag about, just a little something to contribute for the second day of the project.
Camera Settings: Canon 7D w/ 105mm Sigma Lens - F2.8 | Shutter 1/60 | ISO 1000 for Grain | No Flash and PSD for Border and Watermark.
Onwards to Day 3 after the Jump…
90 Day Black & White Project Day 1 – Jay Rodriguez
October 1, 2011 – 11:27 pm | by J. RodriguezHey guys, Its been a while since my last blog post. Just been busy with things here in New York. Been working on rebranding, networking and all around promotional stuff. As the Summer came and left I was pretty busy with Clients and projects. Now its time to wind down, calculate all the end of the year progress and double up for next year.
Below here you will see some images I put together for my 90 Day B&W project. Just a little something to keep me busy as the year winds down and I keep up by polishing my chromatic skills by paying homage to the original photography format we had since the beginning of our passion, or trade in photography.
Everyday I will be posting an image that caught my attention and I thought that I should share with you all.
Please be sure to leave your opinions, suggestions, critique and whatever else can fit here on the comment fields. I will be posting all kinds of images everyday with a no holds barred rule to editing with Photoshop. Only reason I’ll be using Photoshop is to add a border and nothing else! All Exif/Meta Data will be attached to the images as well supplied within the post. Thanks for coming by everyone!
-Jay
Light Modifiers
January 1, 2011 – 10:59 pm | by fotodog
When faced with the challenge of light, many of us photographers simply reach in our trusty camera bag and grab another strobe or two to throw more light at it. We accept the challenge and attack. I’ve been challenging myself lately to modify the light and add detail or texture and change the focus of the image.
Years ago, I was at a Marty Rickard seminar and was amazed at what he was doing with simple light modifiers; reflectors, mirrors and gobos. He could light up a barn at sunset and make it look like high noon. And on the flipside he could take full daylight and shape it, give it depth and texture and make it look like he was shooting at sunset in a wooded glen.
You can put as much production into modifying light as you like or keep it simple with one or two units to keep it fun. As far as light modifier we have many tools at our disposal:
- soft boxes
- umbrellas
- reflectors and light panels
- gobos
- mirrors
- glass/windows
- translucent materials
- fabrics
- blinds and other window coverings
In the example photo above I’ve used three different techniques to modify the light.
Photo 1, this is natural light coming through the window about an hour before sunset. Beautiful color and direction but a little harsh. While the dark shadow on Celia’s left cheek may be the perfect look for a leading man or athlete, it’s a little harsh for a girl of 11 years.
Photo 2, I added a white piece of foam core about 18 inches from Celia’s face, right next to her shoulder at 90 degrees to the camera. You can see how a simple reflector that cost less than $3 opens up the shadow and makes a more pleasing portrait.
Photo 3, a lace curtain is placed about 18 inches from Celia’s face and we still have the reflector to Celia’s left. I’ve done this before with brides using their lace from their veil projected on a seamless background. It’s a nice, low-cost alternative to projectors or focusable studio lights and templates.
Photo 4, I placed the same lace curtain about 6 feet from Celia with the reflector still on her left shoulder. You can see how this will soften the lines of the pattern on her skin creating fun and interesting shadows. Playing with and mixing patterns, distance-to-subject and opacity of the fabric can make the portrait unique and fun. The easy thing about this technique, if you’re using window light is that you can hang the lace from the window and double up the lace in spots with clips and lets you play with the texture and shadows without an assistant.
One of my favourite techniques is to use a honeycomb grid over a studio spot and use lace to project on my subject and use one or two gobos to feather the light managing the shadows with a little detail.
I look forward to seeing any images you may have with light modifiers.
Cheers,
~fotodog
