Photography News | Issue 38 | absolutephoto.com
Technique 18
Top “I lowered the exposure of the ambient light by closing the aperture to f/16, making the bright, overcast day look more threatening and dramatic. I then added flash from an ElinchromQuadra head on a boom.” Middle “This gap between the rows of trees on an abandoned military base was a perfect shoot location. Notice howwonderful the look is on the XF60mm lens at f/2.8. It’s dreamy and uncomplicated like a good Impressionist painting.” Bottom “Claire is lit with an Elinchrom Quadra head with a deep dish reflector. This is two-point lighting but square to the camera. The sun was setting and the tide was coming in fast. The rock Claire was on soon became submerged but we were on our way by then.”
Any walking has to be done in boots or trainers, and costume changes are usually made on site. I tend to lug all the gear, and things like water and sun cream are essential. I just take the usual precautions really. I prefer bare feet once we’re on set as it has a more natural look about it. The dresses I have made for me either commissioned from companies in China and bought on eBay or commissioned from local designers. ThewhitedressonthedesertsofFuerteventura was commissioned from Lisa Keating and I sketched out the design and asked for it in silk chiffon. I was looking for an Angel of the South. Howdo lighting concerns change for figure- in-landscape work, compared with regular portraits? For instance, do you prefer to use diffuse light if possible? No, I’ve always been a lover of hard light. I much prefer hard light for portraits and for figure-in-the-landscape, so in overcast situations where I haven’t got a crisp hard sunlight, I tend to use bare flash from either an Elinchrom Quadra or Cactus speedlight; I don’t use modifiers on my flash. Occasionally when I’m shooting into the sun, I will use flash, too. I will set the sun up as a backlight and pop some flash in from the front, like the picture of the sunset on the water and my Angel of the South shot in the deserts of Fuerteventura. I’ve always been a lover of hard light. I much prefer it for portraits and for figure-in-the-landscape
Portrait masterclass
If you like what you’ve read so far, you don’t need to stop here. Portraits by Damien Lovegrove is a great manual for aspiring portrait photographers and its 356 pages cover a huge number of tips, techniques and advice, accompanying each of the 348 inspirational images. Available now as a downloadable ebook, “this epic body of work represents five years of my creative life,” says Damien. “Everything I know about photographing people is in this book. I’ve combined the ‘how to’ approach to book writing with a fine body of photographs, deconstructed to reveal the strategies and creative vision within.” Subjects covered include portrait fundamentals like picking subjects and locations, as well as building a rapport with your model. Building on these foundations are chapters on lighting, urban and Hollywood portraits, as well as boudoir and nude styles. The book finishes with useful advice on setting up a studio and managing your workflow from concept to print. Portraits by Damien Lovegrove is available to download now as an ebook priced £40. You get perks like two cover options, the option to purchase the 92-page Fujifilm X System Guide for Portrait Photographers for only £10 more (usually £20), and the choice of a standard- or high-definition version. Use the code dharkan to receive 20% off when you purchase the book from lovegroveportraits.com
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