Classmate Portrait: The process and final result
February 13th, 2007
An up-turned collar is more than just a way to keep the wind out for MU masters student Sally Morrow — it is a way to deter people from approaching her. With a husband in Mexico City and her friends spread around the U.S., Morrow says she prefers to keep to herself on focus and on her studies.
This is the set up for my final portrait, except the light was above the subject. Very simple, really. I didn’t use a reflector, and the background was black.
The Self Critique
When I drew Sally Morrow’s name out the fabled selection hat, it was obvious that I needed to sit down with her to decide how I would photograph her. Unlike most people in the class who seem to all know each other from taking Fundamentals of Photojournalism together; I had never met Sally before. I didn’t even that was her name. After a brief conversation during class we decided to meet up in a few days to discuss how we should shoot each other.
After talking with Sally only a short time, I could tell she was a serious student. She told about how her friends had scattered across the country after high school and college. Even her husband didn’t share her east campus apartment with her. He is living in Mexico City at the moment, trying to return to the U.S., this time with the proper documents.
In talking with her, I could see she wasn’t a mean or dour person, but did talk repeatedly about how she keeps to herself and doesn’t often go out on the town.
We agreed to shoot on Wednesday, February 7. By the time Sally went to sign up for a shift for us on Monday morning, most of the spots were already full. I knew this would almost certainly be our only opportunity to complete this assignment. This pressure added to stress level, as I have no meaningful experience in the studio. In high school, I borrowed my high school instructor’s studio on a few occasions, only to be met with varying levels of disaster.
When I arrived on Wednesday night, we decided that I would model first because Aaron Rosenblatt had agreed to assist Sally’s shooting. Her shoot seemed to go very well, but I haven’t seen the results yet.
My first set up was a single large softbox placed above and slighty in front of the subject. I choose a black background to isolate the subject and focus on her movements. I felt a low-key image would be the best choice after talking to her about her life her in Columbia.
Sally Morrow does yoga to combat stress in her life. She often gets fustrated with the red tape involved in trying to gain the proper papers for her huband, a Mexican who lives in Mexico City.
In hindsight, I placed the softbox too close to the subject. Every time she moved, the light changed dramatically. This resulted in many incorrectly exposed images.
At some point during the shoot, Sally mentioned to me she had a large overcoat with her that served as a barrier to both the weather and to the people around her. This is the take my select comes from. When photographing her, I want to leave negative space around her to suggest her isolation. I later decided to crop the photo in Photoshop because I felt it would have more impact with less negative space. The dark background I left in and her dark coat still achieve the affect I was looking for.
Next, I set up a multi-light arrangement. Sally changed out of her yoga wear into her street clothing, including a white shirt. My idea for this set up was to have the key light be a large softbox at head level off to the side. The background would only be light with one head to give shape to her shoulder that would be in the shadow of the key light.
After trying a snoot and the barn doors attachment, I settled on the honey comb attachment to direct the light where I wanted it. This produced uneven light, but it was the best I could manage. I plan to ask my GTA how I can have more control over the backlight in the future.
My favorite shot of the take comes from this series, but because it is overexposed, I could not use it. Once again, I think the light was too close to the subject. When I metered and checked the histogram, her shirt was within the dynamic range of the Nikon D2X I was using for this shoot. It was until she shifted slightly towards the light that I lost all detail in parts of her shirt and forehead.
If I were to reshoot this, I would use also reflected some light back onto her face, but not enough to ruin the dark shadows on her shoulder. Another option would be to light her face with a honeycomb-ed head set to one stop above the softbox to shine on her face.
One problem I didn’t anticipated ruined many of the pictures I took –– dust on the digital sensor. I borrowed to the D2X for it’s sensor is larger than my 1D’s, and also to become more familiar with Nikon equipment. I didn’t anticipated the level of dust on the sensor, and will now consider this in the future when borrowing other’s gear.
The last two set ups I tried were far too Olan Mills Photography for my taste, and were abandoned. (At least I know if I never need a job at Sears, it’s mine). By this time, both the subject and myself were clearly tired and ready to pack up. This was a disadvantage of shooting second.
I am happy with the results of my first foray into studio portraiture, but most importantly think I am much better prepared to photograph people in studio after this assignment. I am looking forward to hearing what everyone has to say about my results.