Portrait Tips – Kali’s Bikini Shoot
June 25th, 2009
We planned to shoot out by The Great Salt Lake, but the weather didn’t cooperate. Instead, we headed to Salt Lake City’s best looking club: Jam. It’s such a pretty club that I could spend days there shooting models in various locations – and then stay for the talented DJ’s and great micro brews.
Special thanks to Vincent at Jagged Edge Retreat for the terrific hair style, and Nicole for her excellent makeup work!
Tip – Improvise – Our original location didn’t pan out, but after calling the owners of Jam, we came up with an even better shoot than the one we had planned! Sometimes you just have to wing it.
Tip – Network – If I didn’t have a great rolodex with some of Salt Lake City’s hippest scene-makers, we never would have scored such a great location for our shoot. Network with EVERYBODY. You never know who can help you out in a pinch!
Tip – Incorporate Background Contrasts – Those great backgrounds aren’t PhotoShop, peeps. That’s the real deal. In the close-up head shot I used a closely placed strobe to create the high contrast background that makes the photo pop. The dark stripe down the side of the body shot is a corner on the DJ booth. The dark / bright gradient on the seated photo is an angled corner at the front of the DJ booth. Take advantage of changes in the background to add interest and enhance the composition – but be careful that it draws attention to your subject!
Equipment List:
- 1x 6′ oval reflector – Gold side out.
- 3x Nikon SB-600 strobes.
- 1x Nikon D90.
- 1x Nikkor 50mm f1.8D lens.
- 2x 9′ light stands.
- 1x Boom stand.
One last tip: Whatever you’re doing – remember to have a blast!
Wow. Just gorgeous. I am an RSS subscriber and I had to delurk for this photoshoot. Being an aspiring photog, I’m always appreciative of the work of pros.
Have a great 4th of July!!
Jane
Thanks, Jane!