The word photography comes from two Greek words that when combined, mean “drawing with light.†This happens everyday in theatre, movies, and television. Still photography often uses many of the same tools found in theatres to enhance the final picture. StageSpot can provide many of these tools more conveniently than photographic supply stores.
For studio photography, experimenting with light position and color filters can lead to great results. One way to create simple background and shadow interest is to apply a color filter to the up lighting, while leaving the front light white. If this isn’t the look you need, just experiment some more. There are endless possibilities available with color and light.
Darrell Hoemann/The News-Gazette - Using colored light from different angles.
We know of an award-winning photographer who buys gel sheets and hosts a filter cutting party. It saves his newspaper some money and makes his staff happy. We recommend ordering a swatch book first to see which gel sheets work best for your needs. Once you find the ones you want, gel sheets are readily available and easy to cut at your leisure.
Don’t forget to experiment with those colored gels on your flash as well. Using colored flash in any photograph will create a unique and often haunting effect. Play around with different colors in different situations. You can also use the filters on the flash to help balance for other colors in the room. A gel swatch book will give you the greatest number of samples to choose from while determining your needs.
http://content.photojojo.com/tips/new-years-flash-guide/ - Adding Color to the Flash
Adding gobos into a photo shoot can also help to add texture, depth, and visual interest. Many photographers use whatever is on hand to cut out a shape and stick it in front of the light. Often this cut out is called a “cookie.†These can be hard to focus and take time to produce well. If you need a more versatile image, an ellipsoidal fixture should be used. Gobos go between the light source (lamp/light bulb) and the focus of the lighting instrument. There are thousands of stock gobo options such as window blinds, clouds, gothic window shapes, and many many more. If you can think of it, it can be a gobo. You can use your gobo image sharply focused, like a tree pattern to invoke a literal image of a tree, or blur the image out and use the general pattern for a more artistic interpretation.
ModelMayhem.com - Using gobos for texture and interest
Don’t forget to stock up on gaffer’s tape. It can help in oh so many ways. It’s been used to create a temporary studio by holding up white paper on a wall, it’s held down cable to make a studio safer, and it’s fixed that loose buckle on a camera bag.
We hope this entry has given you some ideas for your next photo shoot. If you need anything, please do not hesitate to contact StageSpot for inspiration.
