And to me, that was the most awesome pic of the bunch. You got my vote because this image "spoke" to me the most. The others were technically brilliant and technically advanced, but they failed to move me. To me they lacked realism. I like "back to basics". I love black and white. I like simplicity. And this picture, to me, is absolutely stunning. I hope to be able to take a pic like this some day.
I am so moved by your appreciation for my photo, and embarrassed I missed your posting up to now! I'm definitely lacking in advanced technical skills, but to know the shot spoke to folks is the most rewarding reception I could hope for as a photographer. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
They were taken on my trip to Cantho (Mekong Delta - VietNam). In the early morning, we walked along the riverside to enjoy the sunrise view and took the photograph - of course
Spent 32 hours for the short trip, but we took some picture which we love.
May I show some of them here as 'Behind the Scenes'?
Quite often I'll have a rough idea for an image, get the elements together and then play with several variations and see how things develop (sometimes with quite unexpected results). With "Hanging the Moon", it was a different story. I had that phrase pop in my head one day, for no particular reason that I can recall, and I began to imagine what that would look like in a photograph. My initial idea was of a woman in flowing gown standing on a very high cliff, but my mom had the idea of her standing on a cloud and I thought that even stronger. The image became very solid in my head. By the time I was able to begin shooting for the semi-final, my personal challenge was to take that image in my mind and make it a solid, photographic reality.
Following Nikolai's excellent moon shooting tips, I bundled up in the 19 degree weather (I hate the cold!) and got my moon shot (cropped, of course):
I then took the original frame, added the PS cloud filter and played with it until I got some clouds I was happy with (forecast showed no possibility of a real cloud shot, so I had to settle for this). I toned everything to a blue-ish hue that was stuck in my mind and here's where I was at:
Then, knowing that I had a very specific gown in mind, I made the dress.
Me sewing:
My amazingly awesome friend and model, Lana, during one of the fittings (this was the underskirt, which was followed by the layer of shimmery material):
I set up in the basement with the help of my husband, did Lana's hair and makeup and began shooting. I had several poses I was happy with, but in the end settled on the one from my original vision:
After placing her in my scene and a BUNCH of tweaking, I was thrilled to see the exact image from my mind on the computer screen in front of me:
One of my all time favourites Emily. Breathtakingly beautiful. Ali x
Canon EOS 40D, Canon EOS 350D, 50mm 1.8 MKII prime lens, 17-40mm f/4 L lens, 70-200mm f/2.8 L IS lens, 430 EX speedlite, Tungsten Continuous studio light, Pocket Wizards, Gary Fong Lightsphere, Stofen Omni bounce diffuser, 5in1 reflector
Comments
I am so moved by your appreciation for my photo, and embarrassed I missed your posting up to now! I'm definitely lacking in advanced technical skills, but to know the shot spoke to folks is the most rewarding reception I could hope for as a photographer. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
50mm 1.4, 85mm 1.8, 24-70 2.8L, 35mm 1.4L, 135mm f2L
ST-E2 Transmitter + (3) 580 EXII + radio poppers
Spent 32 hours for the short trip, but we took some picture which we love.
May I show some of them here as 'Behind the Scenes'?
And I posted this for the SF4:
Thanks for your time!
One of my all time favourites Emily. Breathtakingly beautiful. Ali x