How To Position a Model in the Frame with David Bergman

Today David Bergman from Adorama TV will talk about placement of the subject in the frame, and the impact that it has on your images. “When you first start taking pictures of people” – David explains – “You probably start with placing them in the middle of the frame, looking straight at the camera.

Dead Center

This framing is pretty standard – it’s obvious that model knows that her picture is being taken, and that is what we are used to seeing. There is a connection between the subject and the camera, which of course translates to the viewer.

On A Side, Looking Inwards

We can add a little interest to the photo by altering model’s placement just a little bit. Move her to wither left or right side of the frame, then have her look in the opposite side’s direction, “in the frame”. Now there is no interaction between her and the camera, and it is a bit more voyeuristic. She is not paying attention at the photographer at all and is looking at something else.

We moved her out of the center, so there is some room for her to look into the frame, which works on the other side as well. This framing is particular useful, as we can see what she is doing and what she is looking at.

On A Side, Looking Outwards

To create the most tension in the image, let’s model the model on either side of the frame, and let her look out of the image. When you have your subject looking out of the frame, it is disconcerting because you have no idea what she is looking at, or what is going on outside of the frame. There is a lot of dead space on the other side from the subject that is not being filled and makes you wonder why it looks that way. “Something is quite not right here….” Use this technique if you want to add some drama or intrigue to your image. At the end of the day this is all about taking control of the feel of your photographs.

Don’t forget – you can subliminally alter the feeling of your images by carefully placing the subject where you want them for maximum impact.

Watch the full episode with David Bergman and Adorama TV:

Come to our Creative Potluck!

You cannot skip this one. We decided to throw a tasty event that will nourish you both mentally and physically. On August 23rd 2018 from 6 to 8pm, we will host a creative get together to discuss latest trends and topics in the visual arts industry. Bring your favorite dish, and come share your experience in our cosy and newly renovated Hill 4!

For those you still hesitating, did I tell you it’s free?

Here are few details about the event:

Who?

Any creative interested in sharing some food and some industry insight. Models, Photographers, Makeup Artists, Stylists, Set Designers, if you are part of the creative process, come on in!

What?

Discussing topics of

Creative self-promotion
Collaborations and jobs
Rights ownership and contracts
Building creative teams
Communication decorum
Creative photography tricks
Modeling tricks
.. and anything else that comes to your mind!

Where and when?

The event will take place at stage Hill 4, Jungle Themed Stage with a Vespa-style scooter and Woven Chairs.

It will happen on Aug 23rd, 2018, 6-8pm so mark your calendars.

How much?

It’s on the house 🙂

RSVP FOR FREE HERE!

Kent Avery + Alex Boldea

Another great example, kindly provided by Kent Avery, of how the CYC wall can create the “infinite” magic on the photograph’s background. Shooting in high fashion style, the creative duo came up with clean, great photos.

This session’s crew comprised of:

Photographer: Kent Avery @kentaveryphoto

Stylist: Autumn Star @autumnestar
Makeup: Raquel Hoke @raquelhoque
Model: Alex Boldea @itsalexboldea

Stage C was a choice of this creative collective for several reasons. Besides a tremendous space capacity perfect for both, large crews and small teams this stage provides a white CYC wall that is always freshly painted for each client. In addition to the prop count, a grass wall and a wood floor corned section installed for your creative exploration. With large South and East facing windows, this stage gets lots of natural light throughout the day. Find out more about stage C on our WEBSITE.

“Andrelina” by The Black Lotus Films

Photographer known as The Black Lotus Films produced great quality photography in stage C, working primarily with natural light. Implementing colored fabric backdrop into the session, model+photographer duo complemented the out fit and achieved unique look photographs.

How this photoshoot came to be:

“Got an opportunity to work with one of the models for the gypsy shack Adrelina Perazzo. I love the gypsy shack because they are a no height, weight or measurement agency who’s values really resonate with me. They hold great meetups and have a lot of great people to work with.”

"Andrelina" by The Black Lotus Films -wrongron, Wrong Ron, The Black Lotus Films, Studio Photography, Stage C, shot at FD Photo Studio, rental stages, Photoshop, Photoshoot, photography services, photographer, Los Angeles, FD photo studio, DTLA, blog, Adrelina, !done, !C

This session’s crew comprised of:

Model Adrelina Perazzo @andrelinaa_
Agency The Gypsy Shack @tgstalent
Photographer The Black Lotus Films) @theblacklotusfilms

More photos from this shoot are available here!

Photographer’s choice for the shoot was stage C. It features large South and East facing windows, with lots of natural light. It is notorious for accommodating large, high end production crews and sophisticated artistic projects due to its versatility. Enhanced with the large Cyc wall available as well as paper backdrops, grass wall and wood floor corner this stage brings variety to your backstage. Find out more about stage C on our WEBSITE.

4 PHOTOGRAPHY TIPS FOR BEGINNERS! WE ASKED PROs, ep 3. Aug 12

“It takes a lot of imagination to be a good photographer. You need less imagination to be a painter because you can invent things. But in photography everything is so ordinary; it takes a lot of looking before you learn to see the extraordinary.”

David Bailey

WATCH THE FIRST PART OF PHOTOGRAPHY TIPS HERE .

Continuing series of photography tips for beginners, here are 4 advices from Professional Photographers in Los Angeles that will help you hone in on your skills.

The full interview is available of YOUTUBE. For your convenience, here is the transcript of it as well.

Julia Mindar @juliamindar_photography : Do not send raw pictures. This way they gonna be on the Facebook, they gonna be on Instagram, they will sign you as their photographer and if you have a certain editing style as I have, you deal with a little irritation ’cause everyone choose a picture. You choose it, you can choose a bad picture, they could add an Instagram filter on that and they’ll say it’s your work and ruin your style, your reputation so like people are asking all the time, “Do I get all the pictures from the shoot?” What I do, I say, “I can send proofs, the small images they won’t be able to post anywhere so they can choose some pictures they want to edit it for me to edit. Usually I just say that I can send all images from the shoot because my editing style is my signature, it’s my image, this is my reputation and I can do it.

Jon Sams @jonsams : So when I started out I was looking at a lot of behind the scenes videos. I was ripping pages out of magazines, I was zooming in really closely to the model of the subjects eyes to see what light modifiers they were using. You can look at an image and deconstruct how it was created and try it out for yourself.

Dee @trill_imagery : Don’t listen to outsiders, what other people have to say about your art. No one can tell you how to create your art, you know? Will it be to other people like you? Yes and no but it’s your art so that’s one of the main things that I tell people to not get discouraged about how someone may feel about your work. That’s your work, so you the artist here.

Mois @moisnomois: My main advice to photographers just starting out would be don’t listen to what anyone says, haters gonna hate, potatoes gonna potate.

WANT TO LEARN how to shoot with strobe lights, in the studio environment?

JOIN US FOR “Studio Lighting 101” WORKSHOP that will take place on August 22nd, 7-9pm, in one of our Los Angeles studios !!!

Watch the full episode :

Lorenzo Belmonte at Secret Loft

Photographer Lorenzo Belmonte visited our Secret Loft location, accompanied by three gorgeous models, two stylists and MUA. The session resulted in series of sleek, high-end magazine ready photographs, with a glamorous flavor of metropolis lifestyle.

Few words about the photographer:

“Eye for design, so I believe my photos and graphic design reflect my artist style.

Photography isolates the fundamental artistic ability to see the extraordinary. It is through arrangements of light, angle, lense and a split second decision to capture the moment that make photographs an extremely personal expression.

Personally, I always try to go above expectations and push the proverbial envelope. No matter what I do – I always go above and beyond.

No one is going to give it to you, you have to make it happen.”

Lorenzo Belmonte at Secret Loft -wrongron, Studio Photography, stage #secretloft, shot at FD Photo Studio, Sabrina Lynn, rental stages, Photoshop, Photoshoot, photography services, photographer, modeling, Los Angeles, Lorenzo Belmonte, June Walton, Julia Mindar, high fashion, FD photo studio, fashion, DTLA, blog, !secretloft, !done

This session’s crew comprised of:

Photographer Lorenzo Belmonte @lorenzobelmontephoto

Model Julia Mindar @juliamindar

Model June Walton @summerinjune_

Model Sabrina Lynn @sabrinalynnci

MUA Nancy @421ajb

Stylist Kristy @furrociousfurr

Stylist Bauhaus @4n6design

Location #SecretLoft @fdphotostudio #fdphotostudio

Our Secret Loft is located in the heart of Downtown LA. Featuring floor to ceiling windows with gorgeous urban city views, its windows are facing south-west, which provides different light patterns and effects inside the apartment. It also has a kitchen area with large dark quartz countertop that is also available for photo and video projects as well as shower/bathtub, hallway and bedroom area. Find out more about secret loft, prices, hot deals, and availability here!

Sam Hodges with COUNTESS

“Dark, mysterious and with heavy 808s on the background” is how one would describe this artistic shoot photographer Sam Hodges did in Hill 2. Featuring brilliant model Countess, the duo played nicely with provocative shots, while harmoniuosly swinging off and on focus.

Sam Hodges is a Los Angeles based photographer specializing in commercial and fashion photography.

Watch the snippet of the video from the shoot on Countess’s Instagram:

I’m a video ho now 💃🏻// I wish I could post the whole thing. God is dead and Instagram killed him. // Video @samhodgesphoto //💄 by @makeupbyjacqie // 🎵 by Lorn

A post shared by COUNTESS (@countessportfolio) on Mar 6, 2018 at 12:55pm PST

This session’s crew comprised of:

Photographer – Sam Hodges // @samhodgesphoto

Make up and Hair – Jacqueline Holden // @makeupbyjacqie

Model – Countess // @countessportfolio

!!! Stage Hill 2 is one of our latest additions and the second blackout stage we currently offer. Painted all black from top to bottom with the matte color this stage absorbs the light making it easier to control reflections and have complete control of the light painting. Spacious, nicely conditioned and minimalistic, Hill 2 is perfect for video and photo shoots, big or small crew. As any of our stages, it comes with three paper backdrops preinstalled – white, grey and black, and three strobe lights included. For more information please check stage Hill 2 on our website.

Minimalist Wedding by Angelica Marie

Another great wedding photoshoot took place in Art 1 stage. This stage has been a #1 choice among bridal and wedding photographers due to its spacious accommodations, undeniably good lighting conditions, and soothingly white interior. Needless to say why these photos taken by Angelica Marie turned out so natural, smooth and warm.

Write up from Grey Likes Weddings:

“Some brides believe in simple but beautiful details for her wedding – unfussy and uncomplicated – and this stunning inspiration will suit her perfectly. About the vision, Angelica from Angelica Marie Photography: “For this shoot, I really wanted to focus on the beauty of simplicity and to show couples that you can have a beautiful, intimate wedding with minimal details.” Rogue and Fox produced cascading arrangements in gorgeous white florals and ferny greens for days, bringing elegance to the minimalistic chic of the venue, FD Photo Studio and the pops of grey and gold in the design added just the right amount of contrast. An Enlightened Event helped to bring all the elements together to create the perfect atmosphere for the less-is-more bride.”

Check out the blog post about the shoot on Friartux.com

Minimalist Wedding by Angelica Marie -Studio Photography, stage Art1v2, shot at FD Photo Studio, rental stages, Photoshop, Photoshoot, photography services, photographer, modeling, Los Angeles, FD photo studio, fashion, DTLA, blog, Black Notch Lapel Tuxedo by Michael Kors, Angelica Marie Photography, An Enlightened Event, !done, !Art1v2

This sessions’s team comprised of:

Event Planning + Design: An Enlightened Event
Photography: Angelica Marie Photography
Menswear Style: Black Notch Lapel Tuxedo by Michael Kors with a black bow tie

Stage Art 1 was a choice of location for this session. Adorned with features like white grand piano and three step podium this stage is a tool of versatility, provider of great natural light, benchmark of industrial Downtown minimalistic design. This space has its windows facing South and West and gets beautiful direct light during the PM hours, and great open-shaded light in the morning. Using strobes? No worries, we include 3 strobe lights in the hourly rate along with black, white and grey background available. Take a look at Stage Art 1 HERE to see what equipment is included in the hourly rate, as well as its availability and pricing.

How To Shoot In Midday Harsh Sun with David Bergman.

Shooting outside, in midday, when the sun is right above you is arguably the worst setting a photographer can find herself in. Firstly you get harsh shadows everywhere. Second, those harsh shadows appear in the most undesirable places – like right under model’s eyebrows, creating distinct shadows on eyes – an effect called “raccoon eyes”.

The easiest solution to that is to simply move to the shade. Step under the roof of the coffee shop, or under the bridge. Such shelters against harsh sunlight will tremendously help to get nicer light on the photo.

However, in case there are no shelters around, or you need to shoot at the specific location, you would have to create your own shade. In this episode with David Bergman and Adorama TV we explore several techniques of how to do it.

Shade Example #1.

Equipment: white translucent diffuser, C stand with the arm, sand bag.

The idea is very simple. Use white translucent diffuser as a roof above the model. It will block harsh sunlight from above but let through nice soft diffused light. Usually it takes away 1 stop of exposure but has more variety in models.

Mount the diffuser on a C-stand arm, lift it up above the model. Don’t forget to put a sandbag on the C-stand leg – the wind outside might steal the diffuser (with the c-stand probably as well) right in front of your eyes.

Shade Example #2.

Equipment: black flag, C stand with the arm, sand bag, flashlight or portable mono light.

In this example we severely block the sun light from above, leaving our model in a very vivid shadow. It creates the room to introduce your own, controlled light sources. Use flash light, or battery powered mono light to light your model the way you want, while still shooting at the desired location.

Mount the black flag on a C-stand arm, lift it up above the model, like in a previous example. Put your controlled light in front of the model.

Shade Example #3

Equipment DIY

If you do not have any aforementioned equipment, go DIY. The idea is to soften the light from above. You can achieve that by using an umbrella, or silk fabric.

Watch the full episode with David Bergman and Adorama TV: