Linanthus Nuttallii, Zion National Park

Linanthus Nuttallii, Zion National Park, a photo by flatworldsedge on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
Something a little different to break up the stream. It's a travel shot of Nuttall's Linanthus along the Angel's Landing Trail in Zion National Park Utah. It's a simple shot compared to recent postings, but one I like for some reason! The mix of red sandstone dust and pine needles appeals.

Hope everyone's having a great week.

Geometric (Phoenix Renella Red Dress), Rickmansworth Aquadrome

Geometric (Phoenix Renella Red Dress), Rickmansworth Aquadrome, a photo by flatworldsedge on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
One of my favourite shots from a recent shoot with Phoenix Renella. Phoenix is Katherine Velours' sister, who I shot with back in the summer, so if you see a non-exact likeness to previous postings, well - I guess that makes sense now!

She's just as awesome - seen here braving zero degree temperatures and flashes of rain to pose in the middle of nowhere, late at night, having endured all sorts of waiting around, smoke and blinding lights. I'd guess the experience was a bit like an SAS training exercise, just all done in red dress.

Anyway - she's ace, so if you get a second to check out her portfolio on the link above it'd be a second well spent. And if you are based around London, she's someone you should shoot with!

Hope everyone is having a terrific week!

Info for Strobist:

One waist height Canon 600EX-RT fired at 1/2 power - about 8m behind Phoenix. Another one around 1/8 through a 38x38 softbox 4m in front of her to the right. Fired by RT from a third, non-firing, 600EX-RT on camera used for focus assist. Pooling strobes is ace!

Fairytale, Soho

Fairytale, Soho, a photo by flatworldsedge on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
Second shot from Thursday's first "Soho Noir" session with Vicky.

I'm really pleased with the balance of clean strobe and sodium/fluorescent lights to work the "neo noir" tone set.

Lesson for next time - her hand is probably over exposed, and the highlights could be a little less intense on her face. I'm going for a sort of "Vogue noir" - so not the mad, ultra hard contrast of proper film noir images. This is probably a little too half way. The strobe does probably need flagging better to keep it off the cage - behind her head the orange glow diminishes as a result.

Lots more to come in this series!

Info for Strobist:

Single Canon 600EX-RT in Lastolite Ezybox, 1m from model, 45* degree camera left, 45* up. Triggered by second (non-firing) Canon 600EX-RT on camera, used over ST-E3-RT for focus assist.

Soho Noir, London

Soho Noir, London, a photo by flatworldsedge on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
The last couple of week I've faced the usual dilemma of being too busy to shoot, process and post. As ever, posting is the option I drop. Sorry that's left me behind the curve in terms of keeping up with friends and contacts here.

Catching up now!

This is one from a Thursday night shoot in Soho with the amazing *Vic*, organised through Purpleport. She's an super person and massively talented model.

We were going for a "neo noir" vibe, shooting with lots of gels in Soho alleys I'd scouted a couple of weeks before. Certainly it's not as edgy and mad as noir lighting maybe should be, but I'm taking small steps as I get used to strobe. I really liked the result so view it as a success. Hopefully you like it too, as there are more to come!

Info for Strobist:

Canon 600EX-RT @ 1/16 in Lastolite Ezybox just out of shot camera left (broadly 45* up and round), fired by RT from on camera Canon 600EX-RT (non-flashing - used instead of the ST-E3-RT to get focus assist in the deep shadows). Yonghuo YN-560ii gelled with Rogue "Oklahoma Yellow" camera left, 45* / 4m behind model at 1/32 power. Second YN-560ii gelled Rogue "Medium Blue Green" @ 1/2 power, at models feet, flagged with Rogue gel holding pouch (!), firing out of shot right to bounce back in from large gloss black garage door 4m off.

Doyouthinkhesaurus? (All In Camera Light Painting Girls Hiding From Triceratops), Rickmansworth Aquadrome

Doyouthinkhesaurus? (All In Camera Light Painting Girls Hiding From Triceratops), Rickmansworth Aquadrome, a photo by flatworldsedge on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
"What do you call a blind dinosaur?" You've probably heard that one, but if not... sorry.

This is another from my series in the flooded Rickmansworth Aquadrome. When I started light painting, I tried to draw painstakingly unique, perfect images for every scene I saw. It ended up that I shot very little, as it placed a huge burden of time and learning on every shot.

This summer I decided to focus on a few key characters, and building my repertoire from there. For some reason the pinup girl and triceratops are easiest for me to draw, and I'm really enjoying being able to shoot more often.

Thanks to everyone who Flickrmails me with questions about light painting - hopefully my answers have helped. I'm in the process of writing an article on the subject for (the excellent) Photophique which I hope to share soon.

My main advice is to get out there - I promise you that it is way, way easier than it looks and you'll get great stuff right off the bat.

Hope everyone is having an amazing week, and apologies for my slow catch up on Flickr at the moment. Work is busy... but I'm getting round slowly!

Resinite (Amber Triceratops Light Painting), Rickmansworth

Resinite (Amber Triceratops Light Painting), Rickmansworth, a photo by flatworldsedge on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
Quick light painting to exploit the flooding at Rickmansworth Aquadrome. The orange is from sodium vapour light pollution, infused in a light pall of drizzle and mist.

There's one corrected line here (where the body of the mother triceratops meets the crest), but otherwise everything is drawn in camera using a LED with a sock as a diffuser.

Hope everyone is having a fantastic start to the week.

Running Lights (Rialto Bridge At Midnight), Venice

Running Lights (Rialto Bridge At Midnight), Venice, a photo by flatworldsedge on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
A long exposure from last December's Venice trip. I still have a number to post, delayed only by the thought that the sky could be better shot. Taken just a little earlier in the night, with just a little more light and cloud movement in the sky to balance the image.

That said, as I played around in Photoshop I found I quite liked this original version - with the darker sky. There's a brooding, claustrophobia-inducing weight to it, closing the image in, which is lost as the sky brightens to become a feature itself.

Nonetheless, next time I'm in Venice I'll certainly head back here to shoot again. There are some with vaporetto light trails I'll post later in the week too, but that effect can be a touch too heavy handed - the trick will be finding a brighter sky without too much river traffic... Maybe that calls for a summer visit, something I try to avoid! Venice for me is always better in the rain.

Hope everyone is well and enjoying a fantastic January so far.

Emma J Black, London Waterloo

Emma J Black, London Waterloo, a photo by flatworldsedge on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
A quick post, to prove I'm alive as much as anything! I had some kind messages asking about the headshot I used in Venetian Noir, so thought I'd post the cropped colour version - from before I went to town with Photoshop.

The red light on the left comes from buses passing the end of the white tiled tunnel by Waterloo. The uncropped version is cooler in this regard

I'm still catching up, and doing a test shoot ahead of a really exciting "noir" series, so this is a bit of post and run for the moment. Hence, comments are disabled!

Hope everyone is having a bright start to the New Year.

Venetian Noir (Emma J Black), Il Sogno Di Venezia

Venetian Noir (Emma J Black), Il Sogno Di Venezia, a photo by flatworldsedge on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
Headshot from my summer shoot with Emma J Black, manually composited with a series of shots from Venice.

The main background image is one I've posted here before - Fino A Domani.

The technique is one I learned from Phlearn on YouTube. Aaron Nace and the team do amazing work, and have an incredible series of fun, charismatic, massively informative videos sketching how it's done. One of the best photography resources out there, and well worth checking out if you haven't used then before.

Search Light (Blea Tarn Headlights Through Rain), Lake District

Search Light (Blea Tarn Headlights Through Rain), Lake District, a photo by flatworldsedge on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
Another quick post from my Boxing Day circuit of favourite Lake District views. Like last year there was plenty of inclement weather to enjoy - drifting mist and rain, rather than hail - but that does keep the riff raff off the fells!

I shot a lot of frames of this, with the clouds hunkered low, raking through the trees obscuring everything. Suddenly the wind picked up and for moments the Langdale peaks appeared in the middle of my shot. The tarn went still. I grabbed my shutter release, and at that exact moment the car's headlight popped into view and paused on the cattle grid at the top of the pass. I didn't need further prompting. Click!

I've done some Photoshop work along the foot of the frame to tidy up a few surplus stones.

Hope everyone is enjoying an amazing start to the New Year!