Tanya in the Studio

Tanya is one of the most enthusiastic models I have had the chance to work with; she has a fabulous comfort in front of the camera, and more than enough patience to permit me to get just what I am looking for in an image! The greatest frustration of course is that she lived in Moncton, and I am in Halifax, a 2.5 hour drive away.

Digital orignal

Fortunately, I am in Moncton frequently for teaching, so we can often meet up to work together. For this session, neither of us was free until well after sundown, so I brought my studio lighting and Tanya modelled for her first studio session.

Digital infrared original, 5 frame stitch

Like her first time modelling three months earlier, the entire session focused on portraits; Tanya's comfort and confidence before the camera really shows in these images. The space we worked in (her apartment) was a little challenging when it came to controlling the lighting (walls and ceilings reflect a surprising amount of light), but we did the best we could given the issues.

Digital original

By far the most successful lighting set-up was when I switched to working with the white sheets, and just flooded the room with light from my three strobes. The even illumination kept the focus on Tanya's connection with the camera, and created fewer issues with pose and framing. While not quite the same as when I work with natural light (when all the light is typically coming from behind the model), this has some of the same luminance that that work is so dependant upon.