April 2012 Insight

April 01, 2012 —

It’s May already and almost half the year has gone by in a blur! It feels like yesterday that our editorial team was planning our 2012 calendar, deep in discussion about which issues and topics our readers want to be informed about: business and marketing, new products, software tutorials, social media, etc.

This month, our focus is on lighting—technique, approach and the equipment to help get you there. Obviously, lighting and photography go hand in hand, and many photographers who establish themselves in this industry become known for their unique lighting techniques.

In “Four Approaches to Light Painting”, we talk to photographers shooting in different genres who have taken an old practice to a new level as they develop their own techniques and, in some cases products, to enhance their lighting work. Conceptual photographer August Bradley shares how he zoomed in on subjects during the Occupy Wall Street Movement in New York City, using a mobile lighting pack to photograph intense, thoughtful portraits with a studio feel on location in Zuccotti Park.

Editorial and advertising shooter Ryan Schude lights up his big productions with a cinematic feel, while veteran photographer Rob Van Petten takes the Nikon D800 for a spin, showing off some beauty and fashion images and breaking down his lighting for us, step by step. Of course, not every photographer uses intricate lighting setups and equipment; some prefer a little help from Mother Nature, like Elizabeth Messina who, in an excerpt from her new book, The Luminous Portrait, discusses how she uses sunlight, window light and overcast days to her advantage in making glowing portraiture. There’s much more to explore in this jam-packed issue so check it all out, including our Gadget Guide to help outfit  you and your studio with everything you need to “light it right.”

photographer: August Bradley
camera: Hasselblad H4D-40
lens: Hasselblad HC 100mm f/2.2
exposure: f/4 at 1/320 sec.
location: Wall Street, Zuccotti Park, New York, NY
credit: © August Bradley
comments: From August Bradley’s “99 Faces of Occupy Wall St.” project. Images were shot one week before activists were evicted from the birthplace of the Occupy movement. Full project at www.99facesofoccupywallst.org.