Lesson Info
2. Location Assessment
Lessons
Lesson Info
Location Assessment
I mean, come on, right? How amazing is this location? I know we just literally walked in, and as soon as I arrived, I saw these incredible windows, beautiful light streaming in, sort of shafts of light, and then you see all this incredible sort of mechanical bits and pieces everywhere, with you know, the metallic paint. It really reflects beautifully, it tells its own story. I mean, I even love things like the light bulbs hanging down one at a time, and you know, these amazing stairs. I mean, the ceiling here, it literally is, and I'd have to guess, but it looks almost like it's sort of eight or nine stories high. I mean, that is something that you rarely to never get. And of course, it really just sets your mind wondering, what are the stories that actually happened here? Would I introduce those stories to my pictures? But also, not just is the actual story that this place actually has of its own, but as a fashion photographer who's also thinking up things, conjuring up ideas, I imagi...
ne almost like a Blade Runner type scenario happening here in this environment because it's so gritty. It's almost sort of old-school meets sci-fi, and that's what I love about it. You really feel the light hitting me. Now this is all the natural daylight. And of course, naturally, the natural ambient daylight in the room is amazing, it's beautiful, but it's almost a little more romantic. It's a little bit for me, more old-school. It feels like it has a sort of nostalgic feel to it, and you can just sort of see yourself in this light, and you can keep it like that. You can obviously shoot with this light and that's what I'm gonna do. In every scenario, I'm gonna show you sort of what the ambient light is telling me and making me feel, and the story that it's telling. And then of course, I have my first assistant here, Toby, with me, and together, we're gonna light up the scene, and tell my own story. Just look at this room. The light is really dramatic. It's actually quite dark, although there are these gigantic windows everywhere. I'm looking around at all these fantastic things to play with and what have you, and okay, it seems simple, but look at the size of this huge iron chain. I just see this, and it reminds me of sort of a bygone era, but it also, you can feel like you're almost like you're a Titan pulling on it. Things like this help tell stories so well, because your imagination runs riot with what can be done in this environment. The dark walls, all the pipes, the glistening oil, the grease, the tar, the dirt. The story's here, I mean actually look back here. I'm not sure if you can see, it's so dark in here. But there's this really gooey oil on everything. You can imagine a guy working in here, rubbing the oil on his forehead and really being tired, and this being that kind of great, dramatic, nostalgic type of shot. At the same time, you could also sort of imagine almost like a superhero being built out of this kind of equipment that's in here. All kinds of stories come to life, and for me, I'm like, okay, I could use the light coming through this window. I can try and pick up some of the light there. I can bounce this light, I can bring in these light bulbs. That's my ambient light, but I can also tell my own story, and we'll see what we can do with a strobe to really pick up the elements that I'm most interested in. Really brilliant, I want to walk to the next spot. Really cool, just another stunning location. My goodness, I mean, look at this tunnel. You rarely get spaces that are like this, so I mean, when I see a space, I immediately start to think about the story here, and yes, you know, you can see all the tools and the dials and the light bulbs, and you know, the history of the room, but I also imagine it almost as if it's a flight tunnel on a galactic spaceship, for example. So there is a completely different story that maybe I can tell. I can create my sci-fi story as well as this old-school, nostalgic story. I really love it. I'm just in love with all the details. So many things to play off. The paint, the ladder, the lights, the light bulbs hanging from the ceiling. I'm looking at this spot here, and of course I see all these great details and things for the model to play off. And you can imagine people putting coal in here, or oil, or whatever it was to get this generator going. But then I also see the way the light plays through, and I see this ladder coming down and yes, I've got the window here, but I also have the ability to shoot through the ladder and you know, use elements of the building to help tell another story, is am I voyeuristically looking at the person working there? And how will the light play on them, or do I add my own light, and tell a completely different story? I think it's time to get shooting. I've got too many ideas, time to focus.
Ratings and Reviews
a Creativelive Student
I think this is a great class for a photographer who is interested in fashion and editorial work. Nigel shows you what it's like behind the scenes and how he invokes the looks, stances, and poses from his models to get the story of his images. This class isn't about the why's and how's of what camera and strobe settings he uses on set. He does show you the different gels, reflectors, and strobes utilized but really just plants a seed so you can explore on your own. He mentions that it's important for the photographer to own their style and lighting. I love how Nigel shares how he creates the environment for a story. For editorial work, I feel one of the most important elements of a shoot is the experience you create for your model. It is the magic ingredient for capturing images with impact.
user-f37802
Nigel is a good communicator and excellent photographer. However, you won't learn too much from this class. It is a Behind The Scene footage showing Nigel at work. That's all. Nigel doesn't measure ambient and artificial light, and won't tell you the light values you need to achieve the desired effect. Recommend to those who look for motivational support; certainly do not recommend to those who look for technical knowledge. For that reason, I feel like the tutorial is a bit overpriced. Thank you
Margaret Lovell
I prefer natural light, but want to learn more about studio light. Nigel is an excellent instructor, and photographer. He can explain lighting concepts in easy to understand steps. He also gives plenty of excellent and useful tips.
Student Work
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