Jeremy, bartender

[texxter]

The summer is an interesting time for me as a photographer. I am trying to avoid shooting outdoors because I end up soaked in sweat. My studio, with the portable A/C unit I bought is bearable, but not comfortable, and I get tired of the studio. So in my quest for cold and cool locations to shoot I ended up in the local bar :-) Actually I want to get better at shooting on location too.

On Friday I asked Jeremy the bartender if he would be ok with me making his portrait at the bar. He was delighted and the boss didn't object, so this morning I headed there before they opened to get it done.

There are two things I want to get better at while shooting on location: (1) develop creative solutions on the spot, images that are not your run-of-the-mill portrait. For me this means lighting, but I also need to use focal length and camera position better; and (2) ability to get the job done very quickly, in about 30 minutes from beginning to end;

In the portrait below I give myself a C on creativity because the portrait is pretty conventional. I give myself a B on speed because I did get it done in 30 minutes, but I didn't enough shoot images to choose from.

Technical details
I used three sources of illumination: (1) key light on a softbox to camera left (a small Photoflex softbox with a SB800 on a stand, with full CTO gel, (2) ambient light as fill, and (3) a SB800 sitting to the right of the bottles, with a blue gel on it to accentuate the blueness of the background. The camera was set to Tungsten white balance and placed on a tripod.



What I think I did right:

• I had all the gear I needed, I set it up quickly before Jeremy showed up, and I got the shots done in ten minutes or so. I was packed and ready to go 30 minutes after I started setting up.
• I used flash somewhat creatively to give some character to the bar
• The image is technically ok, sharp, composed properly, etc
• I used a wide angle lens, which I normally don't use, so I am breaking some habits
• Overall lighting and color are ok, I think, and the use of gels mixed with ambient light gives a natural looking result.
• It's obvious he's at his bar, so an environmental portrait it is!

What I did incorrectly or could have done better:

• As I mentioned, I was expecting an image with more punch and interest. The small softbox spread light too much, I am thinking that a grid could have been more interesting.
• Some images of Jeremy with a bottle in the air had some motion blur because I was shooting at a low shutter speed. I shouldn have said "no" when he suggested playing some tricks for me - I was using ambient light and 1/60 sec or so . Duh!
• I didn't take enough frames, only about 20 or so because I was tryng to hurry up. Next time I will write down the two or three images I want and shoot 30 frames for each to make sure I nail them.
• Should have used the circular polarizer as I was planning to, but forgot!
• I don't think the blue light on the background worked as well as I expected, as I have a hot spot on a bottle I need to edit out.

Comments and feedback welcome!

[msabas]

Its a great looking shot. the lighting is great, I assume it was off camera flas maybe position to the left..?

[jeffro20]

I like the blue gel on the glassware and bottles. Perhaps do away with the salt bottle & straws as the bright white keeps pulling my eyes to it.

Where's his tip jar packed with bills? Thank goodness he didn't wear a "busy" shirt.

No pics of his Tom Cruise Cocktail impression?

[texxter]

Mariano, I will post a lighting diagram. The two flashes are off camera.

Hahaha, I loved that bartender role Tom did - super cool!

Here is another shot, but I didnt postprocess it at my calibrated monitor, so it may be off, you can see the effect of the blue gel plus the wb key shift more clearly. And the bottle is moving, indeed!

[danchez]

just curious, what would a circular polarizer do for this shot? or any polarizer for that matter?

[texxter]

Dan, there are reflections on the polished counter surface that a polarizer would eliminate completely. The reflection next to Jeremy's right hand wouldn't be there if I had the polarizer on the lens. Fortunately it's not a big deal because the surfaces are small. But consider this image here, which I did without a polarizer - the hardwood floor doesn't look as good as it should.

Polarizers are often used to deal with situations involving reflections, such as those involving water or glass, including pictures taken through glass windows. A circular polarizer filter allows you to change the direction of polarization.

[sparkyjr]

I think you're selling yourself a bit short Paco. The first image is well composed and lit. I share some of your thinking regarding self-improvement. What I mean is, you have good goals set for yourself. I too try to improve on making the best of a situation when on location. Sometimes, even though you've scouted out a venue, you are still thrown a curve ball. Personally, I have the habit of sticking to one particular shot too long and getting a little neurotic. I've had to teach myself to move along and get a better variety of shots.

[texxter]

Robert, thanks for your thoughts! For me shooting on location triggers all kinds of feelings, fear being a dominant one. So fear drives me to get the "safe shot" and make sure I walk out of the place with at least the job done. My problem is that channeling my energy this way makes it difficult for me to experiment to get the better shot I know I can get. Time constraints also push me against experimentation.

So my approach to deal with this is is to do some location shoots for fun - similar to what I'd need to do if a client asked me to do it. The twist is to spend 5 minutes to get the "safe" shot to give the subject in exchange for his time, and then spend the other fifteen minutes thinking and executing the shot "out there" once my fears are out of the way. I need to use an 80/20 rule - 80% of my time to get out of my comfort zone, and 20% of the time to get the safe shot.

[danchez]

thanks for the info on the polarizer. As much as I want to run out and start "shooting in the field," I am going to try and concentrate on studio shots for now so I can build up my base knowledge. Once again, thanks for your thought process. That helps out so much.

[texxter]

Dan, that's a good strategy. If you can get consistent results in the studio, where you've got 100% control over the light, then you'll be prepared to take your lights and knowledge to a location and move to the next level of skill. The studio offers infinite possibilities for creative work, especially if you aren't constrained by meeting a client's specific requirements. Shooting for fun and practice and without fear of failing to deliver the goods will make creativity possible. Photograph anyone willing to stand in front of your camera and you'll become a better studio photographer as you do more and more sessions. Some recommended "practice, practice" with two caveats: (1) don't practice doing things incorrectly, so that you don't build bad habits, and (2) don't practice the same thing over and over, or you'll limit your learning.

Good luck with your studio photography journey, and thanks for the kind words about what I share.

[doctahjones]

i 2nd the comment about selling yourself short. the first image makes me feel like i just walked up to the bar that i always go to...sort of like he's expecting me to be there. so as for creating emotion, i think you nailed that part.

i'd give you a b+ for creativity. i mean it is a 'standard' type of a bar shot, but it's what i would expect to see, if that makes sense. maybe there could have been a different angle/post or whatnot, but i wouldn't call it 'boring' for sure.

judging by the bottles second shot, i'm thinking you placed the other sb over with your key sb? or was that all spill from your key? either way, i really like how the blues showed up in that one, and would have liked to have seen that in the 1st pic.

overall i would still give this photo an A, good job!

[texxter]

James, thanks for your comments! I just set a pretty high bar for myself and I get disappointed when I create just-good-enough images. Having said that, I can see how Jeremy's expression in the first image fits his bartender job. On the second image the blue-gelled flash is pointing straight to the back counter, but the reason this blue is bluer than on the first image is just postprocessing. I can do the same thing to the first one, and maybe I should.

Thanks!

[msabas]

Thanks for posting the diagram really cool to see the set up.

[brad]

Really cool, Paco.. the idea and setup has possibilities. Thanks for sharing your setup and what you learned.