Night Session Downtown Austin

[hollandg]

So I took my wife and her sister downtown to try out some night shots. Let me know what you think.

1.


2.


3.


4.


Thanks

[nate.smith]

I like the long exposure on the first three. The street lights are kind of distracting. I like the color in the last one; need some fill light though.

[r0xikat]

agreed, you need more light on her to make her stand out. the headlamps create a weird backlit halo on their arms and makes the rest of her frame a little darker. fun idea! get out there and do some more!

[bryanlindsey]

Cool!

[hollandg]

Thanks guys, I really can't use a flash on the street one, it will blind oncoming traffic. So I will play with my shutter speed. On the last one, after I got home and opened the file on the pc I could see where some fill light could work. =)

[Ricco]

Originally Posted by hollandg

Thanks guys, I really can't use a flash on the street one, it will blind oncoming traffic. So I will play with my shutter speed. On the last one, after I got home and opened the file on the pc I could see where some fill light could work. =)

I'm just glad you showed some good sense in not using a flash on a street, but it does make me wonder if perhaps some sort of a soft and diffused steady light would suffice to add just enough light on your exposure.

Good technique, but I'm with Rox, that particular pose bothered me a bit, but there are times you can't foresee every little issue until you get back home.

[danchez]

you can use a light, just make sure you use a grid or some other sort of light modifier. Also, I get flashed by cameras all the time on toll roads at night without any ill effect.

[hollandg]

True a soft box could work with vary little to no harm to traffic. But man just being out there doing this gets all the pervs yelling out there cars. Lol so what's a little light lol.

[Ricco]

Originally Posted by danchez

you can use a light, just make sure you use a grid or some other sort of light modifier. Also, I get flashed by cameras all the time on toll roads at night without any ill effect.

There is a difference between the light you describe and a camera flashthat you don't expect right in your field of vision at night.

[DHaass]

So most everyone thinks a small portable off camera flash at street level and not directed at drivers is distracting to them? You are shooting at a fraction of a second and light falloff will negate any far reaching flash. Consider that you drive every day dealing with at least two hi intensity halogen headlights that 90% of the vehicles have and are staring straight at you for a 1/4 mile or in your rear view mirror for miles.

Being a target for all the nuts driving by...that's another story.

[Ricco]

Well, when you're dealing with some time exposure, you don't necessarily ned a flash, but a controllable light source.

[DHaass]

Flash is controllable. In these shots he is pretty far back from the models. A softbox or stand light will have too much falloff and spread from that distance without physically getting them into the shot. A flash would provide enough pop to overcome the back-lit effect from the car lights and not look too unnatural.

In the last shot you need to control the light pretty tight to keep it from hitting the glass right next to them, so a small flash burst with a snoot or similar modifier attached to the flash head would help with that.

In any of these shots, trying to expose for their faces with a timed exposure instead of fill will surely blow out any other bright lights in the scene. I don't think that's what he wants to see as the end result.