Let's talk about Photography :::
 

Today I'll answer all your Photography related questions. If I dont' know the answer, I'll find out for ya'....or make something up :1orglaugh

TGIF mutha' fukka's :winkwink:

http://www.glamourshoots.com/pics/jaime/003.jpg

http://www.glamourshoots.com/pics/jaime2/001.jpg

How do you handle your backlighting, I notice in your pics there's a lot of hairlight, I shoot a lot of weddings and stuff and usually have a QFlash on a small stand in back. What kind of setups do you use.

Also can you give an overview of your postprocessing of images?

Hi Matt, my contract with Twistys.com prohibits me from talking about my techniques as it relates to what I produce for them so I must speak in general terms. The idea for this post was not to give away 'step-by-step' my process for producing my work but rather to discuss photography in general. I've spent years developing my workflow and my techniques and I can't just hand that info out on a silver platter to everyone who has a camera. Content production is a competitive area and I don't want to get too specific about what I do...I hope you understand.

With that said...I've used all kinds of lighting for backlighting, hairlighting, accent lighting etc. The same theory works with backlighting that works for frontlighting. The bigger the light source, the softer the light. The smaller the light source, the harder the light. I'm sure your QFlash produces a very hard quality of light which is perfect for your use.

Many years ago (many many years ago), I worked as an apprentice to a wedding photographer and he used to have me hold a telescopic pole with a Metz Flash on the end of it. The flash was connected to a Turbo Battery and a radio slave was attached. As he was shooting candids at the reception (and family groups in the chapel), I'd run behind the subjects and raise that pole up and provide accent lighting for him. The accent light was set to one stop less light then the camera exposure setting and it worked out beautifully.

In regards to processing....I shoot in raw format, process is Capture One Pro and Photoshop.

Thanks for the oppty. to ask you questions Deancapture. I must say your work is very impressive.

I have an amateur photog on my staff and I want them to improve.

What is a good beginer tuturial or lace to learn?

How important is a good makeup person on set?

Could you get the results you do without a good starting point for glamour shoots?

What Camera do you personally use?

Hmmmm, my introduction to Photography (about 16 years ago) was with a home study course from the New York Institute of Photography. Understanding how the camera works, composition, exposure, lighting etc..etc.. takes a while to sink in but this course was very instrumental in getting me on the right track quickly. Besides that I might recommend some local Photography Workshops offered in your area. Call some local camera stores and inquire about beginner classes and workshops. Maybe some others can chime in with their thoughts as well!

A good hair/makeup person for me is essential. That's because of the kind of photography that I love doing. A makeup person is not essental if your shooting reality or amateur type photography. It really depends on what you final product is going to be and what your budget is.

I use Canon 1D Mark II cameras and Canon Lenses.

of course the deancapture images are nice as always.

he has an understanding of lighting, is using good equipment, pretty girls, experienced post processing, and editing so you will never see a mediocre shot.

but as a basic; if so-called porn "content shooters" understood what DOF is and how it is helpful in isolating and accentuating the subject and blurring out the ubiquitous motel 8 backgrounds everyone uses that would be some good advice.

clue: no surfer jacking his tool really wants to see the Pier1 nightstand in the background. DOF and appropriate focal length for the shot should be key areas of study.

Do you scout your own shoot locations...or are you told where to shoot mostly? Or do you shoot primarily in your own studio/facilities?

Just curious since whenever I get tired of working in our studios...I spend a lot of time scouting locations myself - its a neverending chore.

In Los Angeles there are a number of location companies that offer locations for filming (mainstream and adult) and I tend to use those to find locations. I live in San Diego and don't have the ability right now to scout out locations in LA but I'm planning a move up the street to Los Angeles very soon and then I'll be able to spend more time scouting for places to shoot. Right now I pretty much book them off of the location companies website(s).

I hate shooting in studios. I've shot in studios for years and for me there is nothing like the (fun) challenge of walking into an environment and trying to figure out some cool spots and angles to shoot my photo-sets. The houses that I shoot in are huge mansions with plenty of room for all my gear and plenty of room for my looooong lenses :winkwink:

Yea, wanna teach me how to use my camera it has too many buttons and knobs on it.. :winkwink:

Shit - my camera has too many buttons and knobs on it too. The secret is to only use the ones that you need for your particular application. The only buttons I use on mine is to change aperture, change shutterspeed and change film-speed :winkwink:

Sunday I have a clinic I am attending called
"Fine Art nude Figure "Special Effects" in the Studio"
- Learn composition and how to create abstract images. The use of colored gels and filters, And the use of light and shadows and posing the model will be discussed.

so hopefully I will be able to learn a few things photographers dont like to discuss openly :)

What's a good digital camera. Is something like a rebel worth the money? I want something for kick ass outdoor and sport shots.

Hey Venus - that sounds like a fun workshop for ya'. I can't tell you how many countless workshops that I've attended over the years - some were great and some sucked ass. The way to think about a workshop is hey....if you can pick up a few things here and a few things there - that's what it's all about. No workshop is going to transform your vision overnight though. Only practice and more practice can do that :winkwink:

Good luck on your workshop - keep me posted how it worked out for you!

A good digital camera is subjective. One person may think it's good and someone else may think it's a piece of shit. A good digital camera is the camera that I use: Canon 1D Mark II. In fact, the reason I use them is because they are "good". Of course, I use my cameras a lot and I need something that'll hold up but not everybody has the same needs that I have. Check out DPreview.com for reviews on digital cameras. Maybe some others can give you some input about the Rebel, I've never used one.

what I "hope" to get out of it mostly is lighting techniques.
Here in thephoenix area its hard to find good outdoor shoot locations, its not like vegas, where there are tons of awsome scenery and quiet locations for shoots. Here you have to drive forever to find a place. the clinic is limited to only 5 people so it should be pretty good. I am hoping. the guy giving it has a big studio here and is suppose to be one of the best in the area in nude photography. Not porn, but nude photography.

I love your work. I have too many questions!

I shoulda paid you the $500 tutorial while I had the chance

Thanks Tim - I sent you an email a few days ago and it bounced back for some reason :(

Do you prefer prime lenses or Zoom?
 

Do you prefer prime lenses or Zoom? Is your camera the Mark II DS full frame?

Ah damn. Was this to my Vividcash email (in sig)?

My lenses are zoom lenses. Too much work shooting content with a prime lens. Too much walking in for the closeup shots and moving back for the 3/4 and full length shots. Zoom is the way to go for content production IMO.

My camera is the 1D Mark II (not "s").

No, it was your yahoo email addy that you wrote to me with.

Just resent to the email in your sig :thumbsup

with the lenses you use, do you notice the image darker when you use allot of zoom?
I have a 28-135 canon lense that seems to do that.

I love those pictures....

:)

What is your favorite zoom range
 

What is your favorite zoom range, wide to medium 28-105 or norm to telephoto 70-200? Do you have an aperture preference? When you are setting up a scene do you light for that aperture or vary the aperture for the scene? Thank you for all the helpful information, I have admired your work for a long time.

If your lens is a variable aperture lens, and depending on what aperture your using, you may notice some of the pics are lighter and some are darker as you zoom thruout the focal length of the lens. I use constant aperture lenses and do not have those kinds of problems. All of my lenses are F2.8 lenses thruout the zoom of the lens. You may also notice problems like these when using aftermarket lenses especially cheap ones. By aftermarket I mean lenses that are not made by Nikon, Canon or a some of the other top glass/lens makers.

thanks, that probably explains it mine is
EF 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM

My favorite lens is my Canon 70-200 f2.8 IS lens - I use it for most of my work. In regards to an aperture preference, that depends on what lens I'm using, how much room I have to work in and what kind of flavor I am looking for in the pics etc. I like to use a variety of settings just like I like to use a variety of lighting. Once I figure out what lens and aperture I wanna' use, I'll set the lighting up around those preferences. :thumbsup

Try shooting at f5.6 or smaller aperture (f8, f11, f16 etc) and that should eliminate your problem with that lens. Test it out just to be sure though - keep me posted :thumbsup

Do you ever catch yourself thinking "to hell with that... photoshop can correct that" or are you a perfectionist?

I used to think that to myself but I don't like spending hours and hours behind the computer fixing shit. There have been situations where I'd have this great area picked out for a set of pics and I'll notice a little scratch on the wall behind the girl or a nail hole or something small like that and to me it's worth it to go ahead and do the shoot and retouch that little problem later rather then miss out on shooting a cool set of pics because of something small like that. More often then not though - I try to get it all as good as I can before I take the first pic. There is some pressure though because I have to produce a certain number of sets per day as well as striptease vids so I can't spend as much time as I'd like fine-tuning my sets and shit the way I'd like to. I have a photo-assistant that works closely with me and he does a fantastic job of helping me with things like this. I couldn't do what I do without my lil' team of helpers :thumbsup

People already asked all my questions! pooh.

Ok, here goes: What's your all-time favourite lens/body/aperture combination? Do you prefer macro or full body shots or do you like it all?

Couple questions, may not have direct answer to some though.

1. What brands of make up do you most commonly see used, primarly for skin and to cover blemishes/tattoos etc.
2. Do you have a certain technique that you can share in regards to how to get that perfect butterfly appearance to the vaginal lips?

Elllllllllllllli - [insert hugs for Elli here]

I really don't have a favorite lens/body/aperture combination because it really all depends on what factors I'm working with. How much room do I have to work in? Do I have a background that I'd like to throw out of focus? Would it look better keeping the background in focus? How do I want to light this scene? Hardlight? Softlight? One light? 5 lights? Once I've got all that figured out, then I'll decide which lens to use and what aperture/shutterspeed combination would work best for what I'm trying to capture (no pun intended).

In regards to macro or full body shots...I love doing it all. No preference from me on that really. For me .... a nice set of pictures has a combination of all those. Some full length, some 3/4 length and some closeup "macro" shots of all the womanly parts. If the girl has outstanding features (boobs, ass etc), I may concentrate more on those areas and play down her weaknesses (bad boob jobs, cellulite etc.) I've been practicing (and learning a great deal) with hiding problem areas using clothing and posing. Some things I learned from the guys over at Playboy :winkwink:

I have no idea on the makeup question. I use a professional hair/makeup girl who also works with the folks at Playboy and she has a whole bunch of shit she lays out at our shoots. Whatever she uses...the girls (models) love it. I've had more compliments from these models that we've been shooting about the hair/makeup and photography then I've ever had in the past.

In regards to the question about vaginal lips....this totally depends on the girl and her particular lip structure. Some girls have bigger lips that lay open so beautifully and some do not :thumbsup

Pretty simple one for you Dean. I will be shooting some stuff in a night club. What is the best way to get the best photos.

Thanks for the hugs and the answers, Dean! As always, a true professional. Only a less artistic sort would say he just sticks the camera in F11 and leaves it for the rest of the shoot. ;)

do you do manual white balance?

This one's not photography related, but maybe you'll tell me...

I have spoken to shapette about shooting for Twisty's. But, for me to find the numbers of locations/models/mua's that I would need I think I would need to relocate from the midwest where folks are still a bit uppity when it comes to shootin' nekkid girls, at least compared to the jaded hills of southern Cali.

So, my question is, How much work can I expect from Twisty's? Is there enough work for another photographer? Shapette said she was interested in having me come on board, but I'm wondering if the increased work with them would offset the increased living expense of the west coast, or maybe Miami.

You should give the 85mm 1.2 L glass a try. Nice piece, takes in light like a black hole.

Hmmmm - are you talking like paparazzi type stuff? This is not really an area that I know much about so I'll defer this question to someone who might know more about shooting in night clubs. :thumbsup

Always :thumbsup

One way to stop this problem for you would be to set the aperture to 5.6 minimum, then the exposure would remain the same throughout the zoom. I assume you are using some other mode than manual, though? Program?

Try putting the camera in aperture mode, but be careful, if the light gets too low you will slow down the shutter some and may get some blur due to camera movement (unless your on a tripod)

Your best bet (in my opinion) is to stay away from the west coast. Why come here and shoot the same girls using the same locations that everyone else is using already?

A better idea is to figure out how to find cute girls in middle america that nobody has ever seen. That way you can shoot them for Twistys as well as any number of other websites. Donovan Phillips could move to any city he wants to and setup shop but he likes to live in little college towns. Why? Because that's where the cute girls are. The challenge for you is to figure out how to find cute girls in your area and get them in for shoots. If you can continually find and photograph cute fresh faced girls, you'll find yourself with more work then you can handle - I guarantee it :thumbsup

no, not you. of course you do. i was asking Venus, cause this could be another reason that her closeups look different :upsidedow

Ooops - sorry :winkwink: