Shoot with Nikki Du Plessis
Hey all
I thought I would pop in quickly and share a few images that I took of gorgeous Nikki Du Plessis.
As one of my favourite models to photograph, I just had to share a few shots with you. The photoshoot was done for submission to online magazines as a feature, and then we shot a few extra scenes which we are allowed to share.
Nikki is a internationally recognised model, she has worked with alot of local and international photographers and brands including the official "black tape project" and "paradise challenge".
As always I was honoured to have the opportunity to work with her again.
Quick rundown on what gear I used for this.
- Canon 5D mkiii
- Canon 70-200mm f2.8 L
- Canon 16-35mm f2.8 L
- Canon 85mm f1.8
- 2x yongnuo yn500ex flashes
- 1x yongnuo yn568 (nikon flash on slave mode)
- yongnuo 622c trigers
- and a 3 way speedlight bracket
- numerous memory cards
- eneloop pro AA batteries.
- and a regular large shoot through umbrella...
I mount all 3 flashes to one bracket and shoot on 1/4th power on each. This way i have 3 times the power and a way larger light source which I can use quick as the recycle time on 1/4th power is very fast about 1sec.
Having one flash at full power will overheat and only one head firing makes it a small share source.
For this shoot I used smaller apertures as well. From 4-7.1, this was to compensate for the really strong mid day sun, and also to give a very share and rounded look to the model, and as the background was far from the model we still have really nice separation from the background.
Retouching is all done by me through Photoshop, and I use lightroom for colour processing, also exporting to jpg format.
thats about it.
check out the images below.
also heres nikkis social media links
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NikkiduPlessismodel
- twitter: https://twitter.com/NikkiduPlessis2
- instagram: https://instagram.com/miss_nikkiduplessis/
Here are my social links too please follow
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OpticalNoisefanpage?fref=ts
- twitter: https://twitter.com/OpticalNoise
- instagram: https://instagram.com/opticalnoise/
hope you enjoy :D
rob
A look into my dance photography
Hey all I know that I have been quiet since I left on my trip to Cape Town in July. During my stay I had my camera bag and gear stolen and it kind of threw me off quite a bit. So lets get back into it.
I have decided to start off with sharing some info about my dance photography and why I adore it so much. Also a little info into how I freeze motion with flash (speed lights)
I have always been around dancers, and now recently I have been able to photographed a lot of dancers. Which makes me very happy. :D
Some was photographed using flash, and some of the older shots were shot without flash. Most recently I have been working a lot with speed lights so that I can utilize the High Speed sync function.
With dancers moving so fast you sit with the decision of is the slight or heavy motion blur ok or not, do you prefer frozen solid or a slight feel of movement? I try getting both, all depending what I feel is more important at the time. Most of the time a sharp frozen in time is key for me.
Now to make a dancer freeze solid you need to shoot with a very fast shutter speed, and with most sync speeds of 1/160th or 1/200th is way too slow. Especially when it comes to break dancers or ballerinas. Some of the moves they remain still and that’s easy enough but when a foot or arm has to be swung to get to the climax of the movement then the shutter speed is key.
I have noticed that anything under 1/800th is never sharp. So my go to speed for these shoots are 1/800th and 1/1000th. I would go faster but the flash can’t handle it always and I end up killing the flashes. When I get more speed lights this will be more suitable. For now I work off 2 yongnuo YN500ex flashes. Which are around 1/4th power or 1/2 power. Full power also kills the flash when fired too much, and I usually mount both on one bracket, and either bare or with a shoot through umbrella depending on the light situation.
With HSS you need a much higher power output to make it affect the image at all. Do a quick test shoot a photo at 1/200th, then at 1/250th. The difference of HSS is seen easily.
I only use Eneloop pro batteries, which goes a long way when I do this. They recycle quite fast and don’t overheat easy.
Using flash just allows you to create a very unique light effect on the dancer, which creates contrast and makes it different. Shooting without flash at super high speeds is pretty simple. If you can anticipate and time the move nicely that’s all it is, but with flash the look of the image using strobist techniques will create a nice feel.
Here is a photo I took in Jhb CBD a while back of bboy Lab-A . No flash, just high iso, with a canon 85mm f1.8 wide open and the only here’s we had was an above streetlight
Then here is a shot of Bboy Curse in Cape Town shot using high-speed sync (1/2000th)
I love speed lights because of the uses they have. I have completely moved away from studio strobes. If I could afford a strobe like an elinchrom ranger or profoto B1 then maybe id do that. But even with my in studio work I have been using only speed lights. Maybe I will do another write up on using speed lights to do studio work. Just remember light is light, however you can get it into the shot, it will work.
I can do a more in depth write up on the exact settings for each shot if you guys are keen to know more. But this is my introduction: D
Check my site
www.opticalnoise.net
Instagram @opticalnoise
Keen to hear from you all. Lets hope they publish it.
I will try attaching a bunch of images to this as well.
Enjoy
#Speedlightsonly
More of my dance photos with and without flash all together
#chickswithkicksSA campaign
This past Saturday we worked on the newest installment of out #chickswithkicksSA campaign. previously named #sneakerpornSA which we changed because of a change in direction and sponsors.
shoot went very well, models were gorgeous, and all of the team worked together to create something really awesome!
My gear for this one:
Canon 5D mark iii
canon 85mm f1.8
Sigma 24-70mm f2.8 (my sponsor sigma SA)
canon 35mm f1.4 (loan from friend)
canon 580ex flash
I always have a good time working with this team and all these models are people iv worked with in the past which made this very simple for me. Some of the most professional models iv worked with. Please have a look at their other work if you need anyone.
i wont say too much more. i would just like you all to have a look at below images and if you like it go look at our other accounts!
let me introduce to you who we shot with
models
Kristin Van Dijk
Carrie-Leigh Aliyyah Miranda
Nicole Jowett
Photography by myself Robert Harris / Optical Noise Photography
Video crew / Man of action concept - Umar Bradlow
second camera - Suprise
Creative director - Tebogo Mogola
Stylist: Sumaya Petersen
Make up by: Leanne Roux
Most of the sneakers from Lost Property in cape town
click on their names for links to their pages.
please keep a eye on our instagram, facebook and twitter get everyone's accounts
we will be releasing a teaser video and a full video in not too long. which is going to be insane!
our facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/OpticalNoisefanpage
twitter:
https://twitter.com/OpticalNoise
instagram:
http://instagram.com/opticalnoise
keep us updated and tweet us on what you think about it this far!
robert harris
