Portrait Project: Stephanie & Mariel

My portrait project is forcing me to be flexible and creative. I never know what kind of setting/props I am going to encounter, and one of the challenges is to use what’s at hand to make compelling images. I am finding that my basic kit has been winnowed down to the 1DmkIII, the 5D, my trusty 24-70 f/2.8L and my new (and beloved) 85 f/1.2L. To fill things out I bring both of my speedlites, and usually a single Alienbees B800 with a medium softbox. If I have a particular concept in mind, I’ll add a third lens, but that is pretty much all I’ve needed.

When I got to Stephanie and Mariel’s house, the first thing that struck me was the shape–their house looks sort of like a hobbit house (sorry, I didn’t take pictures of the outside). Secondly, when I walked in, I saw The Chair–a beautiful red leather chair that Mariel bought–and I’m being totally serious here–for $5 off of Craigslist. That might actually be the most remarkable part of this photoshoot. I mean, you can’t see in the photos that the chair is a little worse for wear, but for $5? Sold.

Obviously, I had to incorporate the chair into a shot. I had them pose in this sort of very serious, formal portrait, and then I lit them with the AB800 so that they’d have good light, and you’d be able to see the greenery behind them (which I feel adds to the shot).

When I am photographing multiple people for a session, I try to shoot them both together and separate, just in case one comes out stronger or more compelling than the other. I quite like the photo of Stephanie above, but it was ultimately the photo of the two of them together that I think works best as a whole. Still, these blog posts allow me to show some of the other photos that didn’t make the cut.