360Photography

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  • Ben Trovato – The Falling + BTS Video

    “All you can do is be confusing. Don’t ever empty the bucket of mystery. Never let people define what you do. It’s not about zigging when you should zag. It’s not about doing something unprecedented and unpredictable. It’s just about never being a word, or something that is not in the process of transformation.”

    -Marilyn Manson

    2012 started with an upheaval of change. Painful, gut-wrenching, seismic change. From January 1st, my life began a new journey. Part of that new journey was my reconciliation with the way I see. The thing is, I’ve always been a little weird. I’ve been told my work is “edgy” since my college days. “Dark, mysterious, seductive, depressing, edgy, suicidal, achingly beautiful, tortured, cathartic”…..these are all words I’ve heard over the years describing my work. So I tried to conform, to shoot in a style that wasn’t mine but would appease the masses. I shot freckled girls in denim jeans on white backgrounds holding puppies and smiling toothy grins of teenaged innocence. I’ve shot long legged girls in itsy-bitsy bikinis on pearl sanded beaches with come hither eyes. I’ve shot commercially acceptable, masses approachable, clean, honest and totally sans “edge” fashion photographs.

    But it hasn’t been my vision. This work was not mine! So with the upheaval of change that this year forced upon me came the renewed sense of my own Self, facing me again, asking myself, what’s it all about. I came up with this: if I can’t shoot what I love and how I see, what’s the point.

    I flew to my hometown, Los Angeles, on January 9th and I threw myself into work. I know, ironic right? I leave NYC land of fashion uberness to go to tacky LA to throw myself into work. I find it very odd that NY’ers hate LA people but LA people LOVE NY’ers. I think when you’re laying in the sun on January 15th in the backyard sipping on a mojito planning the menu for your outdoor barbeque that evening, there’s really nothing for an LA person to hate on  a NY’er. But that’s just one theory. Any way, back to me going home: I shot 4 editorials and 2 video commercials in 6 weeks. I collaborated with my dear friend Rodney Burns who styled all the shoots. Ben Trovato being one of them.

    The technical specs on this shoot can’t be any simpler. I shot with no artificial light. I used a large window to the right of the set as my key. That’s it. I shot with the Nikon D3 with my 85mm at 1/160th of a sec at about F4. I shot anywhere from 400 to 1000 ISO. I was inspired by a picture I found of Keith Richards. One picture. That’s all it took. What really tied the shoot together for me was shooting the story on a Fashion Back Drop. I have mentioned my friend, Sedi Pak, in previous posts. Her back drops are amazing and really embellish my shoots! You can view the full editorial on Ben Trovato here.

    I look at the results, the final pictures, and I’m pleased. But the feeling goes beyond being “satisfied”. I’m home. If that makes any sense. Shooting what I love and how I see fashion. My greatest wish for myself is that I can stick to this and not listen to people anymore telling me I must conform and change to shoot in a style that isn’t mine. I guess we’re all going to find out together if I can stick to my guns and stay true to my vision now.  I’ve shed a lot of baggage so far this year. A lot of negative, heavy, cumbersome baggage. And I’m continuing to shed more. The excuses to NOT stick to my guns are getting fewer and fewer. Since my blog is very public (haha….understatement of the century) you’re all along on this journey WITH me…….so as I like to say…..stay tuned.

    The Video


    Fashion Photography Blog – A Resource for Fashion Photographers, Created by One.

  • Kurv Magazine White Story + BTS Video

    In keeping with my commitment to stay true to my vision and to continue shooting in a style that is my own, I shot this white story for Kurv Magazine’s spring issue in a way I’ve always wanted to see a White Story.

    Shot and Edited by: Marty Martin

    I’ve done plenty of white stories over the years, but I always sort of compromised here and there because whoever I was shooting for didn’t want to go exactly in the direction I wanted to take it in. In the end, I was always a bit disappointed in the results. But not this time. This shoot, I’m fairly pleased with.

    Again, I collaborated with Rodney Burns from Church Boutique in Hollywood, California. I can’t even begin to describe how amazing it is to work with Rodney. He’s on my DVD, I write about him all the time, and yet every time I work with him it feels so magical, as if it’s the first time we’re collaborating and I can’t believe my eyes! He’s THAT good! He pulled these pieces from designer Furne One that truly blew my mind. And he coordinated the clothing to compliment the pieces. I trust his eye completely and just KNOW that my shoots are going to rock because of his amazing taste.

    I wanted two blondes for this shoot. I’ve worked with Sarah Deanna before and she’s just amazing. She’s as beautiful on the inside as she is on the out! She also is publishing a book soon called Model Skinny. She writes about her healthy secrets on how one can get skinny and stay skinny the healthy way! I love a girl who gives back to our industry in a positive and loving way! I thought Jennifer was a good match for Sarah Deanna because, well ,she’s a stone cold fox as well! Both girls were on point and really knew how to emote for the story. James from Photogenics helped me cast this shoot. It was nice to work with “the old team”, so to speak.

    I worked with make up artist Camille Clark from AIM Artists. I’ve worked with Camille many times when I lived in LA and she’s a very talented make up artist. I was excited to work with her again and ended up using her on 3 out of 4 editorials that I shot in LA. Hair stylist Jonathan Mason came on board that day. This was actually the first time I worked with Jonathan and that day we sort of bonded to the point that now when I am in LA, he’s my go to hair stylist. Thanks again to Timothy Priano, owner of Artists by Timothy Priano, for making that introduction!

    I used window light and Christmas tree lights behind a silk against a backdrop  as my lighting sources. That’s it! I know, I’m sorry I don’t have some great big lighting set up to break off for you. This is my lighting and how I see fashion shot and I never have liked seeing things over-lit. I’ve said that numerous times. Over and over, I’ve reiterated how I use one light, or “less is more” or keep it simple. Well, I’ve gone even more simple now, using available light from a window or the continuous light from the room we are shooting in as my key or main lighting source.

    Of course, I used the Nikon D3 and my 85mm lens for the shoot. I also used my 24mm lens and a 50mm lens as well. I think what makes this shoot really work is the amazing styling from Rodney and the emoting from two very professional models, Sarah Deanna and Jennifer. And me staying true to my vision! More to come and excited to continue to share with you my vision! Keep it real! xoxo


    Fashion Photography Blog – A Resource for Fashion Photographers, Created by One.

  • Nikon announces digiscoping adapters for 1 System cameras

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    Nikon has announced two digiscoping accessories for its 1 System cameras, allowing them to be used to take pictures through telescopes. The DSA-N1 can be used to connect a Nikon 1 system camera directly to a telescope eyepiece. Meanwhile the DSB-N1 is a bracket that holds the camera behind the telescope, and includes a mechanical cable release adapter. Both will be available in December, with RRPs of £219.99 and £169.99 for the DSA-N1 and DSB-N1 respectively.

    News: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

  • Nikon announces digiscoping adapters for 1 System cameras

    DSAN1.png

    Nikon has announced two digiscoping accessories for its 1 System cameras, allowing them to be used to take pictures through telescopes. The DSA-N1 can be used to connect a Nikon 1 system camera directly to a telescope eyepiece. Meanwhile the DSB-N1 is a bracket that holds the camera behind the telescope, and includes a mechanical cable release adapter. Both will be available in December, with RRPs of £219.99 and £169.99 for the DSA-N1 and DSB-N1 respectively.

    News: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

  • DPReview Recommends: Top Five Zoom Compact Cameras

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    ‘What camera should I buy?’ That’s a question we get asked a lot here at dpreview, and it’s a tough one to answer. We use a lot of cameras, from simple point-and-shoot models to professional workhorses, and everything in between. To help you make a buying decision this holiday season, we’ve put together a short article which covers five of what we think are the best zoom compact cameras on the market right now, and summarized their strengths and weaknesses. Click through to see what we think. 

    News: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

  • Just Posted: Canon PowerShot G15 review

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    Just Posted: Our Canon PowerShot G15 review. The G15 is one of the latest wave of updated enthusiast compact cameras and it follows this season’s trend of gaining a brighter lens and CMOS sensor in the process. It still offers a 28-140mm equivalent lens range but its maximum aperture range has been pushed to F1.8-2.8 – a whole stop faster, throughout its range, than the older G12. It’s lost that camera’s flip-out screen but has lost bulk in the process and has retained that rarest of things – an optical viewfinder. Will this makeover of the G-series formula be enough to win back its place at the top of the heap? Read our review to find out.

    News: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

  • Roger Cicala cock-a-hoop* over Sigma’s 35mm F1.4 DG HSM

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    Lensrentals’ Roger Cicala hasn’t always been a fan of Sigma’s lenses but the company’s latest 35mm F1.4 seems to have got him pretty excited. He’s written a very positive first impressions blog post, considering the build and test data from the first sample he’s received. As usual, he’s very careful to stress the limitations of what he’s reporting – specifically that these are early impressions, based on a single lens that he’s had little chance to actually take photos with. However, he’s also someone with immense experience with lenses, and is in the unusual position of having had the opportunity to strip the lens down, so we found his insight interesting. (From Lensrentals)

    News: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

  • Photographer creates time-lapse showing D600 ‘dust’ accumulation

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    Canadian photographer Kyle Clemens has created a timelapse video which shows the slow accumulation of debris on the sensor of his brand new Nikon D600. When we reviewed the D600 we expressed concern about the propensity of its sensor to gather specks of debris, and Clements raises the troubling possibility that whatever it is that’s ending up on the D600’s sensor could be coming from inside the camera. Click through for the full video and a link to Kyle Clements’ blog where he investigates the issue. 

    News: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

  • Bryce Bayer, inventer of Bayer Filter, passes away aged 83

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    Imaging Resource has published an obituary of Bryce Bayer, who passed away recently. Often called the ‘father of digital imaging’, former Kodak scientist Bryce Bayer invented and gave his name to the so-called ‘Bayer Filter’ – a mosaic pattern of red, green and blue filters which allows silicon sensors that are only sensitive to luminance to capture information about the color in a scene. Patented in 1976, the RGBG Bayer Filter has since become essentially ubiquitous, being used in virtually all digital imaging systems from medium-format backs to smartphones. Click through for a link to the obituary at www.imagingresource.com.

    News: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

  • Hands-on with Android 4.2’s Photo Sphere

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    While most smartphones still lag behind dedicated cameras in image quality they come with a lot more processing power and the ability to install apps. This allows you to do things on the move which, when done with a digital camera, would require a computer, a piece of software and some serious screen time. Android’s Photo Sphere feature is a good example – it allows you to stitch individual images into a 360° Photos Sphere and immerse yourself in a scene. Photo Sphere is part of the camera app of Android 4.2 – the latest version, as featured on the Nexus 4 smartphone. We’ve taken it out and had a play with it, click through to see how we got on.

    News: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)