Everything in Harmony

Here comes another portrait. There are three things I like about this photo. First, it is the lighting which provides a very soft light quality with no shadows on the walls behind. It was achieved by Speedlite 580EXII on a stand to camera left with Walimex Magic Square Softbox 60x60cm as the key light. The fill was provided by my on-camera flash bouncing off the wall and ceiling to the right. Second, I think that the overall composition is quite pleasing. There are many leading lines pointing towards my subject who is placed pretty much in the center. Then I tried to fill each corner of the photo with something to create a balanced atmosphere. The lamps, sofa, table with a flowerpot and the hint of a picture frame create this overall harmony which is enhanced by the relaxed look of the lady. Third, the blue colors on her dress nicely complement the other overall warm colors. I was very happy about this photo. Enjoy! Camera spec: Canon 5D mark ii with Canon 24-105 4L at 35mm, F8 @ 1/60, ISO 200.

First Spring Sun

A few weeks ago I was asked by my wife's friend to come for a visit and to take a few portraits. The weather was very nice, in fact I would say it was the first really sunny day this year, so I looked around her house for a nice location to capture the first sun beams of the year. I really like the yellow wall contrasting with the blue dress. There is quite some negative space to her left with an interesting red door to balance the composition of the photo. The sun was too strong, so I simply asked her to close the eyes and enjoy the sun. A little bit of on-camera fill flash (probably -2 EV) was used to lift the shadows. Camera spec: Canon 5D mark ii with Canon 24-105 4L at 67mm, F9 @ 1/400, ISO 100.

Two Presidents Meet

When the presidents of China and USA meet, everybody wants to take the best shot, right? This time I was thinking differently. While all other photographers were crowded behind the wall on the right side, I slipped through the secret secvice in order to get a less ordinary photo of the two presidents and the result was worth it, what do you think? Well, right ..., nobody will believe me this, I know. The fact is that the photo was taken while visiting the exhibition of international affairs in Macao last autumn. I was working on a photo marathon assignment where one of the tasks was called "Obama Look A Like". I saw the big poster with both presidents and immediately thought what a lucky coincidence. But only for a while because it was obvious that taking just an ordinary snapshot of the poster would be way too easy to fulfill my homework. So I was thinking how differently I can photograph this scene and noticed the nice wooden wall at the entrance. I found it interesting and tried to bring a political dimension to my photo by placing the two presidents into different frames. I like how the warm welcome contrasts with this framing, indicating perhaps two contradictory faces of the relationships between China and USA these days. Camera spec: Canon 20D with Canon 28-105, 3.5-4.5 USM at 30mm, F3.5 @ 1/40, ISO 1600.

Robinson Crusoe

Well, yesterday we took a trip to the local ZOO in Aalborg. Many animals were still hidden because of the relatively cold weather this year, but the penguins were quite happy about the conditions. It took a long time to wait for this photo because I wanted only one penguin to be featured here. The elements in the composition do not allow the viewer's eyes to escape and since I first saw the photo I liked it. Black and white conversion in Lightroom helped to emphasize the small penguin in the picture. Taking the atmosphere and the surroundings into account, I decided to call it Robinson Crusoe. Does not it look like a lonely penguin on a deserted island? Camera spec: Canon 5D mark ii with Canon 70-200 4L at 200mm, F4.5 @ 1/500, ISO 100.

Dancers in the Parade

Let me present another photo from the last weekend's street parade in Aalborg downtown. I like the movement in the photo and the engagement of the dances. It was a great show and a pleasure to watch. Let's see what the main carnival and the battle of carnival bands will look like in May! Camera spec: Canon 5D mark ii with Canon 70-200 4L at 98mm, F4 @ 1/640, ISO 400.

Parade and Drums

Here is a photo I took during the parade at Aalborg last week. I like the dedication and engagement of the drum players; it is literally impossible to take an uninteresting photo of them. The overcast day of the parade was perfect for shooting, so I didn't have to use my on-camera flash for fill. The only limitation was the focusing of my Canon 5D mark ii. Normally, I am not that much into action photography so I never complained about it, but on this parade I could feel the limitations. Maybe I need to get the new 1D mark iv :-) Camera spec: Canon 5D mark ii with Canon 70-200 4L at 140mm, F4 @ 1/640, ISO 400.