PRO ANALYSIS
We examine a magical environmental portrait from pro shooter Alessandro Di Cicco and look at the kit and creativity needed to achieve it
NAME: Closed Dreams
DATE: October 2018
KIT: Canon EOS 5D MARK III Canon EF 85mm f/1.2L USM
WEBSITE: www.diciccophotos.com ISO
1/160
f/1.6 100
sec
“MY ADVICE FOR CAPTURING A SIMILAR IMAGE IS THAT YOU NEED TO HAVE A LOT OF PATIENCE POSITIONING THE LIGHTS ONE BY ONE, ALL WHILE TAKING EXAMPLE SHOTS.”
FOCUS FALL-OFF
BY USING AN APERTURE OF F/1.6 ALESSANDRO IS ABLE TO FEATURE A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF THE LOCATION ENVIRONMENT IN THE FRAME, WITHOUT THE TANGLED DETAIL OF THE FOREST SETTING DRAWING THE EYE AWAY FROM
THE MODEL. A TELEPHOTO, WIDE-APERTURE PRIME LENS SUCH AS HIS 85MM F/1.2 OPTIC ALLOWS COMPRESSION OF THE SCENE AND A STEEP FOCUS GRADIENT, BLURRING EVERYTHING BEYOND A FEW FEET FROM THE SUBJECT – A MUST-HAVE LOCATION
PORTRAITURE LENS.
LIGHTING CONTINUITY
WITH MIXED LIGHTING, USING BOTH NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL SOURCES, IT’S IMPORTANT THAT THE LIGHT DIRECTION MAKES SENSE AND IS REALISTIC. ADJUSTING THE POSITION OF YOUR LIGHTS ENSURES AN ATTRACTIVE STRUCTURE WHICH DOES NOT TAKE THE VIEWER OUT OF THE NARRATIVE. “IN TOTAL I BOUGHT OVER 30 LANTERNS,” SAYS ALESSANDRO. “THE MOST CHALLENGING PART WAS ACTUALLY SETTING UP THE LANTERNS ONE BY ONE AND I SPENT THE FIRST HOUR PLAYING AROUND WITH THEM. WHEN I STARTED SHOOTING I PLACED THEM DIFFERENTLY IN EACH FRAME.”
EYELINE
THE BRIGHT CENTRAL LIGHT AND THE GAZE OF THE MODEL ACT AS A STRONG VISUAL ANCHOR, KEEPING THE VIEWER AT THE ZONE OF INTEREST. THIS MEANS THAT WHILE THE LIGHTS AND DETAIL IN THE BACKGROUND CONTRIBUTE TO THE ATMOSPHERE OF THE SCENE, THEY DO NOT ACT AS DISTRACTIONS FROM THE SUBJECT. VIEWERS OF A PHOTO NATURALLY FOLLOW THE EYELINE OF A PERSON PRESENT, SO IF THE MODEL IS NOT LOOKING AT THE CAMERA, IT IS IMPORTANT TO CONTROL WHERE THEIR GAZE WILL DIRECT THE AUDIENCE.
MUTED PALETTE
“AT FIRST I WAS GOING FOR A PINKISH VERSION OF THIS PHOTO, BUT THEN I PROCESSED IT AGAIN AND I WANTED EVERYTHING TO BE NEARLY THE SAME COLOUR – A SOFT PINKY GOLD,” EXPLAINS ALESSANDRO. PART OF THE ATTRACTION OF THIS SHOT IS THE ALMOST MONOCHROMATIC FEEL. NO SINGLE COLOUR DOMINATES THE SCENE AND, WITH THE ANALOGOUS HUES OF THE MODEL’S CLOTHING SHE SEEMS TO BECOME PART OF THE ENVIRONMENT. THIS PRODUCES AN ENGAGING, YET RESTFUL IMAGE.