Now you see it...

pixeldawg

TPF Noob!
Joined
Nov 21, 2008
Messages
155
Reaction score
2
Location
Alabama
Can others edit my Photos
Photos NOT OK to edit
OK... SInce I put comments up on some of the images in this gallery, it's only fair for you to bash me back, right??? :lol:

This is my friend Kurt Anderson. Kurt is a professional magician and goes all over the country performing. His big trick is making a car disappear. Anyway, a while back, he'd called me and asked if I could shoot some new publicity shots of him. I'd looked around on the internet at some of the other magicians and was shocked at how bad the publicity shots were. REALLY bad. So, I decided to so something that was simple, but well done.

Now, if you're like most people, you're looking at this saying "That flame isn't real, it's photoshopped in. Wrong! Magicians use this HIGHLY flammable paper to make their "poof" fires. They hold it in a small container in the palm of their hand and it gets lit and shot out at the same time. I decided that since the flame was in essence a flash, I'd use my flash meter to measure the light it emitted and then build the other lighting around that.

This is a four light setup with Alien Bee's. 3 400's and an 800 for the main "Softbox" light. If you're interested in seeing more about how I did this shot, you can read the article that I wrote for Popular Photography & Imaging here:

http://www.popphoto.com/lighting/3707/four-light-portrait-how-to.html

Anyway, here's the photo... hope you enjoy it!

 
that looks soo. fake....but i totally belive you its real........gREAT PIC
 
Might be a good picture, but you should have had him look on the net for some fashion inspiration.
 
Might be a good picture, but you should have had him look on the net for some fashion inspiration.

Actually, it's a part of his act. He used to dress in the typical tux, but now does an act that's geared toward younger people. Thanks for the comments! :D
 
I am younger, and my advise is to get someone younger to help dress him because I dont know of many people my age into a look like that. Just trying to help.
 
The way the hair light is hitting is hair and shoulders, it almost appears that hes be cut and pasted onto the background.
 
Ha! nope, no cut and past on this shot. All shot at the same time. In fact, we only shot about 6-7 frames of this pose before we got one we liked. The most difficult part of making this image was getting the position of the flame in a pleasing location.

Also, if you'll look closely at those highlights on his shoulders, you'll see that there's detail there and that it is indeed his shirt and not background.

Not trying to be snooty, but there's a huge difference between almost correct and truly correct lighting. A good hair and rim light SHOULD seperate the subject from the background. And again, if it's done correctly, should be evenly lit and not blown out.
 
:thumbup: I think you accomplished what you wanted: "simple, but well done". It's a nice shot, and I think you get the point across that he's a magician without him looking like a total cheeseball which is definitely good. It's funny though because the fireball does look kind of fake. But I guess I haven't taken too many fireball pictures to compare it to. ;) Nice job.
 
I am younger, and my advise is to get someone younger to help dress him because I dont know of many people my age into a look like that. Just trying to help.

What your suggesting is really the job of a stylist, not a photographer. My job is to simply represent him in the "best possible light"... hahaha... get it? :lol: Thanks once and all for your interest and comments. I appreciate all of them!
 
I can only imagine how hard that shot is to capture. Nice job.
 
I did forget to mention that I do like the flame. What sells the flame for me is the reflection on the shirt and hand from the flame. I have been trying to capture a match at ignition...and I know of this super flammable paper...its tough and you did a great job capturing.
 
Thanks, all! I appreciate your interest in my image. Since I am a fairly proficient sports photographer, I likened this to shooting a football game or other sporting event. Surprisingly, it only took about 6-7 frames to get this shot. The flame was positioned well in two other shots, but his face didn't have that "confident" look to it that this shot has. To be honest, the worst part of making this image was to ensure that the light(s) were balanced with the flame. To get a reading of the flame, I used a Minolta Flashmeter III, since the flame is, in essence a flash of light similar to a strobe.

And kudos to you for seeing the reflection of the flame in the hand. If it had been photoshopped, this detail would have more than likely been left out. At least if *I* was doing the Post work! :lol:
 
how did you get the flames reflection to dissapear from his eyes ? Im not saying its not real, just hard to do that. Also it should be lighting up his face and shirt too .

is that why you desaturated it a little ?

just curious.
 
What great questions! First, if I recall the PP work correctly, there was no desaturation done on this image.

If you look closely into the left eye, the flame is the left catch-light. Hard to see in low rez, but very visable in the high resolution version.

The light in the strobe is slightly more powerful than the ambient light of the flame, so the flame doesn't have the glow of an ambient flame.

The magician, Kurt Anderson has a "My Space" page. I invite you to contact him directly there and ask HIM if the flame is real... :D
 

Most reactions

Back
Top