and some pics of a hip hop artist

andrew todd · Jul 8, 2007

so i shoot mostly skate photography.. and do a little portrait stuff on the side and was asked by this local hip hop artist to do some work in the same style i shoot my skate stuff for him to use for promotion.. so.. i didnt even bother to bring out the studio strobes or modifiers.. just two handle mount bare bulb flashes for a harsh lit sort of look.. let me know what you think... i tried to get as many different looks i could out of one location in a half an hour shoot

sayambhu · Jul 8, 2007

dear andrew,

WOW ! great shoot out !

I just wish the background in #1 would be a bit more exposed so that you can make out the graffiti. it complements the portrait extremely well.

is the second one at a studio or is the BG real ? if its real, I wish the light on the left was a bit diffused since the brightness of the t-shirt is pulling away attention from the side-face.

have nothing to say about the third one - its like in some magazine or something - cant get any better !!

for the fourth one, I would just lasso the NY logo on the cap in PS and expose it a bit more (let me know if I can try it out and post it here).

man, you're one of the best I found here !! keep up the great job !

:thumbup:

andrew todd · Jul 8, 2007

thanks alot

i agree with everything u said.. yes this was all shot under an overpass .. no studio.. with 2 really cheap flashes.. i could have brought out the studio setup but i figured these would be all i needed.. feel free to edit away.

the third pic was funny.. i was like.. "hey man.. u got any ideas for something else that youd like to have:

and he was like "yeah.. i want like.. a flash of light coming over my shoulder.."

so... i put a flash over his shoulder,,

actually.. theres no flash.. hes just got a huge bling diamond earing and it caught the light well

notelliot · Jul 8, 2007

2 and 3 are my favorites of the set. good work.

andrew todd · Jul 8, 2007

i forgot this one

newrmdmike · Jul 8, 2007

good stuff. my ONLY suggestion would be to have had a light on the graffiti, but its just an idea. what flash units do you use?

i'm impressed with how well you handle the light from them!

sayambhu · Jul 9, 2007

dear andrew, whats up man ! your last shot is a masterpiece over again. just a couple of botherations :

1. the cloudish art the on right is a bit distracting.. we can wash it out in PS, guess it would look better then.

2. right cheek of the subject is overexposed.. I'll share a little suggestion on what we do for strong strobe lights, if we dont have diffusers. you take a good quality sheet of white paper, oil it uniformly (taking care it doesnt get absolutely drenched and torn though) and let it dry for atleast 30 mins. you use it infront of the bulb then : it works out wonders.

(here's a tip : if you use a yellow strobe, putting a custom made diffuser infront of it gives you a seaside-sunset golden tone : that looks awesome!).

you can also control the intensity by putting up two or more such oiled diffusers for brighter or darker shades. if you're out of oil or paper, just put up your white t-shirt or a simple white paper infront of it ! (bringing the sheet closer to the bulb increases and taking it away decreases the intensity of light).

do try these out for a change, promise you'll have great photographs.

3. try throwing a bit of exposure onto the cross on the chest the next time. would look even cooler.

let us have more great pictures ! all the best ~*