Your mission, should you choose to accept it.....

[Mad Dave]

....is to find a really nice image in a magazine, and then try to reproduce the effect.

Im going to try and reproduce the nice dreamy effect seen in this shot:



Thats the cover of the mag - i mean the black and white lady in the pic.

Ill post results if i manage to crack it

[Byff]

Thats a good mission to accept.

Hmmm.....how to convince Jenny McCarthy to pose naked in my garden

[Mad Dave]

Well my birds quite a good likeness to that shot anyway, and shes pretty used to my scatty photographic whims by now. All i need to decide now, is whether to make her stand behind a veil/white sheet, or to stick some to the lens!!

[srider]

Mad Dave said:

Well my birds quite a good likeness to that shot anyway, and shes pretty used to my scatty photographic whims by now. All i need to decide now, is whether to make her stand behind a veil/white sheet, or to stick some to the lens!!

you'll need some pretty tasty lighting too...

[Mad Dave]

Hmmm, i was going to use some table lamps!

[simpo two]

It's all in the lighting - you need nice soft lighting, eg bounced off a wall or reflector. Even so you'll need more Watts that you think! Another option is light from a north-facing window.

'Learn by Doing' as they say - we look forward to seeing the results

[Mad Dave]

Hmmm. I reckon newspaper would bounce nice soft light. Ill see what i can come up with

[simpo two]

Mad Dave said:

Hmmm. I reckon newspaper would bounce nice soft light. Ill see what i can come up with

I think if you're shooting something the size of a person or torso, a sheet gaffer-taped to a pole etc might do better - still, busk it and see what happens!
You can borrow my 2000W blonde if you like...

[Mad Dave]

My current plan is to stand my girlfriend in front of a white sheet, with other white sheets to the side of her - with lights behind them. Hopefully that will give nice soft, diffused light?

2000w blonde? Presumably thats a hefty old floodlight? Many thanks for the offer - whereabouts are you based? Im down near Salisbury...

[simpo two]

Mad Dave said:

My current plan is to stand my girlfriend in front of a white sheet, with other white sheets to the side of her - with lights behind them. Hopefully that will give nice soft, diffused light?

Sounds fair - you coudl also try aiming the light/s straight at them and using them as reflectors? You'll just have to experiment and see what works best. The most common technique is to have the main light on one side and a fill-in or bounce to fill in the shadows on the other - but it all depends on the effect you want.

Mad Dave said:

2000w blonde? Presumably thats a hefty old floodlight? Many thanks for the offer - whereabouts are you based? Im down near Salisbury...

Unfortunately Essex!

[Mad Dave]

Doh! Well thanks for the offer though mate, much appreciated

Ill try various lighting techniques when i actually get around to trying it. I tried finding some table lamps with 'dimmer' switches, rather than just 'on or off' switches, but i couldnt find any cheap ones!

Ill try at the weekend and let you know how i get on