Besides this being my beautiful wife is hard at work putting the final touches on her most recent painting, a gallery requested that Lindsay submit a couple of photos with her submissions.

 

So I grabbed my camera and went out to her studio behind our home. While this photo may not show you the “Not Safe for Facebook” painting, though I guess anything goes as long as it is a painting and not a photograph, the photo does show her hard work.

 

I loved how the afternoon light was coming through her partially closed blinds revealing trees and the golden sun. You can see one of her studio lights to her left just behind her. As you might guess, in order to get this look I needed to add a light source in order to prevent her from being a silhouette against the outside light and her studio light.

 

My easiest solution was to put my Canon 600EX II-RT flash on my Canon R5 and use it to fill in the shadows. While I shoot in manual mode on the camera I set the flash to ETTL and let it think for itself! And man! Is it a smart flash, especially with the Canon R5.

 

You do have to adjust the settings on the camera to allow you to capture the desired about of ambient light, in this case, the trees outside her window. Here are the settings on the camera. Shooting with my Canon 24-70mm f/2.8 L series lens, set to 30mm. I set the aperture to f/4.5 and the shutter speed to 160 sec. The ISO was set to 640. This was the combination that allowed me to capture some of the ambient light in her studio as well as the trees outside the window. As well as not having the flash over light Lindsay so I could capture the beautiful highlights on her hair, face, and arms.

 

About the composition. What went through my mind the instant just before pressing the shutter release. I wanted her nose just inside her left cheek line, this is the most flattering way to photograph someone with a partial profile. If the nose were to be just outside her cheek line it would appear larger than it is. Plus this creates the most beautiful lines for her entire face. I wanted to include part of the table where her paints were spread out to give further evidence that she was in fact working on her painting. I wanted these objects to be out of focus, thus keeping your attention on her and her painting. I also wanted the sun peeking through the window right at the top far corner of her painting, creating a little lens flare and adding an element of “Romance” to the photograph.

 

All of these thoughts went through my head in the second or two just before I pressed the shutter. I realize that this happens more quickly the more you shoot. Like all things in life, it takes practice.

 

I don’t know if when someone views an image whether or not they cognitively notice all of these subtle details, or whether the details blur together to create a feeling? I like to think that all of the details lead to a feeling. Personally, the art I love and enjoy most is an art that I feel. When I can feel a work of art I will always remember it.

 

My intention today was to capture a couple of photos for the gallery of Lindsay in her studio. I did accomplish that. And now looking at this image I feel I created a little art as well. But then I could be partial because Lindsay is my wife.