It's Thanksgiving time and I must say, I am very thankful and grateful to be busy with my work and to have clients that trust me to handle their important assignments. But when I get a few free moments, I like to try new things. Lately I've had some ideas for shooting portraits but needed to work out possible lighting scenarios; it's not practical to get businessmen to help me test set ups (and my wife is tired of helping), so I use models and exchange images for their patience and professionalism. This set up, combining a softbox and a beauty dish, produces a pure white background and a crisp, flattering light on the face; I like the tight crop and the negative space on the side. I may have to substitute an umbrella or softbox for the beauty dish when photographing non-models as the light might be a bit strong for "regular faces". It's sometimes tough to get clients to accept lighting setups like this, but I keep trying new things because it generates new ideas, new knowledge and new possibilities for creative problem-solving on behalf of my clients.
Canon5D Mark III, 85mm lens, 1/200 sec at f11, ISO 100