Manual Focus Lenses Forum

PaulC · Joined: 23 Dec 2008 Posts: 2318

Sometimes it is worth lying down amid the camel dung to try to get a shot - I thought this was such a time. I'd already shot this with the Pentacon Six and using the waist level finder was more dignified - but I needed digital and colour, too. The P6 film isn't finished yet so I am keeping my fingers crossed that I also have something for the B&W gallery.

Could I have shot this better? Some other people were using on-board flash (and staying upright, of course) but I suspect it would have needed almost a studio type set-up, with an off-camera strobe and reflector to get a fill without killing the background (which wasn't actually feasible - but it's good to try to think of improvements regardless). Any ideas?

I suppose the ideal would have been to use both a fill and separate lighting into the tent for the background.

cooltouch · Joined: 15 Jan 2009 Posts: 9096 Location: Houston, Texas

Honestly, I don't share your concerns about exposure. There is some reflection from the sand, which is opening up the shadows on the bird's underside and the underside of its wings. The tent's shadows aren't blocked up, and look quite natural to me. Honestly, I think this is a well-exposed photograph. And I like the eye-level composition with respect to the bird (even though its eyes were covered Cool

).

PaulC · Joined: 23 Dec 2008 Posts: 2318

Thanks, Michael. Yeah, maybe I'm looking for too much.