Today I had another great time with the other photographers from the Bay Area Photography Meetup group. This time we shot at Mt. Tamalpais up in Marin. What a legendary place for commercial photography. The number of times you’ve seen these hills just outside of San Francisco in various car commercials is incredible. And I thought the redwoods up in Humboldt were perfect.

I find there is a huge color difference between the shade and full sun, so to the gel really helps warm that up. The blue light on dark skin in the shade is beautiful, filling in the rest with a warm flash helped me keep those blue highlights so important for detail in the skin and bringing
out that killer outfit!

These images were meant to sell springtime hay fever medicine. Can you tell its working? Shooting in the harsh sun is not as easy as you’d think. Definitely needed a strong pop of fill flash; I gelled the flash with a cut of 1/2 cto as well to warm up the subject and the shadows. The flash also serves to to bring out the catch-light in the eyes saying I’m alive, look at me!

A lovely headshot taken using the ‘bigger source = softer light theory’ where you have an assistant hold some kind of diffuser as close as he/she can until it just peeks into the frame. Then you have them back out a little and take the shot- you can’t get any softer!

Mt Tam Model Shoot 23