"Beautiful Lines"

"Beautiful Lines"
© David A. Ziser

This is one of my favorite images from my Napa workshop two weeks ago.  We were working the grounds of Beringer’s Winery and  there were some fabulous locations in which to work.  This location, at first glance, looked like nothing more than the regular walkway to get to another part of the winery.  But, looking through the lens, the location came alive with these striking compositional elements. 

Look at how I positioned our model so that all the railings would lead the viewer right to her. The tighter crop works best in this instance.  To see more of her legs and the sidewalk would have detracted from the contemporary composition.

Lighting was easy – my Quantum flash through my Zumbrella – coming in from camera left at 1/4 power created the nice dimensional lighting on her face.  Be sure to watch the Rembrandt Lighting tutorial that follows.

I like the color pallet of this image too.  The dark, monochromatic tones of this location work perfectly with the black dress the model is wearing. The location, lines, lighting, and dark tones all combine to make a beautiful portrait of this beautiful young lady.

Camera specs: canon 7D fitted with 18-200mm IS lens at 178mm, F5.6 @ 1/120 second, ISO 200.  Enjoy!  -David