Year: 1995

Assignment: Create beautiful photography for brochures & other communication

Model: Anjali Joshi

Makeup: Madhu

Client: Royal Chairs

Camera: Zenza Bronica 120 film format

Lights: 5 Elinchromes & 1 Bowens

Location: Rani Art Studio, Tourist Hotel Building, Kachiguda Stn Road, Hyd-27 (Estb 1966)

This was a typical shoot, in which the texture, colours, contours, beauty, shape of the chairs along with the usage of the same with a beautiful model, was to be shown.

Being a very disciplined photographer, I used to take out lots of Polaroids with every lighting set up & shoot only after being fully satisfied with the results.

The advantage with Polaroids was manifold.

It used to give me documentation of lighting, angles, lighting ratios, & other parameters.

It also used to make good scrapbook for portfolios in those days when we did not have laptops

Photo No 1:  Blue Chair

As shown in the visual I have given 2 soft lights from opposite directions in full power mode & there is a thermocole placed on the left side light to reflect some highlights on the chair’s lower portion. One light is placed facing the ceiling to soften the shadows on the chair. And the last light is from the back left with a grid to highlight the chair and separate it from the background.

The power ratio is given on the visual itself & is arrived on the previous Polaroids taken during the shoot.

The final result was a nice Product shot with a graduated backdrop, which was repeated for all the products with a slight variation.

Photo No 2: Model with executive chair

Here I had to highlight both the chair & the model equally, which was very challenging. Here I must mention that Anjali the model was a very professional & would know & read the photographer’s mind very quickly. She would also remember her poses & stand or sit in the same pose after the Polaroids, for the final shot. I really miss such models.

Coming back to lighting again the left & right combo for the chair, but this time on the ground to get details on the wheels. One soft box from front top on the model & chair to see the texture in the chair. One light from left back of the model as the visual shows & one from the right of the model to highlight her hair & shoulder & arms. Finally one filler from front to fill the shadows & soften the scene.

This shot was used as it is without any corrections & changes.

Photo No 3: Waiting room chairs in an office environment

Again shot in shot studio, with 5 lights. One soft box for the model & to bring out the textures in the chairs. 2 lights bounced off the ceiling from either side of the camera to soften the shadows and also to brighten the scene. We also placed a big plant behind the frosted glass lit it from behind to give a silhouette effect.

The basket of fruits was replaced with a bouquet of flowers.

All in all it was good fun and very challenging & the best part came when the client appreciated the shoot & paid without bargaining & on time, which makes it more worthwhile.

I would be very glad to answer any technical queries regarding this shoot.

Cheers