Test shoot with Hasselblad 503CW and 39 MP Digital Back

Recently, I decided to take the giant leap* into the world of medium format photography. I had been contemplating this for about a year, ever since I had noticed that prices for medium format equipment were starting to come down to reasonable levels.

Back when I was working as a graphic designer in Chicago, most of the photographers I worked with shot medium format. I was always fascinated with the Hasselblads. They are amazing cameras both in their simplicity and complexity and the images they produce are stunning. It was always my dream to own a Hasselblad and when I recently started looking around, I found nice deal and made the plunge. 

The day after I picked up my new gear, I headed over to Light & Byte in Zürich to rent a medium format digital back. I opted for the Hasselblad CFV 39 Megapixel back. The people at Light & Byte gave practically gave me a one-on-one training to get me familiar with the gear and supporting software, they were extremely thorough and I really have to tip my hat for taking the time to get me sorted.

My good friend Dave Kai Piper did the retouching and digital finishing, Alina Zbinden was the model and Simone Zbinden from b•perfect did the makeup.

It’s difficult to explain in words how impressed I was with this system. It took some getting used to, but once I got the hang of it, I was hooked. It’s not only the quality but also the mechanical and precision feeling of the camera. It’s manual focus, not push button auto-focus. It’s a camera that demands your respect and attention to detail. It feels special in your hands, it sounds amazing, and once you see those images in full resolution on the screen, wow, you don’t want to go back to anything less.

I’ll be shooting more medium format throughout this year, and I hope to bring the kit and a digital back to my Tuscany workshops this Summer. Thanks to everyone involved in making this test shoot a resounding success.

* Did you know that Hasselblad was the camera system used by NASA during the missions to the moon. Twelve Hasselblad bodies remain on the moon’s surface to this day. I wonder what they would fetch at auction?

Shooting with a Sexy Older Woman

Previews from Lis’ photo shoot.

I receive many contacts through my Model Mayhem Profile, and recently I was contacted by Elisabeth. ‘Lis’ is a former catwalk and catalog model, she worked from the age of 17 until she was about 32 in the fashion industry in London and Milan. For the past several years she has taken a break from modeling while raising her children. She contacted me with some nice comments on the images posted on my MM profile. After some discussion, I invited her for a shoot, as I have been thinking about working more on the theme of ‘sexy older women’.

This is not the first time I have worked with ‘women of a certain age’. In fact, in the past few years, I have done several private shootings with women over 40. I find these experiences greatly rewarding and I think it is something more women should consider doing for themselves. I know several women who, after getting married, having children and starting to see the signs of age, tend to stop thinking of themselves as sexy and attractive. Personally, I think the key to being sexy has less to do with your looks or age than it does in knowing who you are, understanding your strengths and weaknesses and having confidence in yourself. Nothing will help build that confidence better and more quickly than a photo shoot with an experienced photographer and make-up artist. And just imagine the reaction you will have from your husband or partner when he sees your sexy photos.

Portraits of Lis

If you don’t believe me, then just turn on the TV to any fashion make-over program like What Not to Wear orHow to Look Good Naked. These shows promote the idea that looking sexy is really more about taking stock of what you have and showing off your positives. Of course, confronting your fears and insecurities is not always an easy task, that’s why I take photo shoots like this very seriously. It’s all about creating a safe and supportive environment where you can be yourself, the person you see in your mind, not in the mirror.

The photos you see below are some behind the scenes and preview photos from the shoot, the final versions will be posted in my galleries soon. Although Lis has a modeling background, I know it wasn’t easy for her to do a shoot like this. I specifically told her we were going to do some sexy shots and I know she had her doubts, but I think the results speak for themselves. 

If you are interested in commissioning me for a photo shoot, simply contact me here for more details with the subject: Sexy is an attitude.

Rita Primerano applies make-up

Tools of the TradeSupplies

I want to thank my studio partner, Philippe Wiget, for giving a helpful hand on the day; also to Rita Primerano of the Vitality Center for her talented make-up skills; to Beata Sievi of Entre Nous for loaning us her exquisite corsets and lingerie; and, of course, to Lis for her adventurous spirit and easy-going nature.

Workshop at the Braunschweigerschule

This past weekend I traveled to Braunschweig, Germany to teach a workshop with Thorsten Jankowski at the Braunschweigerschule. It was a great day, featuring two talented and capable models. Thorsten focused his discussions on working with single light techniques, while I focused on sharing my knowledge of side-lighting techniques. With ten students it was a long and intensive day, but the results and feedback were well worth the effort. Below are some of my test shots and some behind the scenes images.

Test shot of model Mila.

Model Nera poses in the water basin.

Model Nera poses for a test shot with an unusual object.

Model Mila strikes a pose for one of the students.

Students Mario and Klaus work on sidelighting techniques with model Nera.

Student Hagan works on lighting techniques with model Mila.

Behind the scenes - Ljuba 8/14/2008 from IMSirReal on Vimeo.

This is not new, but I wanted to post it here as well. I have started doing behind the scenes time-lapse videos whenever I do a shoot. Soon, I will also combine these videos with comments from the models. My aim is to give others a better idea of what's happening on the set and some insight as to how I set things up in the studio. I hope you like it.