Stay Sharp

Thursday, April 09, 2009

In the shadow of Giants (A field study of Young Sam The Kiwi)



Young Sam was the victim today. The light falling through the skyscrapers we passed in Shinjuku this afternoon was just perfect for portrait photography if you ask me. Something in the reflection of the shitty grey steel and glass that makes the light a soft undertone in the shadow even if the sunny sky is bright blue. I noticed that stone buildings gives you the same effect many times. But the best part with these giants are that they are all in different color tones and often in different materials. There are red(ish) brick imitation, Black steel, matte gray stained aluminum and white(ish) old-school high polished "plastic"...and it's all up to you to find the right one with the right back drop and light tone. Today I found a gap in the facade that I could use for a couple of portraits of Young Sam. He has a pretty strong face, you see that clearly here in these images below. A photographic portrait will many times bring out some features we miss in "real" life. I just have to add, this Kiwi is a fast trasher on that brakeless fixed ride of his, RxKxBx style!

Here are a couple of samples. Please give me some feed back (comment) on which one is the strongest or the weakest, and please, tell me why. I know which one is the strongest and vice versa but would love to hear others opinions as well. 4649!

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Used this "gap" as a diffuser of a kind and got the dark back with the light from the right angle even if the light was pretty even and flat.






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