I've started a new project around espionage and have started shooting for a series on how most people would imagine a spy. Of course the most popular spy would be James Bond 007, a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming. James Bond was an officer of the British Secret Intelligence Service, a handsome gentleman surrounded by his bond girls! That's how probably lot of people would imagine a spy, or maybe Jason Bourne?
But this image of a spy is far from the truth, but this is another story...
Halloween 2009. The London Strobist group has organized a meetup in a night club: Club Life in Vauxhall. They gathered around 15 photographers, 9 models and 3 makeup artists. The group rented out the club for half a day and had fun testing new lighting setups and sharing knowledge. That was where I met Vik Moreno and knew he would be my perfect subject for my new project on espionage!
Austin Dinh
I've met Austin on ModelMayhem.com (like most of the other models I've worked with). He needed to update his actor portrait portfolio and so I've helped him.
We went to Central London by the City Hall trying to get some urban portraitures. Austin is Vietnamese and has a strong look in his face. It was great working with him and we got some really nice pictures. I like the variety of scenery that Central London offers. Those different backgrounds helps to give different feelings and moods to the photographs.
At the time I was still using only natural light using a home made silver/golden reflector to fill the shadows. I didn't know at the time that you could also use it in some situation to create a nice rim light around the subject to separate him/her from the background. This came later on with the experience and that is why I've joined websites such as modelmayhem.com or supermodels.com, they allows you to build up a nice portfolio and your skills. It's a nice collaboration between the photographers and the models: pros meet pros, pros meet amateurs, amateurs meet amateurs... Highly recommended if you want to improve your portraits and PR skills.
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