Hi and welcome to this edition of Workshop at the Ranch. I have said many times that Light is the greatest influence. I talk about it when I teach, I write about it on my website and in my new book, and I apply it when I photograph. The use of a single light source coming from a side angle to my subject creates drama and mood. How much to the side of my subject I place the light determines how much drama there will be. The more frontal the light, the less dramatic the feel. The more the light is to the side of my subject, the more dramatic the feel. For me, mastering the single off camera light is a necessary basic of lighting that prepares the photographer to move forward with additional lights and more creative lighting arrangements.

Hi and welcome to this edition of Workshop at the Ranch. I have said many times that Light is the greatest influence. I talk about it when I teach, I write about it on my website and in my new book, and I apply it when I photograph. The use of a single light source coming from a side angle to my subject creates drama and mood. How much to the side of my subject I place the light determines how much drama there will be. The more frontal the light, the less dramatic the feel. The more the light is to the side of my subject, the more dramatic the feel. For me, mastering the single off camera light is a necessary basic of lighting that prepares the photographer to move forward with additional lights and more creative lighting arrangements.

The basic 2 light set up is the Cross Light arrangement. From the cameras point of view the 1st light will illuminate my subject from one side and slightly in front. This creates a dramatic mood to the subject. The 2nd light is for separation and illuminates the opposite edge of the subject. This 2nd light is often called the “back light”, “edge light”, or “separation light”. It is usually positioned off to the side and back of the subject. The back light helps separate the subject from the background and is especially effective when the background is dark. With this entire job I used two strobes for my subject … 1 as the Key or Main light with a soft box for a soft transition light that wraps around the subject, and 1 as the Back Light with a honeycomb grid placed over the front for a hard edge of light. The back light would also be very important when illuminating the chalk filled air. I occasionally used a third light to illuminate the American Flag on the gymnasium wall behind my subject.

Not only is the Cross Light one of my favorite lighting set ups and one I have used for many years, but it was also the primary desired “look” that my client, Brent Klaus at International Gymnastics Camp in Pennsylvania needed to complete his promotional pieces. Photographing for commercial brochures and advertisements is work that I enjoy very much, and spending several days with Brent and his family at their gymnastics camp in the Pocono Mountains makes it even better. His gymnastics facilities near Stroudsberg, Pa. has no rivals, and his staff and athletes are wonderful to work with. With the sport of Gymnastics as the subject, let’s take a look at some Dramatic Gym Light.

Image #1       The Pirouette … This image illustrates the basic Cross Light arrangement and the workhorse of 75% of the images I made for Brent and his design team. For this job I used the Elinchrom 600RX strobes. The 600RX is a 600 watt second pack/flash head mono unit. It has a fast flash duration of 1/2050 which is suitable for sports action and has a quick recycle time of about 1.2 sec at full power. They are light and durable for Fed Ex shipping to job locations. I have placed 1 Main or Key light (strobe) with a medium soft box and a power output of 3.0 which is half power of the packs total power of 6.0 about 5 feet just out of the left edge of the frame. It is slightly in front of the uneven parallel bar by 1 foot. This allows the soft box light to softly wrap around the subject. The 2nd light (strobe) is located about 3 feet just out of the right edge of the frame and is about 6 feet back from the uneven parallel bar. It is the “Back Light” and has a power output of 5.0. It has a 20 degree Honeycomb Grid placed over the front to prevent light spill and lens flare. These 2 strobes are the Cross Light arrangement. They are, in effect, across from each other making a diagonal line through my subject. The Main light softly illuminates the hands from the left side while the Back Light outlines just the right edge of the hands with hard edge light. For this image a 3rd light (strobe) is placed next to the back light and is aimed at the American Flag hanging from the ceiling. I have place a 10 degree and a 20 degree honeycomb grid over the front to narrow the light down and create a spotlight on the flag. It’s power output is 2.0. These power ratios were very similar throughout each day of shooting. The Back Light also plays another role in our gym drama. It illuminates the chalk floating in the air. That is, chalk we purposely put there by taking handfuls of chalk and clapping/puffing it into the air. This is “THE LOOK” that Brent wanted. I used the Elinchrom Skyport wireless transmitter system to trigger the strobes and to adjust the strobe power levels directly from the Skyport transmitter on my camera’s hotshoe. The Skyport system is fantastic and about 1/5 the size of a pocket wizard. Nikon D3x, ISO400, 1/250 at f7.1, Nikon 70-200mm lens, WB 6250K, 3 Elinchrom 600RX strobes and Skyport system, Medium Soft Box, Honeycomb Grids, Bogen Lightstands, Lexar 16G Flash Card.

Image #2       The Chalk Box … With our basic Cross Light arrangement established and several scenes complete, we decided to change it a bit for a more dramatic look. We are shooting in a different gym for this image and the flag is over 100 feet from my subject compared to the previous image where the flag was only about 30 feet from my subject. I used a similar Cross Light arrangement as the previous image, but I have dialed down the power on the Main strobe with soft box to about 1.5. I have positioned my athlete standing in front of the soft box which blocks the light to the point where only the white gym grip straps are illuminated. The 3rd strobe is aimed at the flag and is about 80 feet away from my subject and about 30 feet from the flag itself. The backlit chalk curling up around the flag and our more silhouetted athlete really intensifies the mood of this scene. Nikon D3x, ISO400, at f16, Nikon 70-200mm lens, WB 5560K, 3 Elinchrome 600RX strobes and Skyport system, Medium Soft Box, Honeycomb Grids, Bogen Lightstands, Lexar 16G Flash Card.

Image #3       The Young Vaulter … The theme of intense drama using bright backlit chalk and dark backgrounds continued each day. We broadened the scenes to include athletes performing on the apparatus. I have always leaned towards the elegance of sport to which gymnastics offers plenty of opportunity. In this image a high caliber young athlete performs the basic Front Handspring over the Vaulting Table in one of the four gymnasiums that make up the International Gymnastics Camp complex. This is again a 2 strobe Cross Light arrangement. The Main strobe with the soft box is just out of the the left edge of the frame only two feet from the Vaulting Table and about 6 feet high. The Back Light is located just out of the right edge of the frame and is close to the wall which is about 20 feet back from the Vaulting Table. A similar Cross Light arrangement, but a bit farther apart to accommodate the flying athlete. No 3rd light was required as there is no flag to illuminate in this gym. Nikon D3x, ISO400, 1/250 at f8, Nikon 70-200mm lens, WB 6250K, 2 Elinchrom 600RX strobes and Skyport system, Medium Soft Box, 20 degree Honeycomb Grid, Bogen Lightstands, Lexar 16G Flash Card.

Image #4       The Young Beam Worker … There are many difficult skills in the gymnastics Code of Points book, but for me the basic skills are the most beautiful. The Back Handspring on Balance Beam is just such a basic skill of which this tiny athlete has clearly mastered. The Main strobe with soft box is just out of the right edge of the frame and is on my side (the camera side) of the beam about 1 foot away from the beam itself. The Back Light with 20 degree honeycomb grid is on the other side of the beam about 1 foot away from the beam itself, and is just out of the left edge of the frame. The chalk seems to hang in the air as does our athlete. No 3rd light was required as there is no flag to illuminate in this gym. Nikon D3x, ISO400, 1/250 at f8, Nikon 70-200mm lens, WB 6250K, 2 Elinchrom 600RX strobes and Skyport system, Medium Soft Box, 20 degree Honeycomb Grid, Bogen Lightstands, Lexar 16G Flash Card.

Image #5       The Young Ring Worker … Another theme we were following throughout the shoot was the young novice athlete working to achieve the skill level of the older and more accomplished competitor. Here is one of our young male gymnasts performing basic swing drills on the Still Rings. This image deviates from the Cross Lighting arrangement of the previous images, but still used just 2 strobes to light the subject. 1 Main strobe with the soft box is just out of the left edge of the frame and slightly in front of the subject, but instead of placing the Back Light strobe across from the 1st strobe I placed it about 20 feet back on the same side of my subject as the soft box, just out of the left edge of the frame. I still produced a back light which is crucial in illuminating the chalk in the air, but increased the drama of the overall scene by having the appearance of a single side light. I love the hard edge of light followed by the softer transition of light wrapping around the boys face. No 3rd light was required as there is no flag behind the athlete. Nikon D3x, ISO400, 1/250 at f8, Nikon 70-200mm lens, WB 5560K, 2 Elinchrom 600RX strobes and Skyport system, Medium Soft Box, 20 degree Honeycomb Grid, Bogen Lightstands, Lexar 16G Flash Card.

Image #6       The Maltese Cross … The counter image to the Young Ring Worker is this picture of the older, experienced athlete performing an elite strength move called a Maltese Cross. I kept the 2 lights (1 to the side and slightly in front and 1 back about 20 feet on the same side) again illuminating from only one side of the subject, but this time I moved both strobes to the opposite side of the athlete just out of the right edge of the frame. Again I have a hard edge of light followed by the softer light wrapping around the athletes face. This more powerful athlete and Olympic level skill required more dominating chalk to compliment the scene. The 3rd strobe was used to illuminate the flag similar to what was done in image #1 and image #2. Nikon D3x, ISO400, 1/250 at f13, Nikon 70-200mm lens, WB 6250K, 3 Elinchrom 600RX strobes and Skyport system, Medium Soft Box, 20 degree Honeycomb Grids, Bogen Lightstands, Lexar 16G Flash Card.

Image #7       Chalk Master … A key mood setter and element of drama for each picture made during this multiple day shoot would be the backlit chalk floating in the air around the subject. My 30 years of experience photographing gymnastics taught me that the most difficult element to control in each of these pictures would not be the light, nor the athlete, but the chalk. The backlit chalk was applied by Cassie, a talented photo/website designer on Brent’s staff. She was key to the success of each picture. For the first few scenes she would fill her hands with gym chalk and begin clapping it into the air while I made 1 or 2 pictures as the chalk formed around the subject. This process became rather time consuming as the chalky clouds were very difficult to control which prompted us to shoot numerous images of the same scene until the chalk pattern in the air looked complimentary to the performing athlete. It didn’t take long before Cassie figured out that a chalk loaded foam pad enabled her to sort of “power-puff” the chalk into mid air where we needed it. She could now create chalk patterns and clouds exactly where I wanted and used less chalk which was a “breath of fresh air” to us all. Thanks Cassie for all your help and patience. Nikon D3x, ISO400, 1/250 at f13, Nikon 70-200mm lens, WB 6250K, 2 Elinchrom 600RX strobes and Skyport system, Medium Soft Box, 20 degree Honeycomb Grid, Bogen Lightstands, Lexar 16G Flash Card.

Remember, Light is the greatest influence. I hope this Workshop at the Ranch article helps some of you to better understand how to use lighting to create mood and drama.

See you next time here on Workshop at the Ranch. Adios. Dave

*For those interested in learning more about International Gymnastics Camp and the programs they offer, log onto www.internationalgymnastics.com