Benchmarking

Albert Pedrosa
Photo mania

A FEW weeks ago, I attended a seminar about lighting. It was conducted by one of the photographers I look up to when it comes to fashion photography, Sara Black. Yes, I still attend workshops and I watch online materials on photography. If there’s one thing that will never stop doing in photography, that would be learning.

One of the reasons I joined was to see her in action while not discounting the learning I’m going to get from the session. I wanted to find out if we have similar ways of seeing the light. I wanted to know if she feels the same way I do when it comes to studio lighting and managing the set.

There will come a time in your photographic journey when you need to surface and see where you are in terms of work quality. Although the challenge is always upon yourself, it’s also useful in navigation if you know you’re moving up in a straight line. After the session with Sara, I realized that she is one true legit master of lights.

She didn’t ride the bullet train of marketing. She earned every right to be on the top of her game. That made me see the gap clearer this time. That gave me an inspiration to do more and be more. I’m now like a newbie photographer who craves for more learning and challenges.

Apart from the inspiration, I also learned that some of my practices are similar to what she does, which hints to me that I’m headed in the right direction. It puts a smile on my face to know that I’m within range.

Just last week, I was shooting in the studio of Jon Unson. After my shoot, I stayed for a while to witness how he takes his shots. Jon is one of the most respected fashion photographers in Cebu. It was amusing to know that my obsession with getting the right pose was just fine and even owning sets of female outfits to be used during the shoot is just normal. He actually does the same.

Watching him perform felt like being schooled all over again, seeing a straightforward lighting setup that works without complication and with stunning results. I should revisit the idea of the inverse square law. I know the principle but never paid much attention to it.

From time to time I put myself in check. It gives me the opportunity of a fresh start and a clear perspective on forsaken principles of light. Even a very simple characteristic of light that you have overlooked can change your entire perspective of light.

A reboot is what I needed, a fresh restart to seeing the light all over again. Keep on shooting, everyone!

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