Inside? Outside? Upside Down???

This session, I'm taking Advanced Studio Techniques. Remember when I was studying light, and light's effects on my pitcher and bowls? Oh, how many mistakes I see in my images from only 4 months ago!

This session, I'm building on that knowledge. I forgot to post the images from my final project for that class. The purpose of that final project was to compile an advertising campaign (more than one photograph, depicting more than one scene) to sell something. Anything. I always hate having so many choices! If they told me that I had to sell dog food, I would be able to get the creative juices flowing. If they said I had to sell a hair brush to a bald man, I could work through that problem set. But telling me to sell anything freezes all of my creativity as I figure out what the heck I need to sell. But that's a bunny trail for another day, perhaps.

Advanced Studio Techniques, the second level of studio photography for me thus far, is literally taking my studies to a whole new level. Being a studio course, I am learning how to build sets in my garage studio to replicate places that are not a studio. Last week's shooting assignment was to shoot a prop, any prop, on location outside. I had to use at least one of my lights, and the set of my shoot had to make sense (putting a block of cheese on a plate under a tree doesn't really make much sense).

After I built the set and was satisfied with the results of the "on location" shoot, I had to recreate that set in my studio. I then had to manipulate my lights to look like the set was actually outside, on location. It is simple to set up your props and lights in a studio to make them appealing to the viewer, but to do so with the express intention of making them look like they were shot on location is a whole new ball of wax.

Each way of shooting has positives and negatives associated with them. On location, I have no control over the sun (it moves, it likes to hide behind clouds, get really bright in the middle of the day, and set really really quickly at the end of the day). I also have no control over the weather (during my shoot, I had about a 15 minute window to set up my gear, shoot the scene, and break it down before a storm came passing through. Before that, there were very annoying wind gusts that were threatening to break every bit of my lighting equipment. But if you're lucky enough to have a chunk of time where the sun and weather are behaving appropriately for what you intend to shoot, then the results can be stunning!

In the studio, I only have as much space as my budget can consistently afford. This is why I am currently using my garage, and in certain instances my living room, as my studio. As my business grows, I hope to be able to rent out a substantial space for my gear, and bigger sets to be placed and used. Right now, my studio is also being used as storage space for kids' outdoor toys, bicycles, off-season goodies, etc. The space is tight, but I'm blessed to have it!

So on to the assignment! Can you tell which image was shot outdoors, and which was recreated in the studio?

Image A

Image B

Put a guess in the comments section below, or on my KBPP Facebook page to be entered for a free 5x7 print of your choice from any of the shoots you know that I have performed, either in my SmugMug portfolio, or the galleries that aren't published*. Your guess doesn't have to be correct (c'mon, you already have a 50-50 chance of winning), but you can only guess once. Winner will be randomly selected on Friday, January 24th at 10:00pm CST.


*I have a few galleries that are on lock down because of the client's wishes. Parents who would like a print of their children from one of those galleries are welcome to order a print, but the clients wish to keep the whole gallery unpublished. I also have some unpublished events in my vault. Those are up for consideration as well.