Tools


1. Which camera do you use?

My default studio camera is the Nikon Z7ii (link).

I keep a Nikon D750 as back-up.

In the future, I’d like to use a film camera more often (FM), as well as upgrade to a Fuji medium format systems (the GFX series).

I have used the Nikon Z7 (mark 1), Z6 (mark 2), D750, D610, D50 and D850 in the past, as well as the Canon EOS-1D when I shot events in San Francisco.

2. What lens do you use?

I primarily use the Sigma 105mm f/1.4, which I purchased in late 2020.

Nearly all the photos on this website were taken with this lens.

It is an ideal portrait studio lens.

Let me highlight its strengths:

  1. The 105mm focal length works for headshots and portraits

  2. It has a tripod collar (allowing quick rotatation from horizontal to vertical).

  3. It stops “up” to 1.4, which is incredible and allows very shallow depth of field.

  4. It's sharp at all apertures.

Funny story: I know the 105mm by Sigma was my next lens, so in late 2020, I purchased two of this lens. I tested both meticulously, checking for sharpness of a brick surface in the corner regions. I returned the copy that wasn’t as sharp. Believe it or not, the one I bought was consistently sharper than the one I returned, which goes to show that a manufacturer can produce irregularities within a model of the same lens.

For wider portraits, or multiple people in the same shot, I often go back to my trusty 85mm 1.8, or the 70-210mm f4.

For non-portrait work: I use a Tamron 28-75mm (variable zoom) f/2.8 for events, a Nikon 18-35mm f/4 for homes and architecture. For product photography and close-ups, I will use a Tokina 100mm f/2.8.

For my personal blog I prefer the pared down, super basic Nikkor 50mm 1.4 AI (1977-1981). I’ll keep it at f/1.4 due to its wonderful glow (the “bokeh” effect) in out-of-focus areas.

I am not personally “attached” or devoted to the Nikon brand, but it was the company I started on when I was rather young and both my parents had Nikon camera bodies and lenses.

For events in 2021 I was able to use a Canon EOS-1D X, a truly beastly machine that, when it was released in late 2011, was the most sophisticated and rugged DSLR on the market.

3. What lights do you use?

For studio lighting I use two strobes (both Godox AD600, non-TTL) for the key and rear (backdrop) light.

For fill, I titrate sunlight coming in through a few windows that face the west. By titrate I mean that I have black curtains and foam cut-out to shape the light entering the studio.

At night, due to the absence of natural light, I will shine a Godox LED (SL-60W) on the ground to mimic the sunlight bouncing off the wood floors.

4. How about light modifiers?

A light modifier shapes light that exits a strobe or bulb.

They include umbrellas that impede or “shape” direct light.” The reason for an umbrella is to enlarge the size of a light source, and also to scatter its light.

Currently, my main light-shaping tool is the 60” Softlighter by Photek (B&H). The umbrella shaft can be removed, which is useful for getting the modifier very close to the subject’s face in a low-ceiling environment. I discovered this brand watching Annie Leibovitz photographing a rock star in a hotel room (on youtube, of course).

For more definition and deeper shadows, I use a 23” beauty dish.

For backdrops, I find I enjoy Godox’s 12" Wide Angle Reflector (B&H). This manages to stay rather low to the ground, and places a cone that avoids excessive light spillage behind the subject.

5. What are your “go-to” settings?

I start all my sessions with these settings:

• shutter speed —> 1/125

• aperture —> f/1.4

• filter —> 4-stop ND 1.2 filter (b&h)

• ISO —> 100

• ambient lighting —> ~150-175 lux (ideal ambient light)

• strobe #1 —> 1/32 (for the subject)

• strobe #2 —> 1/32

These settings tend to underexpose the image by about 1 stop.

I call this STP-1 because it reminds me of college chemistry where scientists figured out a place in temperature and pressure that matches pressure at sea level (see: link). Unfortunately the Z6ii does not have a native ISO under 100, which is a minor drawback because I used to do all my portraits at ISO 64 with the Z7. I like a blank canvas that is less sensitive to light.

6. And camera settings?

• Autofocus –> AF-C (doesn’t really matter).

• Autofocus points —> Single dot.

• Exposure Mode —> Manual shutter, manual aperture, and fixed (non-auto) ISO.

• White Balance –> Custom default (doesn’t really matter, gets overwritten during import).

• Exposure metering –> Spot (doesn’t matter).

• Live Settings –> OFF (this tends to be the case whenever a flash is attached to the top, too, but of course this matters for studio using a mirrorless device).

7. What music do you play during the shoot?

I like melodic jazz, with artists like Kenny Burrell, Red Garland, Hank Jones, and Oscar Peterson.

8. What type of camera stabilization do you use?

I use a custom tripod featuring a:

•  Kupo roller (link)

•  20” riser column (link)

•  Matthews Ballhead adapter (link)

•  Arca-Swiss Monoball p0 (link).

Note: For a long time I didn’t use anything, no tripod, just hand-held around the neck.

9. Your favorite backdrops?

I start with a Savage seamless paper in white (107 in x 36 ft), cut by ~12” to fit my studio.

•   “Deep Blue” @ 94.5” (Savage)

•   “Snow (white)” @ 94.5” (Savage)

•   “Robin’s Egg”, “Cal Blue”, “Plum”, “Crimson”, and “Lemonade (#93)” at @ 36”

My second favorite is a custom-painted black canvas backdrop (80” wide) which I’ve dubbed “Midnight Grey”.

For custom colors, I enjoy transforming a white backdrop into beige (“Mocha Grey”), as well as turning a grey backdrop into olive (“Pale Green Sea”). I can customize backdrop tones based on the client’s preference.

_
Last updated: July, 2024