About Photography

Working with high key light daylight

My goal for these model shots was to create a high-key image that was bright and airy.  I shot with strong back lighting from a window with some interior fill light from large reflectors, and kept the exposure very open. It takes a camera system with exceptional dynamic range and the ability to focus accurately in flat light situations to pull off images such as these.  This is where the latest Nikon pro cameras shine.  I used the Nikon D4 for both shots.

For this image I chose the Nikon 135mm Defocus lens set to an aperture of f/2.  The defocus Nikkors have the best soft focus bokeh effects of any lenses out there, yet retain excellent sharpness where they are focused.  I find them to be perfect for soft portrait effects, such as the one above.

Here I used the Nikon 50mm f/1.4 lens set to f/4.5 to add some depth of focus to the image.  I wanted to keep the model's foreground hand and the see-through white curtains in focus.  Keeping detail in those sheer, white curtains is where a camera with good dynamic range comes into play.