AF06032023 – How I shot This

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Photographed by Alev Foto

Before
the Shoot

Location Equipment

When the couple approached us, they wanted a photoshoot in our city, but after taking so many pictures at the same locations, I suggested the possibility of photographing in Pedro’s (the groom’s) city. They were very happy about it because the place is amazing and they didn’t even imagine that they could have a photoshoot in a completely different location. So we went to the south of Maranhão, a 10-hour drive, and arrived around 4 am to catch the sunrise. At the top of this mountain, there is a tourist spot called “Pedra Furada,” and the sun rises exactly behind this rock formation. So I took advantage of the whole scenery and couldn’t miss this silhouette photo

Location Name

Carolina MA

Location aDDRESS

Praça Alípio Carvalho, 50, Carolina - MA, 65980-000, Brazil

Country

Brasil

Location TYPE

Montanhas

Equipment

Camera

Sony a7iii

Flash

None

Lens

Rokinon 35mm / f 1.4

Lens Filter

None

Other Equipment

No additional equipment was used.

During
the Shoot

Directions Composition Focus Light & Exposure

I realized that the sun was rising exactly in the background of this landscape, so I used the holed rock as a frame, centered the couple and imagined a photo with a silhouette.

Tone of Directions

Calm

Action of Directions

Almost Kiss Intimate

Description

I asked the couple to go to the center of the rock and stand facing each other.

What was said

Stand with your faces close to each other but without touching and without too much movement, just contemplate each other’s presence.

Why I composed the way I did

Pedra Furada is a well-known spot, having a couple in the center with the sun in the background would bring me a very good result of a silhouette, like a painting for an art exhibition.

Compositional Rules

Symmetry

Compositional Framing

Center Framed Full Body Natural Frames Intimate Framing

Focus

Focus mode

Autofocus

Focus Technology

Single Shot

Focused on

No rosto do casal

Focus description

I used Sony’s auto focus, which is absurdly fast and precise.

Shutter Speed

1/8000

Aperture

f/2,5

ISO

200

White Balance

automático

Other Light Sources

No additional light sources were used.

How the light was used

I used the backlight to create a cutout of the couple and exposed for the highlights. This naturally means the subjects would be very underexposed and create the silhouette that I was after.

Type of light

Natural Light

Time of Day

Sunrise

Quality of LIght

Soft

Weather

Clear

After
the Shoot

Editing & Presets

Editing &
Presets

Editing Software used

Adobe Lightroom CC

Preset Used

How I edited this image

The editing was very simple, I applied my presets and decreased the exposure.

Conclusion

Challenges Solutions Advice

Challenges & Solutions

Events that were challenging during the shoot

Scaling the mountain before sunrise was one of the challenges, we arrived at the top very tired, but it was worth it.

Solutions I found

We arrived early at the location so we wouldn’t miss the correct light for this type of photography.

Advice

It is very important to emphasize that light makes all the difference in this type of photography, when you want something like a silhouette, try to shoot at times when the sun is horizontal and in the background of the main subject.

Photographed by

Alev Foto

Brazil sony a7iii rokinon 35mm 1.4

We are Léo and Sudy. Passionate about life, we love photography, music, and animals. We believe that we are made of memories, we are the places we know, the people we live with, the laughs we share… And photography says a lot about that. We embarked on this adventure 3 years ago, and since then, we have fallen even more in love with this universe and have given ourselves entirely to recording stories of unique people who are not afraid to live intensely every second.

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