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| Photo #1: Bon Odori shot from 2010: 1/100th of a second, F 4.0, ISO 3200. |
I have a soft spot for Bon Odori ("Bon", and contraction of Obon, and "Dori" the Japanese word for dance), the celebration of remembrance held at the Buddhist Temple here in San Mateo. I first photographed the event in 2010, submitting this photo of two cute girls talking to their Grandfather (Photo #1). I scored a two-fer: The shot ran on the front page of the Journal, and the Grandfather turned out to be the cousin of a close family friend.
I've always been drawn to the youngest participants when dressed in traditional clothing. Perhaps the basic premise of Obon, a celebration of one's ancestors, is an example of different cultures honoring the late members of their families. The folk dances of Bon Odori provide a way to celebrate relatives who are no longer with us, and to re-affirm their importance to family life today. All ages participated, with many grandparents lovingly guiding their young grandchildren through the concentric circles of dancers, moving the rhythms of tradition folk music.
Ambient Light: My first published photo captured an odd collection of ambient light found when shots are made at twilight. In this shot, you can see both the washed out sky in the background and the soft, directionless light coming from above. Shooting at a high ISO, proper exposure was achieved, but lighting is flat, and the colors lack saturation.
Lighting In 2017: A couple of years ago, I started using speedlights to give a "purer" color of light, and to extend my shooting time past dusk. This was the shot I submitted, as I liked the expression and the context provided by the older, and taller, dancers in the background.
Lately, I've been bouncing several speedlights off of a convenient white wall of a building adjacent to the open area where the dances occur. But my giant softbox come at a price: I can only photography the dancers as they walk/dance in front of me, from camera left to camera right. Most of the time, my shots would be "broadside" shots in profile, and the dances seldom turned in place, briefly giving me a head-on shot.
The infrequent and random turning of the dancers limited the opportunities to capture a face-on image, and the evening ambient light made for slower focus lock-on. I was using a Fuji X-T1 with a 56mm F 1.2 lens, and still had some trouble locking on. I am still struggling to find a happy medium between single servo vs. continuous, and face recognition vs. single spot. So far, I haven't found a Fuji setting that is as responsive as single-servo central spot focusing of my Nikons, but I still lean towards the Fuji, if for no other reason that the equipment is lighter. I'm confident that when I find that happy medium, my Nikons will be carried less and less often.
Considering the infrequency of a face-on shot, I pressed the shutter release at every opportunity. However, I was positioned between two enormous (and virtual!) softboxes created by these two bounced flashes, which gave a gorgeous light which rendered clean, bright colors. Flesh tones were well rendered, too.
Dusk Goes To Twilight: Working in fading light causes some problems. As the light dims, the backgrounds, normally lit only by ambient light, become noticeably darker. Shadows darken, too. You can see in photo that the depth of the folds of my subject's gown define very dark shadows. The shot is saved by the simple act of my young subject looking slightly over my head.
Working under a variety of conditions is essential if one is going to develop a variety of tools to help a photographer create better lighting solutions. While I'm not disappointed with my results, I far from ecstatic about my submission. But you can't always orchestrate your subjects and their surrounds, so you learn to play every shot "where it lays".
I've always been drawn to the youngest participants when dressed in traditional clothing. Perhaps the basic premise of Obon, a celebration of one's ancestors, is an example of different cultures honoring the late members of their families. The folk dances of Bon Odori provide a way to celebrate relatives who are no longer with us, and to re-affirm their importance to family life today. All ages participated, with many grandparents lovingly guiding their young grandchildren through the concentric circles of dancers, moving the rhythms of tradition folk music.
Ambient Light: My first published photo captured an odd collection of ambient light found when shots are made at twilight. In this shot, you can see both the washed out sky in the background and the soft, directionless light coming from above. Shooting at a high ISO, proper exposure was achieved, but lighting is flat, and the colors lack saturation.
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| Bon Odori 2017 |
Lighting In 2017: A couple of years ago, I started using speedlights to give a "purer" color of light, and to extend my shooting time past dusk. This was the shot I submitted, as I liked the expression and the context provided by the older, and taller, dancers in the background.
Lately, I've been bouncing several speedlights off of a convenient white wall of a building adjacent to the open area where the dances occur. But my giant softbox come at a price: I can only photography the dancers as they walk/dance in front of me, from camera left to camera right. Most of the time, my shots would be "broadside" shots in profile, and the dances seldom turned in place, briefly giving me a head-on shot.
Missing Context: This photo would have been a contender had there been a fan showing. The facial expression isn't as strong as the one at the top of the page, but it's still a pretty good shot.
The infrequent and random turning of the dancers limited the opportunities to capture a face-on image, and the evening ambient light made for slower focus lock-on. I was using a Fuji X-T1 with a 56mm F 1.2 lens, and still had some trouble locking on. I am still struggling to find a happy medium between single servo vs. continuous, and face recognition vs. single spot. So far, I haven't found a Fuji setting that is as responsive as single-servo central spot focusing of my Nikons, but I still lean towards the Fuji, if for no other reason that the equipment is lighter. I'm confident that when I find that happy medium, my Nikons will be carried less and less often.
Considering the infrequency of a face-on shot, I pressed the shutter release at every opportunity. However, I was positioned between two enormous (and virtual!) softboxes created by these two bounced flashes, which gave a gorgeous light which rendered clean, bright colors. Flesh tones were well rendered, too.
Dusk Goes To Twilight: Working in fading light causes some problems. As the light dims, the backgrounds, normally lit only by ambient light, become noticeably darker. Shadows darken, too. You can see in photo that the depth of the folds of my subject's gown define very dark shadows. The shot is saved by the simple act of my young subject looking slightly over my head.
Working under a variety of conditions is essential if one is going to develop a variety of tools to help a photographer create better lighting solutions. While I'm not disappointed with my results, I far from ecstatic about my submission. But you can't always orchestrate your subjects and their surrounds, so you learn to play every shot "where it lays".
