I have been asked many times why I choose a certain lens for the different photos I have shot whether the photos are for a campaign or a catalog or even a personal model portfolio shoot.

The answer isn’t so clear cut.  I can tell you that my most used lens is my Canon 85 1.8.  Why do I love this lens ?  For the reason that I can get full body shots to three quarter shots to half body shots, all with one lens.  And this lens is very light which does matter after you have been shooting for 5, 6, 7 , 10 hours.  The contrast and saturation is great and I always get sharp crisp images which is VERY important when shooting a clothing catalog.  When shooting clothing  you MUST capture the details in the fabric and I don’t care what kind of fabric it is, it is your job as a photographer to make sure every detail of the clothing is clear and well defined.  This is especially important now because of the internet.  A popular trend for designers is to show the model full body and when the user scrolls over the jacket, blouse, pants, jeans etc. a magnified image pops out that shows the incredible detail of the stitching or quality of the silk, denim etc.

So with just a little movement back and forth on my part I am able to give my client choices from full body all the way to half body shots.  Now granted, knowing that my client is going to include a pop out of tight close up of the fabric I will move in for a half body shot.  That brings me to my next favorite lens for shooting fashion. That lens is the Canon 100mm 2.8 Macro.

I can get as close as one inch to the garment and capture every little detail including the little fibers of each stitch !  At this point I would be on a tripod of course.  If I am shooting a beauty campaign which I just completed by the way, I will roll out this amazing lens.  I’m on sticks and got my 100 macro attached to my 5D Mark 2 and I can shoot away with full confidence.  I will even get in tight on one eye to show the clarity and quality of the eye shadow, nail polish, lip stick etc.   It’s not L glass but I will give you my opinion on L glass……… YOU DON’T FRIGGIN NEED “L” GLASS !!   Ok ?  Get over this crap that you have to have “L” glass to get great shots.  My God I get sooo irritated when I see that a photographer has just wet his pants because he just bought a new lens with “L” glass.  Do you think all the greats used “L” glass ?  No they didn’t.  Why ?  Because it didn’t exist and guess what ?  They were still hired to shoot the great campaigns and Vogue covers and their shit still looked amazing.  Helmut Newton, Herb Ritz, Sante D’ Orazio, Irving Penn, the list goes on, never shot with “L” glass and ummm well, they have gone down in history as some of the best shooters in history !

Ok enough ranting lol.  Seriously though, if you wanna waste your money and you have the money to waste and it makes you get a warm feeling all over then go for it !  Spend spend spend !!!! Canon still won’t sponsor you.. he he.

I will admit that I do own two lenses that are made with “L” glass, but that is not why I bought them.   So another favorite lens of mine is my Canon 28-70 2.8 L.  Many times when I’m shooting in a really cool location I like to capture the location and the model in the same shot to tell the story with a more dramatic effect.  So I will move in VERY close and zoom out to 28mm and capture that awesome sky in the desert or beautiful beach, blue water and blue sky and oh ya, the beautiful model as you can see in these two shots.

So there you have it.  These are the three lenses I shoot with most often.  If I want to REALLY compress my image and background I will break out my Canon 200mm 2.8 L and I ALWAYS put that on sticks.

So I’m sure some of you will disagree with my on the whole “L” series debate.  I wanna hear your side.  I would also love to know what some of your favorite lenses are and why.  And don’t forget to click the subscribe to my newsletter link.  It’s at the bottom of my LINKS section.

Cheers !!!

Follow my blog with bloglovin

Related posts

• Beauty Lighting Diagram (13)
• Swimwear Campaign With Off Camera Flash (20)
• Photographer and Observer Everywhere (3)
• Jason Christopher photographing on beach (4)
• Fashion Shoot Locations and Permits (22)

Yes that’s right.  I shot this fashion swimwear campaign with just my Canon 580 EX II and a 5 foot tall reflector to fill in some shadows on the opposite side of the model.  I went with this set up because it’s light weight and portable and that flash packs a punch !  With the tide coming in and my assistant and I getting splashed alot with water, having a heavy Profoto portable pack would have been cumbersome and just one big pain literally lol.

The model was a trooper !  Lisa Peake from L.A. Models did a terrific job as the cold and damp weather set in.  At this point the photographer and first assistant need to work fast and work smart.  There is no room for error.  As I’m shooting I’m already thinking of my next shot, call it multitasking .  The sun is going down so fast that if you are not sure of your equipment you will lose that shot and the model will get frustrated and that is when you have lost the momentum and you don’t want that to happen.  Oh and let’s not forget the client standing right in back of you barking off suggestions and of course the client knows everything about photography !  Shooting a real fashion job is not as easy as it looks.  We often look at the final photo and have no idea what was going on at the shoot, what kinds of pressure the photographer was faced with and how many different people and situations he or she had to deal with.

So just don’t forget about that.  Being a successful fashion photographer takes MUCH more talent than pushing a shutter button and shooting a couple of photos of a pretty girl in a studio where it’s just you, the model and the make up artist.  Learn the gear, take time to understand what your model is going through at the shoot, learn how to deal with pushy clients that won’t shut up and take it from there.  You will be surprised at what you can achieve when you take the time to really learn what happens at a professional photo shoot.

Related posts

• Photographic Discipline (51)
• Photographer and Observer Everywhere (3)
• Lens Selection For Fashion Photography (18)
• Learn how to photograph outdoors using flare (17)
• Great quote by fashion photographer Helmut Newton (1)

This is a very popular beauty photo of mine that everyone asks how I lit and how I got the cool looking catch lights.   I want to clarify a couple things first though.  Catch lights are the reflection one sees in the pupil of the eye of the actual light modifier that the photographer uses.  How a photographer creates those catch lights is based upon which light modifier he or she uses.

So catch lights can be in the form of an umbrella, a soft box, a beauty dish, a Mola reflector , a bare bulb, a Photoflex or Westcott reflector etc.  And it is where you place those light modifiers that determine where you see the catch light / reflection of your light modifier.  Ok so with that said here is the photo that demonstrates my use of a small umbrella and a round 36″ silver Photoflex reflector.

In this next photo I show you the close up of the eyes so you can actually see the metal splines of the umbrella on top of the pupil and the round silver reflector on the bottom of the pupil.

I created a lighting diagram for you.  In this beauty lighting diagram the background paper is gray in color.  The model is about 9 feet from the background.  The strobe that is behind the model is facing the back of her hair and is placed 3 feet away from the model and is one and a half stops brighter than the main light.  The ratio will vary depending on the lightness or darkness of the hair color.  The strobe is on a stand and the same height as the model’s head.

The umbrella I am using is a Westcott  32″ white satin with the black backing left on it.  I place it right in front of the model and above eye level as you can see in the catch light.  It’s about 4 feet away from the model.  I am standing right under it.

The silver Photoflex umbrella is placed on a Westcott reflector arm at breast level and I angle it until I like the amount of  fill.  This is subjective to each photographer.

Be sure to click the images so you can see them much larger.  Lighting techniques like this are part of what I teach in my private photography workshops.  We learn one on one as you watch me set up the lighting , shoot and direct the model.  Then it is your turn to shoot and direct the model.  Hands on experience is vital to learning.  I welcome your comments, questions and thoughts.

Related posts

• Lens Selection For Fashion Photography (18)
• Fashion Lighting With An Octabank (2)
• Vintage fashion photography: red Cadillacs & high fashion models (19)
• Update To Learn Outdoor Fashion Lighting With One 580EXII (25)
• Swimwear Campaign With Off Camera Flash (20)

Hi everyone !  I just revamped my personal section on my site.  I uploaded a bunch of lifestyle photos.  Some are posed and some are candid.  The candid lifestyle shots with the mother and children were a challenge to shoot.  You’ve got to watch for everything.  It’s the little moments that are special which also happen so fast that you just cannot miss those moments.  You’re camera and eye have always got to be ready !  Here are some of those photos that capture the special moments.

Being on such a high treacherous cliff I couldn’t bring an assortment of lighting gear so I used by trusty Canon 580 EXII just enough to give them a little fill.  In Photoshop I added a bit of vignette and bumped the saturation a little.  Other than that no other post production was done.   I just told them to forget I’m there, just forget a photographer is even near you and do what you want.  So everything I captured was very natural.  Another good thing about not bringing a bunch of lighting gear is that the less invasive I am, the more natural reactions I will get from my subject.  Imagine having two strobes set up with umbrellas and sand bags right in front of them.  LOL  that would be invasive.

I love this next photo.  It just says so much.  Look at their faces and what they are saying to each other.  What I get from this photo when looking at the mother’s face is how much she loves him and what they have been through just in every day life.  She shows how much she really appreciates him as a son.  THAT is what makes a great photo.  When your subjects are speaking through their emotions.  When I am shooting and I get that from my subjects or models it’s an electricity that just runs through my blood like a flood of energy !

Again, I used my Canon 580 EXII to add a little fill and to over power the sun.  These lifestyle photos and more can be found here which also demonstrate many different lighting techniques.

Related posts

• Night swimsuit photo shoot behind the scenes photos (4)
• Fashion Photography Workshops Los Angeles (6)
• Fashion Photography workshop with Dave (14)
• Photograph What You Love (31)
• Photographer and Observer Everywhere (3)

The third day of our fashion photography workshop involved learning how to light on location mixing the sun with your off camera flash and really using it off camera instead of mounting it on your camera.  One of the really cool things we did was mounted Dave’s Canon flash on a c-stand bounced into a Photoflex umbrella !   One of the benefits of mounting the flash to a c stand with the arm is that you can boom it out at any angle you want and of course you don’t end up with a photo that looks like you used harsh on camera flash.

We spent the whole day experimenting and just shooting, shooting and shooting.  I would observe Dave as he photographed the model and suggest different things to say to the model as he was shooting.  We had a nice lunch and ended up with great photos.  Dave is a great guy and learned so much.  Dave gave his testimonial however if there is something specific you would like to ask him about his three day workshop please don’t hesitate to email him.  His email is dave@daveclee.com and as always I encourage you to email or call me if you would like more information.

Related posts

• Photography Discussion: question and answer about anything involving photography (51)
• Photo lighting diagram-night beach shoot (14)
• Swimsuit Photo Shoot-Photographing at Night (9)
• natural light can be your friend ! (20)
• Canon 580EXII Review (11)

A buddy of mine took this photo of me. We were trying to photograph the dolphins. I was on my 100mm lens which was much too short.

Related posts

• Catching Candid Moments (1)
• Night swimsuit photo shoot behind the scenes photos (4)
• Lens Selection For Fashion Photography (18)
• Landscape Photos For Purchase (0)
• Fashion Shoot Locations and Permits (22)

Hey everyone !  I recently shot actor Michael Copon.  He was in Scorpian King 2.  More photos to come !  Ok I added another photo.  I love this shot.   Maybe GQ magazine would like it ?

Photo by Jason Christopher Celebrity Actor Michael Copon

Photo by Jason Christopher, Actor Michael Copon

Related posts

• Photography Discussion: question and answer about anything involving photography (51)
• Fashion Photography workshops on location (25)
• Shawn Johnson Photo Shoot (2)
• Fashion Blog On Your Cell Phone (0)
• Vintage fashion photography: red Cadillacs & high fashion models (19)

I just received this from the videographer.  This shoot was back in Dec. 4th – 8th 2008.  The client was Deliverance Poker. This was shot at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas in a really nice hotel room. I used Profoto strobes with grid spots, Chimera soft box’s and my Canon 1DS.   Enjoy !

Fashion Shoot for Deliverance Poker from Jason Christopher on Vimeo.

In December of 2008 I was flown to Las Vegas to shoot an ad campaign for Deliverance Poker. I spent 4 days photographing many different scenes and situations with beautiful women among the glitz and glamor of Las Vegas. I had a great time and was driven to each location in a huge limo which I admit was cool. The fashion photography was different than what I normally shoot but that is what my client wanted and that is what they got.

Related posts

• Photo lighting diagram-night beach shoot (14)
• Lens selection for beauty photography (17)
• Fashion Shoot Behind the Scenes Video (20)
• Vintage fashion photography: red Cadillacs & high fashion models (19)
• Using Off Camera Flash On Location (9)

I have been asked many times what lens is best for shooting beauty. I use a Canon 100mm macro F/2.8. You can also use an 85mm however I prefer the longer lens. Anything over 100 is not necessary, it will be heavy and you need a steady hand or a tripod for beauty photography. I especially love the 100mm for outdoor beauty with the sun back lighting your model. The compression is beautiful ! This image was shot with the 100mm 2.8. It’s not a very expensive lens, around $600.

beauty lighting with one umbrella

Share and Enjoy:

Tags: beauty lighting diagram, beauty photography, Canon, eyes, jason christopher, macro lens, profoto, strobes, umbrella

Related posts

• Eyelash squeezer beauty photography (3)
• Photography Discussion: question and answer about anything involving photography (51)
• Eyelash Tweezers for beauty photography (11)
• Clean beauty make up (2)
• Catching Candid Moments (1)

I am offering my landscape photos to you all at very reasonable prices.  I have had so many people ask me if they could buy prints so I decided to share them with you all Pricing starts at $50 on up based on size.  Each print is printed on high quality museum paper or canvas mounted on stretcher boards and signed by me.  These are limited editions.  If you would like to order prints please contact me directly. PH: 818-889-9559 or you can email me jason@jasonchristopher.com.

Related posts

• observe your surroundings during your fashion shoot (0)
• Catching Candid Moments (1)
• Jason Christopher photographing on beach (4)
• Fashion Photography workshops on location (25)
• Using Off Camera Flash On Location (9)