How do you do this?

SJD2011

SJD2011

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Sam
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Hi guys & gals,

I have a martial arts session coming up that I am taking photos for, and would like to try something a little less ordinary.....I would love to capture something similar to this - i.e. a lone figure surrounded by movement:

http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=357304

(I love this image - many congrats to Spooky with this one )

so, I was wondering if anyone knew how to achieve this, and what settings? I cant seem to get the exif data on the above image.

Thanks very much for any help anyone can give!
 
With that shot I think Marc had the model standing stationary for a period of time and exposed the shot with a long shutter speed making the people walking past blurry.

Your settings will be dependent on the available light and how much depth of field you want. Im sure someone with a bit more experience than me will be able to help you out a bit more on the settings side of things
 
SJD2011 said:
Hi guys & gals,

I have a martial arts session coming up that I am taking photos for, and would like to try something a little less ordinary.....I would love to capture something similar to this - i.e. a lone figure surrounded by movement:

http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=357304

(I love this image - many congrats to Spooky with this one )

so, I was wondering if anyone knew how to achieve this, and what settings? I cant seem to get the exif data on the above image.

Thanks very much for any help anyone can give!
Click to expand...

I would imagine that you could have one experienced martial arts expert holding a defensive stance for a couple of seconds in the middle of the shot (looking straight into the lens), whilst other people around are engaged in combat in full motion.
 
The photo you linked to (a nice photo by the way) seems to be a combination of a few images - one of the girl (although she seems to be in the photo in 3 places:)), perhaps one of a clear bridge and then a slow shutter speed image of the passersby which seems to have a lowered opacity to make them seem more ghostly and maybe blurred further in photoshop (you can see their legs never change position). You could try doing it all in one shot but you might find the subject loses sharpness.
 
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your biggest problem will be available light in a dojo, they are frequently quite gloomy and the WB can be a nuisance so make sure you adjust your settings accordingly.

There are two that were both handheld in a single shot

4.jpg


4.jpg


I also agree the one you have linked to is merge of several different exposures. Your central character will have to hold very still to get the effect you want in one take. However, given the others will also be martial artists, I would suggest asking them to be doing high speed power stuff, which will create a lot of blur quickly too. Oh and use a tripod if yo can :thumbs:
 
Have a look at the work of manuel Vasquez especially traces of a lonely crowd. He used a shaft of sunlight to isolate commuters at Madrid train station then layered them into an image, creating some amazing and powerful images. You might be able to do something similar if the dojo is dark and you can arrange a light from above.
 
Thanks very much for the help.

I should be able to use a tripod, so hopefully will be able to recreate something similar to the above shots. The session is being held in a disused airplane (who knows why!), so it should be quite an interesting event. I just hope I can do it justice!
 
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