Monday, August 11, 2014

The Beyonders Beyond

The Beyonders
I shot these photos in June for the band 'The Beyonders' - it just dawned on me that I had yet to post any to the blog.
I met the band for the shoot before their show at Musica one evening - my friend Josh and I finagled our way into the back lot so we wouldn't have to carry the gear too far. The 'total confidence' and act like you know what you're doing routine worked on the 20 something valet guy. Josh helped me haul the gear to the back alley and then enlisted the door woman to help me find an outlet - I had brought a long extension cord. I already had a plan for the lighting - I had done some test shots in my yard the night before. I knew I wanted a backlight - I was already thinking of the Photoshopped moon in the above shot. The set-up went smooth and Josh stood in for some tests. I love when portrait subjects are able to just walk into the scene without having to see or worry about any of the behind the scene stuff...and just focus on the actual photo taking.

The Beyonders The Beyonders have a kind of surf rock sound mixed with their own strange vibe and they have a "space" theme - with the costumes and all we just had to try a few with the "Devo Pose". The Beyonders I think this is my favorite. The light setup is a large softbox in the front and a beauty dish-like contraption behind. The low camera angle or as I've heard it called the 'hero shot' works well for me with these guy/gals.
This was one of those sessions that probably took less than 15 minutes and I came away with 15 different good images. Everyone was natural at posing and yet still good at taking direction. I don't shoot bands that often like I used too - I need to start reaching out again - I miss it. Or maybe just shooting a band this easy to work with made me miss it.

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