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Making a 'Monte' by Monte Zucker - part 3 of 1 2 3

Published 01/06/2005

Although I work just as easily throughout the day in bright sunshine, I can use flash together with direct sunlight late in the afternoon for some pretty interesting effects. For the full-length picture of the guy holding the girl I used direct sunlight to light his face and chest, adding a flash at about a 45° angle to the camera to help open up the shadows for detail.

For the two pictures of the same man and the other girl on their knees I backlit both of them with the sun directly behind them, using a strong flash to light their faces and bodies. To get the sky that dark I exposed at 1/125th at f/16, so the flash had to be close enough to get f/16 or f/22. The stronger the flash the deeper the background. It's that easy!

For my full-length model on top of the sand dune I used the late afternoon setting sun as the main light. A reflector opened up the deep shadows on the front of her gown. I was down on my back shooting up to the sky.

The background for all four pictures was a part of the beach scene from the first picture. Notice how light it is. It ties the pictures together without being a distraction.

So, now that you've studied my work...seen a collection of all kinds of subject matter... can you recognize my style? What is it? Can you see any continuity between all the images? Have I accomplished my goal? Incurably romantic?

How would you describe a Monte Portrait now?

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1st Published 01/06/2005
last update 09/12/2022 14:56:18

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