Milena Gigova showed how Dynaphos lighting helps transform children's photos into art

Over 30 people took advantage of our invitation to participate in the "Open Day" at our studio just before March 3rd, dedicated to artistic children's portraits, where Milena Gigova demonstrated how she transforms ordinary photos into art. The three models she used for her demonstration posed in front of her Canon EOS R6 with two different outfits against two backgrounds, illuminated with Dynaphos equipment. Because, as she puts it, light is the most important element in artistic portraits.

“It's good to have it a little more dramatic, positioned more to the side or from above,” Milena explained and added. “I like to shoot with an open aperture; for this type of portrait, I aim for 2.5 - 2.8 because I prefer to have a little more detail. If I see that the set is more ethereal, I open it up a bit more. Usually, the modifier I shoot with is a white reflective umbrella with diffusion; mine is 180. The larger it is, the softer it is.”

In her demonstration, Milena Gigova used a prime lens Canon RF 50 mm and a Godox Xpro-C Trigger from Dynaphos for both sets. She equipped them as follows:

Set 1 

Manfrotto Vintage Collapsible Backdrop - 1.5 x 2.1 m Tobacco/Olive, which you can order from us
Dynaphos Speedster QT-600II Studio Flash 
95cm Quick-Fold Softbox. 

Set 2 

A darker background than Set 1  
Two Dynaphos Speedster QT-600II flashes, as in the previous set. One is positioned behind to light the models' hair.
150cm Parabolic Softbox 
18cm Barndoor with Honeycomb and Color Filters

Milena shared that she pays special attention to what she wants to achieve with each session. She discusses it with the parents and only then begins shooting.

“In artistic portraits, the focus is not on exaggerated emotion. Everything is well composed, and after the light, the most important things are the clothing and post-processing.”

Clothing

Milena prefers a vintage look. That's why, in addition to the children's clothes, she sometimes uses her own sweaters. She likes to put hats on them and experiment with various accessories or objects she gives them to hold to complement their look – like an old globe, an abacus, or flowers.

“Hair, hats, hairstyles – everything must be in sync. A fan can also be used to fluff up the girls' hair,” she advised. Her other advice was for the children to be serious.  

All three models performed brilliantly, and her son earned praise from everyone present at the demonstration for his patience and flawless execution of every pose requested of him as a model. Explaining that it is normal for children to be guided during a session, Milena paid special attention to the posture and hands of the small models in front of the lens.

“If there is more than one model, it is good for them to be in contact, close to each other. And it's good for the hands to be one over the other or to be 'ballet hands' for girls.”

Besides clothing and guidance, it's important:

To connect with the models

Milena Gigova's secret lies in communicating with them – in the questions she asks them, about what they like to do, for example. And in the patience to capture the moment with the expression she seeks for each shot. Here are some of her photos after post-processing.

The cover photo and the first in the article are by Dilyana Gergova. The backstage photos are by the author of the article, Ekaterina Kostova. The edited shots with the child models are by Milena Gigova. All photos are published on the Dynaphos blog with the consent of their authors. Look forward to meeting Milena Gigova in the Photographer section of our blog.