Star-studded afternoon with Vihro in the Dynaphos studio
Three hours of inspiration, where the real stars were not the model and the photographer, but the lighting from Nanlite Bulgaria and a Sparkle filter. This is how we can summarize the meeting of the master behind the lens, Vihar Laskov-Vihro, with those who had pre-registered for the event "In the Shadow of Contrast" at Dynaphos's studio last week.
He demonstrated not the actual shooting of the model, but the setup of the lighting for the shot:
"My idea was for them to see how the entire lighting is constructed, as well as why the model is dressed the way she is, what the choice of hairstyle and makeup is, rather than for me to show them how I capture the shot."
Vihro arranged two sets with the same Nanlite lights: Nanlite Forza 500B II Bi-Color; FS 300 C RGB and two Nanlite PavoTube II 30X. The difference turned out to be in the way they were positioned; in the shot plan of the model - the first a wide shot, the second a portrait; and in the addition of a 19-degree Nanlite optical spot in the portrait set.
"It allows us to shape very defined light – we made triangles, rectangles, and the shadow contrast is perfect!" Vihro shared.
What did the event participants realize? That in the first set, the contrast was more about color, not so much about light intensity, while in the second, it was much more pronounced, with gradations, sharp shadows, and contrasting colors.
"For me, the most enjoyable moment was seeing many beautiful things when looking at their cameras, and also that some of them were inspired by the vision and added their own very interesting elements."
And if the inspiration in the second set, according to Vihro, largely arose precisely because of the contrast and working with form, in the first set, it was triggered by a special filter.
"In this set, the model is wearing a shimmering dress, specifically chosen for the backlighting to produce glittering effects. I showed a Hoya 52mm Sparkle 6x filter - a 6-point star, which captures the glints towards the lens and turns them into little stars."
Thus, after the event, everyone left in a sparkling mood, some even with a star filter, and Vihro - with anticipation:
"My idea for the demonstration was in the spirit of a proverb: 'Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.' In other words, I didn't just present them with a ready-made set with lighting and a model to photograph, but we did it together during the demonstration."
Assisting in this were:
Model: @velizara.kalenga @aliamodelsagency
Stylist: @ivette_bianchi
Makeup: @monica.up
Photos from the event can be seen on Dynaphos's Facebook profile. They are by photographer Dilyana Gergova. And you can learn more about Vihar Laskov-Vihro from the profile we wrote about him in words in the Photographers section of our blog and on his professional website and Instagram and Facebook profiles.
