Big thanks to my models Irina and especially to Julia who spent about half an hour on the cold and uncomfortable floor. I guess this was my most complicated lighting setup to date - three strobes plus one speedlight!
ps. Thank you all for comments, votes, and faves! I would not call it my "Personal Best", but it is my new highest scoring photo (my previous highest score, incidentally also in a movie challenge, was nearly 4 years ago).
A lot of comments complimented me on setting this up. Actually, it was not all that hard. Nothing compared to the scale and complexity of gyaban's monumental endeavors. It is basically lighting, my fedora, and my wife's trench coat. It took me about an hour or two to set the lights up on August 7 evening using a big stuffed ape (daughter's old toy) as a model, and then we invited a couple of friends the following night (which by the way was my wife's birthday and the night before my own), so she graciously agreed to play the corpse, and he pressed the shutter for me. Took another hour or so.
Johanna, in your comment, you are right, the smoke would've been nice. In fact I do have a few outtakes with the cigarette smoke, but in those shots Julia (the woman on the floor) was looking straight into the camera (bad direction on my part)... so this was the most convincing shot overall in the series.
a great birthday present for Irina and myself, I'd say. She got a kick out of JuliBoc's comment calling her "the busty blond"... she was never called that before... perhaps because she is not a blond :)
Statistics
Place: 1 out of 106 Avg (all users): 7.8557 Avg (commenters): 8.8293 Avg (participants): 8.0656 Avg (non-participants): 7.7594 Views since voting: 8246 Views during voting: 508 Votes: 194 Comments: 103 Favorites: 19 (view)
Ah, forgot to leave a note on this one. It is an absolutely incredible image, Lev. An instant classic on DPC that will forever be remembered as one of the all-time greats! Congratulations on achieving this marvelous piece of work!
Very cool. You remind of the Cencer Man from the X-files.
First thought that came to my mind, "How did he get CSM to pose?" (For those that aren't familiar with the X-files, CSM-Cigarette Smoking Man...aka Cancer Man).
Fantastic picture. The main character looking like a known actor made me think it was from a movie.
This is absolutely magnificent!! I'm finally home from vacation, so I can comment on images. This was so obviously the blue ribbon, there just was no doubt. Well done, wonderfully conceived, and what a fun story. Congrats on the blue! :)
Congratulations on the new PB and what a great bday present! You did a great job setting up the lighting. The sort of speckled light, the effect of light going through window shutters? adds to the mood.
Ah Lev! You definitely look the part. Perhaps you should be in the movies... Could really pass for a studio still from one of those great old detective movies. Excellent work!
WONDERFUL IDEA - WONDERFUL SET-UP - WONDERFUL IMAGE - WONDERFUL RESULT - WELL DESERVED
This is one of the reasons why I want to come back to DPC even if I cannot take photos anymore I can at least look at them and also SCORE when I get the chance to become a full member again .....
Miss you all from shez xox
PS...... WHO the silly billy who gave this AWESOME IMAGE a "1" YES a ONE YOU must be ASHAMED or PLAIN STUPID.....Sorry if the truth hurts
No, they shouldn't be any of the above. There are plenty of reasons anyone might score this a one, and none of them are invalid. They may be antithetical to YOUR way of viewing DPC, the world, or whatever, but they are valid none-the-less.
Every score is personal, and every score counts. It reflects more negatively on you, than the the person giving a 1, when you react in this way.
Unbelievably fabulous. The setup is fantastic, as well as the BW processing. But the lighting is what is beyond brilliant. Many congratulations on your Blue.
Yeah, well I unfortunately never got around to voting or commenting, but this was certainly the standout, and it's an awesome image that took a lot of creativity and excellent execution to get this fabulous result. Best of all, it seems like you had fun with it. Happy Birthday to you both!
WONDERFUL IDEA - WONDERFUL SET-UP - WONDERFUL IMAGE - WONDERFUL RESULT - WELL DESERVED
This is one of the reasons why I want to come back to DPC even if I cannot take photos anymore I can at least look at them and also SCORE when I get the chance to become a full member again .....
Miss you all from shez xox
PS...... WHO the silly billy who gave this AWESOME IMAGE a "1" YES a ONE YOU must be ASHAMED or PLAIN STUPID.....Sorry if the truth hurts
Magnificent effort, Lev. Congrats on a truly deserving blue. The only thing that could possibly have made this better would have been a thin thread of smoke from the cigarette.
Straight out of a movie set. The dramatic lighting, the triangular composition, the way the light picks out the lady in the background.... Fabulous effort. 10
Hmmmm, I just saw this one "elsewhere" (minus the border thingies). You look quite good as a noir character. My "gripe", the pictures in back on the shelf look too modern.
This is brilliant. The lighting is very well done and so are the poses of the models. It looks just like a film noir still. I hope this ribbons. Nice touch with the border, too.
This is very good. Lighting and subject matter is perfect for the challenge. My only nitpick is the image is a little cluttered for a scene from that film era otherwise perfect.
Brilliant! The woman in the background is the icing on the cake. You have everything here: the striped shadows from the blinds, the shadow from his hat across his eyes, the costumes, the busty blond, the cigarette, great composition, excellent poses, high contrast. 10
This makes me nuts. What's the banding on the top and bottom all about here? It's such a well thought-out shot and cleverly executed that it's an easy 9 but I find the affectations of the added borders very distracting. I really want to understand that decision so maybe I can see the light. I'm giving a reluctant 7 for capturing the noirish spirit with a bit of tongue-in-cheek in the proper aspect ratio (excepting borders).
Clearly the winner. Not only are the characters, chiaroscuro, and costumes exactly redolent of a 40s-era movie poster, but the photo is expertly done, setup and post. You so obviously really understand the use of light back then. Really the best in this challenge, by far. This could easily be mistaken for a still from a movie of the era. 10
like a still from a real movie - excellent props and location. wish there was a tad more light on the lady in the back. the bold border was unnecessary here.
My first 10, you did some major planning and stunning carrying out of lighting (does that make sense?) Just fablous, I feel like I'm watching Turner Classic Movies!!!
Murder on Montrose Way
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