To Light a Truck

[Loose Canon]

Before I go any further with this, Please accept my apologies.

I realize this truck is not a showpiece. Sadly, the Lamborghini-Murcielago was in getting washed and detailed. I gave the chauffer the night off and he won’t let me drive the Rolls. So the old sexy pickup truck was the next best thing!

The idea was simply to see if I could light it.

I tried to set some zones, keep spectrals and horrid glaring reflections (its like shooting a red mirror with windows!), and shadows under control. Shoot the background at black while providing some kind of rim lighting so as not to lose the truck to the background and just generally try not to botch the entire shoot or break anything!

Now that I think about it, I wish I would have kept the Lamborghini and sent this thing out for a wash!

Well, at least I didn’t break anything!

[ktuli]

Terry,

Interesting shot. I do see a couple spots that are bugging my eyes...

1. The headrest in the driver's seat is far too hot, and draws my eye in too much. I'd actually consider putting up the driver's side window and letting the interior just go black.

2. The lighting under the truck is causing some weird issues. It looks like the driver's side front wheel is floating because it gets lost in a very dark shadow. Subsequently, the passenger side front wheel seems to almost disappear, causing that corner of the vehicle to look a little weird since it is the only wheel not illuminated. I'd honestly lean towards having the front wheels illuminated and let the rear wheels fall into a bit more shadow.

3. The light on the bug deflector & front bumper, I probably would have let fall on the windshield. I don't think I would have minded a reflection there - kind of like a catchlight in a portrait. That coupled with a black interior from #1 might work better, but I don't know. Moving that light up a bit might also help keep the roof rack illuminated a bit better rather than letting the passenger side vanish into the shadow.

Keep in mind, I've never done anything this complex, so I could be dead wrong on all points, so take it for what it is worth...

- Bill

[Loose Canon]

...so take it for what it is worth...

Its worth a lot to me, Bill, and I thank you for your feedback. All good and valid points.

It was my first time attempting a vehicle with this technique and I find I am sometimes missing the forrest for the trees. Probably more like missing the blinkies in the night (blown headrest- and I mean blown!)!

I think my only hope is to just keep doing these things. But that will only work if I can keep getting great input like yours.

I might be able to convincingly dodge the passenger side tire back into existence a little. Maybe something or other with the driver's side tire. And keep your suggestions at the forefront for the re-shoot.

[Designer]

Terry; I appreciate your effort. No doubt this is a tough subject. One suggestion that I have is to have a look at how the pros do it. I think they use something like a softbox for the main, and perhaps use several.

I wish the load bars were not dissappearing into the dark, and I think the underlight is pretty strong. Also, unless the running gear is supposed to be the primary subject, you can raise the camera and get more of the body, and less of the undercarriage.

[Loose Canon]

Terry; I appreciate your effort. No doubt this is a tough subject. One suggestion that I have is to have a look at how the pros do it. I think they use something like a softbox for the main, and perhaps use several.

Thank you, Jim.

Funny you should mention this. I actually did do some googling and I didn't really see a lot of vehicles shot in this manner. Which means I probably just missed them somehow. I did see an inordinate amount of bikini models, though! I'm getting the impression that in order to shoot vehicles, you put a model in the frame, get her lit right, and the shot is good to go!

Thank you for the suggestions. I see a re-shoot in my foreseeable future. Maybe after a time or three shooting like this I can start seeing the forrest and the trees!

In order to make the boat racks more visible, I am going to have to lift the camera angle. Both of which are great suggestions. At this angle, they disappear on the other side of the truck anyway no matter how they are lit.

I am definitely going to take some of these suggestions to heart. Especially the Bikini Model!