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Shadows on the Concrete….

34 Comments

Hey gang….blog’s been, well, a little light lately. Truth be told, I had a hard book deadline to meet, so I shot 13 portraits (none of which I can show here quite yet) in 17 days, then jumped on a plane and headed out to California for a Digital Landscape Workshop Series stop. Whew!

In between finishing the portrait series and coming out here, I managed to spend a wonderful day with Scott Kelby and a video crew from NAPP. They started in my studio, and my garage, and shot everything about that day in the field from the conceptualization of it, to the lens selection, to the packing of the truck. In between we took a tour of the  studio workroom, and talked about pictures, from the ones we were about to shoot to the ones hanging on the wall. I’ve got some of my own stuff up on the walls, but we are blessed at the studio with lots of work from other shooters I have known for many years. And we talked about it all. And then we talked and filmed some more while driving through traffic into the city. And then some more, walking around, assessing the location. And then some more, while shooting. And wrapping. A whole day in other words, from packing the lights to using them, from shooting the job to going back home.

The above is the kind of stuff I shot, which is to say the kind of stuff I’ve shot in NYC for thirty years. A day in the life of a shooter. It won’t be out right away, as they’ve got a bunch of editing to do, but it should be a fun class to take a look and have a listen to. One Quadra flash, with a honeycomb grid. That’s it. One light, high angle, done deal.

Many thanks to Scott and the gang for hanging in the Big Apple for a day. Nothing like shooting in the city……more tk….

Comments

  1. Kyle Jerichow says

    Joe,

    Good stuff seeing you soo busy! Have fun in Napa, Kamila and I got married out there and had a blast! Awesome Sushi, and awesome sunrises.

    Can’t wait to see the photos you are able to create!

    Kyle

  6. david says

    I’m looking forward to the class. I really enjoy the Kelby “A Day With. . .” style of instruction.

  7. Tim Kainu says

    Hopefully some fun was mixed into your long work days, too!

    I love that photo! The shadow flows perfectly. How far out is the light from the top of the image, would you say?

  10. Steve Wylie says

    That’s just a great image! Yes, it may be simple to execute lighting-wise, but it’s the thought behind it that makes it incredible. Inspiring!

  12. Lee Love Photography says

    Joe you really freaked me out when I saw this title. I just finished a series on skateboarders where I only showed their feet and/or their shadows.

    I don’t know how you keep up this pace but thank goodness you do because we all enjoy seeing what you will come up with next.

  14. Joe Masucci says

    Awesome photo! Can’t wait to read “Sketching Light” and watch your new DVD. Many thanks.

  16. William Chinn says

    Speaking of the book, I volunteered to get one for Kat and Eric. Please let me know how this can be done the fastest and easiest way. I will even pick up the shipping. Please don’t let me forget. Just a LA attendee who stopped to read their story.

  17. Colinwalks says

    G’Day Joe
    Very big thanks for your openess and sharing. I wait patiently, well somewhat, for the video and anything else you share.
    Cheers

  20. John says

    Great photo Joe! Some time ago I wrote a post about who inspires me. After I saw your shot I have to reconsider, you’re a lot better than Chuck Norris 😀

  23. John Swarce says

    Can’t wait to see that Kelby Training class, Joe. I’m sure the language will be as colorful as Jay Maisel’s. 🙂

    –John

  24. Ian says

    @Tim Kainu
    By drawing 2 converging lines from the shadow (foot on the left and knee on the right) past the subject’s foot and knee, I estimate that the light source was about 18 feet away. Very roughly guessed with by fingers on the screen. try it yourself! 🙂

    Great, imaginative photo

  27. aunn says

    Wow… What a great shot!!

    you have a perfect control of light. Thank for sharing, I will try playing around with a light and shadow. 🙂

  29. Johan Sopiee says

    “Shadows” ROCKS! i’ve been playing with shadows a lot since we met in January but haven’t gotten any shots that come anywhere near this capture. love your perspective and choice of shadow play!

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Professional Photographer. Director. Author. Nikon USA Ambassador.

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Sep 7

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The ever striking muse @nwilmshurstx locks onto the camera. Classic beauty combo of an overhead light with a low fill. No background light, as she is only about eight feet in front of one of the @manfrottoimaginemore collapsible backdrops, which are super handy when using someone’s living room as a location - which is the case here! Over-under light, and add a lovely subject! Natalie is currently a highlighted performer at the @royalpalacekirrwiller in Kirrwiller, France. Looks like a spectacular show! #saturdaymorning #picoftheday #portraitphotography #nikonambassador #nikonpro #nikond850

The ever striking muse @nwilmshurstx locks onto the camera. Classic beauty combo of an overhead light with a low fill. No background light, as she is only about eight feet in front of one of the @manfrottoimaginemore collapsible backdrops, which are super handy when using someone’s living room as a location - which is the case here! Over-under light, and add a lovely subject! Natalie is currently a highlighted performer at the @royalpalacekirrwiller in Kirrwiller, France. Looks like a spectacular show!

#saturdaymorning #picoftheday #portraitphotography #nikonambassador #nikonpro #nikond850 ...

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joemcnallyphoto

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Sep 5

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One small light through a window! A Speedlight, as a matter fact. Remember those? Handy, versatile, and highly evolved. The one flash is gelled CTO and placed out in the parking lot. I actually triggered it line of sight, so this pic is definitely from the old school of technology. Wonderful model, carefully placed so the striped highlights through the blinds hit across her eyes. Rest of the photo is just available pool hall light, with some assistance from a smoke machine. Shot with the Nikon D3X, which was a heckuva good camera, and aperture priority with underexposure dialed into the camera. The flash has no diffusion and is zoomed tight to retain the edge and hardness of the light. So much fun to play with light at a location like this! #throwbackthursday #thursdayvibes #thursdaythoughts #portraitphotography #picoftheday #nikonambassador #nikonpro #nikond3x

One small light through a window! A Speedlight, as a matter fact. Remember those? Handy, versatile, and highly evolved. The one flash is gelled CTO and placed out in the parking lot. I actually triggered it line of sight, so this pic is definitely from the old school of technology. Wonderful model, carefully placed so the striped highlights through the blinds hit across her eyes. Rest of the photo is just available pool hall light, with some assistance from a smoke machine. Shot with the Nikon D3X, which was a heckuva good camera, and aperture priority with underexposure dialed into the camera. The flash has no diffusion and is zoomed tight to retain the edge and hardness of the light. So much fun to play with light at a location like this!

#throwbackthursday #thursdayvibes #thursdaythoughts #portraitphotography #picoftheday #nikonambassador #nikonpro #nikond3x ...

2400 57

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Sep 2

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The Labor Day Weekend symbolizes the end of the summer, and our yearly, necessary, honorable celebration of work. On this Labor Day, I remember going underground with some of the hardest working folks I’ve ever been privileged to point a lens at—the legendary NY Sandhogs. I’ve always been compelled to photograph labor. Work. Always been curious about how things are built, or the intricacies of major industry. Hence my propensity over time to climb things, or go under the ground with my cameras. The camera stands in service to hard work and knowledge, and I’ve loved the times I’ve been allowed behind the scenes—in a mine, in an operating theater, in tunnels, or massive manufacturing plants. Sweat and striving. The drama of heavy industry. The camera honors and defines the nobility of work be it backbreaking labor accompanied by the din of heavy machinery, or delicate, intuitive, tension-laden moves of a scalpel inside the chest of a patient. Work compels us, support us, frustrates us, rewards us, defines us. For many, the job becomes almost inseparable from the person. So it is with the Sandhogs you see here. They build astonishing structures far below the earth’s surface which flow water into New York. Without their work, the city couldn’t exist. It was a story I responded to, and remember on this day. #Laborday #photojournalism #NYC #storytelling

The Labor Day Weekend symbolizes the end of the summer, and our yearly, necessary, honorable celebration of work. On this Labor Day, I remember going underground with some of the hardest working folks I’ve ever been privileged to point a lens at—the legendary NY Sandhogs. I’ve always been compelled to photograph labor. Work. Always been curious about how things are built, or the intricacies of major industry. Hence my propensity over time to climb things, or go under the ground with my cameras. The camera stands in service to hard work and knowledge, and I’ve loved the times I’ve been allowed behind the scenes—in a mine, in an operating theater, in tunnels, or massive manufacturing plants. Sweat and striving. The drama of heavy industry.

The camera honors and defines the nobility of work be it backbreaking labor accompanied by the din of heavy machinery, or delicate, intuitive, tension-laden moves of a scalpel inside the chest of a patient. Work compels us, support us, frustrates us, rewards us, defines us. For many, the job becomes almost inseparable from the person.

So it is with the Sandhogs you see here. They build astonishing structures far below the earth’s surface which flow water into New York. Without their work, the city couldn’t exist. It was a story I responded to, and remember on this day.

#Laborday #photojournalism #NYC #storytelling ...

596 12

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Aug 31

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Wide open sharpness intensifies the eyes. Once again, an over/under style of light not only suits the lovely face of Cassie, a beautiful Hawaiian dancer I have worked with, it illuminates the eyes. The under component is essential, given the floral decorations in her hair. That is provided by the Westcott Eyelighter 3, with a Profoto overhead umbrella with a diffuser. All overhead light would produce shadowing. But this lighting twosome and her resolute beauty looking at the camera demands the attention of the viewer. It’s like that old game we played as kids, “Made you look!” This style of light does make you look. Nikkor 85mm lens wide open at f/1.8. Compact lens, handy to carry and crazy sharp. #saturdaymorning #hawaii #portraitphotography #picoftheday #beauty #nikonpro #nikonambassador #nikonz7 @nikonusa

Wide open sharpness intensifies the eyes. Once again, an over/under style of light not only suits the lovely face of Cassie, a beautiful Hawaiian dancer I have worked with, it illuminates the eyes. The under component is essential, given the floral decorations in her hair. That is provided by the Westcott Eyelighter 3, with a Profoto overhead umbrella with a diffuser. All overhead light would produce shadowing. But this lighting twosome and her resolute beauty looking at the camera demands the attention of the viewer. It’s like that old game we played as kids, “Made you look!” This style of light does make you look. Nikkor 85mm lens wide open at
f/1.8. Compact lens, handy to carry and crazy sharp.

#saturdaymorning #hawaii #portraitphotography #picoftheday #beauty #nikonpro #nikonambassador #nikonz7 @nikonusa ...

3118 58

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Aug 28

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The startling beautiful Monteece locks eyes with the camera. A veteran Vegas performer, she has an amazing array of skills, from gymnastics to dance, to acting. I’ve always found inspiration amongst the group of performers and friends I’ve worked with over the years in Vegas. The physical grace and strength demanded of them to be in these shows nightly is extraordinary, as is the discipline. Shot with over/under lighting and the square format on the Nikon Z 7. One of the primary benefits (for me) of all the accelerated mirrorless technology is the ease of use of square format. Don’t forget to experiment with different formats! I find the square connects to a historical continuum of portrait tradition, and has a formalism to it. (Also, you don’t have to turn the camera for a vertical😉) And our talent’s gesture inhabits this particular square wonderfully. Production excellence from the one and only Lynn DelMastro and gorgeous styling by Sam Brown. #wednesdaywisdom #picoftheday #portraitphotography #nikonambassador #nikonpro #nikonz7 @monteecetaylor - talent @northorchard - production @samanthabrownstyle - styling @nikonusa

The startling beautiful Monteece locks eyes with the camera. A veteran Vegas performer, she has an amazing array of skills, from gymnastics to dance, to acting. I’ve always found inspiration amongst the group of performers and friends I’ve worked with over the years in Vegas. The physical grace and strength demanded of them to be in these shows nightly is extraordinary, as is the discipline. Shot with over/under lighting and the square format on the Nikon Z 7. One of the primary benefits (for me) of all the accelerated mirrorless technology is the ease of use of square format. Don’t forget to experiment with different formats! I find the square connects to a historical continuum of portrait tradition, and has a formalism to it. (Also, you don’t have to turn the camera for a vertical😉) And our talent’s gesture inhabits this particular square wonderfully. Production excellence from the one and only Lynn DelMastro and gorgeous styling by Sam Brown.
#wednesdaywisdom #picoftheday #portraitphotography #nikonambassador #nikonpro #nikonz7

@monteecetaylor - talent
@northorchard - production
@samanthabrownstyle - styling
@nikonusa ...

1165 18

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Aug 24

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Hard light, amazing eyes. And transformative HMU by @clairepiao. The wondrous @dlimathais graces the lens with a look that holds attention. Available hard light, working outside on a deck in Los Angeles, with my dear friend @bertonevisuals - who has a marvelous studio area. Camera rig is the Nikon Z 7, partnered with the astonishing optic, the NIKKOR Z 58mm F/0.95 S, wide open at .95. Fastest lens I’ve ever used. Sharpness is unreal, and DOF falls off a cliff. Perfect for a hard light look! #saturdaymorning #picoftheday fashionphotography #nikonambassador #nikonpro @nikonusa #nikonz7

Hard light, amazing eyes. And transformative HMU by @clairepiao. The wondrous @dlimathais graces the lens with a look that holds attention. Available hard light, working outside on a deck in Los Angeles, with my dear friend @bertonevisuals - who has a marvelous studio area.

Camera rig is the Nikon Z 7, partnered with the astonishing optic, the NIKKOR Z 58mm F/0.95 S, wide open at .95. Fastest lens I’ve ever used. Sharpness is unreal, and DOF falls off a cliff. Perfect for a hard light look!

#saturdaymorning #picoftheday fashionphotography #nikonambassador #nikonpro @nikonusa #nikonz7 ...

1776 27

joemcnallyphoto

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Aug 19

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World Photography Day is described as a day for “photographers to share their world with the world.” In short, to witness, which is what we do. The beautiful necessity of being a photographer is that you have to go. You have to go and see. Many writers and reporters, nowadays especially, do a lot of their work on the phone, or the internet. But photographers have to go there, camera in hand, and see for ourselves. And then once observed and recorded, share it with the world. A slice of time, as innocuously lovely as a sunset, or a family gathering, as momentous as an earthquake or an Olympics, or as deadly and forbidding as a war zone. It can be a fanciful bit of our imagination, or as steely and shrill as a political protest. We witness. The compulsion to document the world around us is as compelling and necessary to photographers as breathing. I did a lot of work for LIFE, and the motto of the magazine rings true to this day, even though the publication is no longer. “To see the world, things dangerous to come to, to see behind walls, to draw closer, to find each other, and to feel, that is the purpose of life.” The sound of the shutter is still thrilling to me. Still a sense of wonder at the camera. Seventy countries and counting. Sharing this roll call of pictures, in association with the @monroegallery, with whom I have a strong relationship nearly twenty years long. They are astounding folks, shepherding historically important imagery to be shared, to be seen, and thus to move those who do see it. They understand clearly the overarching value of important photography. Pictures are our history, our memory, our sense of ourselves. #worldphotographyday @monroegallery #photography

World Photography Day is described as a day for “photographers to share their world with the world.” In short, to witness, which is what we do. The beautiful necessity of being a photographer is that you have to go. You have to go and see. Many writers and reporters, nowadays especially, do a lot of their work on the phone, or the internet.

But photographers have to go there, camera in hand, and see for ourselves. And then once observed and recorded, share it with the world. A slice of time, as innocuously lovely as a sunset, or a family gathering, as momentous as an earthquake or an Olympics, or as deadly and forbidding as a war zone. It can be a fanciful bit of our imagination, or as steely and shrill as a political protest.

We witness. The compulsion to document the world around us is as compelling and necessary to photographers as breathing. I did a lot of work for LIFE, and the motto of the magazine rings true to this day, even though the publication is no longer. “To see the world, things dangerous to come to, to see behind walls, to draw closer, to find each other, and to feel, that is the purpose of life.”

The sound of the shutter is still thrilling to me. Still a sense of wonder at the camera. Seventy countries and counting. Sharing this roll call of pictures, in association with the @monroegallery, with whom I have a strong relationship nearly twenty years long. They are astounding folks, shepherding historically important imagery to be shared, to be seen, and thus to move those who do see it. They understand clearly the overarching value of important photography.

Pictures are our history, our memory, our sense of ourselves.
#worldphotographyday @monroegallery #photography ...

1112 47

joemcnallyphoto

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Aug 17

Open
Beautiful light on the river! Sometimes, the sun is with you, and the colors of the scene mesh in ways you hope for, but never completely expect. (I mean being a photog, you have to always assume disaster and rain clouds are in your immediate future.😀) But here, on the Schuylkill River near Philly, color, light and gesture came together. Great assignment! Long lens, hold steady from a chase boat. #saturdaymorning #summertime #sunsetphotography #picoftheday #NikonAmbassador #Nikonpro #NikonD4S @nikonusa

Beautiful light on the river! Sometimes, the sun is with you, and the colors of the scene mesh in ways you hope for, but never completely expect. (I mean being a photog, you have to always assume disaster and rain clouds are in your immediate future.😀) But here, on the Schuylkill River near Philly, color, light and gesture came together. Great assignment! Long lens, hold steady from a chase boat.

#saturdaymorning #summertime #sunsetphotography #picoftheday #NikonAmbassador #Nikonpro #NikonD4S @nikonusa ...

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