Sri Lanka Workshop Recap: Part 1: Central Highlands and the Southern Coast

Travel is a funny thing. Despite due diligence and research, trying to control all the variables is often like carrying water in a sieve - a lesson in futility. This is not to say throw caution completely to the wind, but rather understand going into it that things will inherently be different than any preconceived ideas regardless if you’ve been there before. So, with that being said, this year’s workshop I co-led with Etienne Bossot of Pics of Asia in Sri Lanka was a lesson in laughing at the weather when it should have been far less...moody and often grumpy. Maybe it wasn’t grumpy, but it definitely wasn’t blue skies and gorgeous sunsets. So, when these things happen, a bit of a change in perspective is necessary. It allows us to start thinking in a mindset that’s not really so much about “perfect travel conditions” but rather looking at the conditions and making images that play to the strengths of each situation. So that golden light isn’t there….. so what. Are we going to sulk around and whinge about the shitty weather or do we start looking for pools of light, reflections from the rain, indoor markets, texture, beauty in the mundane and decisive moments? Perhaps we need to start thinking more about how to create compelling images with what’s in front of us rather than what is traditionally seen as beautiful. This is definitely a do as I say, not necessarily as I do type situation because there were more than a couple of occasions that I shook my fist at the sky and groaned at another overcast sky. We’re all human, but it’s not the end of the day if things go differently than we thought. If it was, oh man, I’d have been witness to about a million apocalypses at this point in my life.

We started in Negombo, made our way to the mountains around Kandy and Nuwara Eliya, down to the rice paddies on the way down to the coast again and back along the southern coast through Galle and back up to Colombo. It was a whirlwind! This post will focus on the central highlands and the southern coast to Galle. Colombo and Negombo to follow. With such a varied countryside, it became impossible to narrow it down to just one post. So stay tuned for part 2.

For the photographers, I only took the Fuji x100v on this trip and while it had its ups and downs, I recently got the little adapter lenses that give me a 28mm, 35mm, and 50mm equivalent options in a tiny package, so I didn’t miss the bigger system. I did this partly because of the ease and speed of the tiny camera, but additionally to prove a point. Making compelling images doesn’t require a mountain of gear. Yeah yeah, I know everyone has heard its not the gear, and I’m a big supporter of that. But thats’s not the whole picture. It’s more of the recognition that all these magic picture boxes are tools to realise the vision in your head. Picking the right tools for the right job is far more the camp I reside in and the Fuji x100v was more than enough to shoot everything I wanted. I’m not a wildlife photographer, so I don’t need a bazooka lens, I’m not shooting massive print ads on these trips so I don’t need the bajillion megapixels. Sometimes less is more and and these trips are proof positive that you can take a small kit and create something that reflects that crazy person’s vision in your head. Speaking of gear, massive massive thanks to the folks at Think Tank. In addition to our usual program, we ran a friendly little competition for the best series of images/story and, because crows are ubiquitous in Sri Lanka, a cheeky little contest to see who could wrangle the nicest shot of a crow was thrown in last minute. We gave away their incredibly useful cable management bags to the winners.

For transparency, I am a ThinkTank affiliate and any purchase made off the link above I get a small percentage that allows us to keep these types of giveaways possible. I couldn’t speak higher of the folks over there. Not only are their bags incredible, but their customer service is world class. I’ve had nothing but over the top good experiences and only cosign things and companies that I feel are doing it the right way. Supporting them supports photographers and helps us create the images we love.

Recent Work : Cameron Foggo Design

Back at it with the amazing team at Cameron Foggo Design, we wanted to create some dynamic new images for the line coming out this summer. We built new sets, came up with new ideas, and overall had a blast shooting the new line. It’s always so good to have repeat clients so the work can evolve and improve over the course of multiple shoots. Many thanks for the trust and can’t wait until the next one. The last image is a bit of an extra as we blended ambient light with our strobes to create this evening vibe.

For all the photographers, these are a mix of images from my Sony kit as well as the little Fuji x100v. I’ve been taking the Fuji to commercial shoots for behind the scenes shots as well as documenting my lighting for future reference, but on this particular shoot, I grabbed some frames to see if they held up. I think they did, and it just goes to show you, the megapixelZ aren’t the end all be all for cameras. See if you can tell which ones are which. Put it in the comments and if someone gets it, I’ll mail you a free 8x10 print of anything on my website.

If you’re keen on seeing the first shoot, have a look here!

Recent Work: Editorial Furniture Photography for Spazio Bressan

Something must be in the water. In the last few shoots, we’ve been given a metric ton of creative control and while that’s incredible, to whom much is given, much is expected. We were tapped to create some editorial style images for furniture designers Spazio Bressan and after just a short chat, it was pretty clear we were going to have some fun with this one. Hard light, shadows as compositional elements, graphic…all the good stuff. Immediately excited, I ran off to start creating mood boards. After using some new AI tools to create the moodboards, we had a clear direction and execution on the day of the shoot was a breeze.

We wanted to make super clean images and really lean into shadows as compositional elements to create mood and direction in the visuals, so we used hard light to make those shadows CRISP. It was an absolute pleasure and so much fun being able to put something different out into the world. Thanks to the fantastic team at Spazio Bressan for the trust and I cannot wait to see how the projects evolve in the future!

Recent Work: Furniture Photography for Totem Road

Totem Road, based out of Sydney, recently tapped us to create some fresh images for the upcoming release of their new line of furniture. Totem Road’s aesthetic is bright, airy and coastal, so we wanted to create some super clean images that reflected that beachy, cruisy vibe. In the past, their visuals were shot in a natural light studio, but I had other ideas. For consistency and not having to rely on ol’ Mother Nature, we opted to use artificial light to recreate these moods so we could shoot for a prolonged period of time, focus on details, and not have to worry about our earth’s rotation around the sun. We built a set and our aim was to create spaces that were minimal yet looked inviting. peaceful, and coastal. The collaborative process in preproduction made our shoot a breeze and it all goes to show that proper planning and being able to bounce ideas around before hand always results in better work. Endless thanks to the team at Totem Road for all the hard work in minding the details and being such a crucial part in how these turned out.

Go have a look at their new lines here and here and you can pick up one of these beautiful pieces for your house.

For the lighting folks, these were all shot with Elinchrom lights. We had a few 1000 watt monolights and a few packs and heads depending on where we positioned the lights. For the room scenes, it was a 3 light setup - 1 light in a big octabank camera right through the window to recreate that soft morning glow, 1 light to camera left in a v flat to ensure we were filling in any light fall off, and 1 light through a 10” reflector through the window to create the light patterns on the floor and walls. I used the curtains as flags to dial in the exact shaping of the light.

Recent Work: John Lyle Design

Recently, the good people at John Lyle Design tapped us to make some images of their incredible furniture. After a visit to their workshop and watching the artisans craft these pieces, we knew we had to make some super clean images to showcase them the way they deserved. We had two looks - one on a white background and one with a bit more mood to it to differentiate for the multiple channels they’d be used. We opted for pretty simple lighting setups with a single key and a fill to carve out the angles. We bounced some light with some white cards and cut some light with a flag or two, but nothing super complicated as far as lighting is concerned. To achieve the two different looks, we adjusted ratios for the, but kept light placement the same to maximise the efficiency of the shoot.

A Study in Focal Lengths with Product Photography: Which one yields the best results?

I’ve been mostly shooting small objects recently and 9 times out of 10, I’m using my Sony 90mm 2.8 macro. Incredibly sharp, I can get up close and personal to capture all those fantastic little details in product and food photography. When shooting bigger objects, I have a bit more leeway in my choice in focal lengths. Depending on the style I’m going after, I can opt to shoot super wide for a more editorial or advertising feel or I can shoot with a longer lens for catalogue images. It’s not really a matter of what’s right or wrong, but it is rather interesting to see the effects of different focal lengths in these types of shoots. I shot this super slick chair with 4 different lenses in 4 different focal lengths - Zeiss Batis 18mm, Sony 35mm, Sony/Zeiss 55mm and Zeiss Batis 85mm. All amazing lenses, so optics weren’t much of a variable, and I shot them all at f/16 to make sure the chair was sharp from front to back. 

Lighting

Lit with Godox lights, I had an ad400 in an Octabank up high pointing down, an ad200 in a rectangular softbox feathered off the left side, and an ad200 in a strip bank from the right and behind for a rim light. I also added a bounce card on the right to give a bit of fill on the underside to maintain details.

Zeiss Batis 18mm 2.8

Normally, the 18mm sits in my bag on travel assignments, and I’d usually never think to shoot product photography with such a wide angle. It’s distortion is something I tend to avoid to make sure everything looks true to form. That said, I kind of love how this came out. The larger than life feel of this gives a great editorial or advertising option so I was super stoked to have found another little tool to create new images. I think I’ll have it sitting closer by on shoots where we want to give this over the top hero feel. Such a fun image and gives a playful sense of whimsy to an otherwise straight forward shot.

Sony 35mm F1.8

My 35mm lens is probably my most used lens when I’m on travel assignments and general walk around shooting. I also use this lens within my food work for bigger flat lays where I need to capture a bigger overhead scene. For this shot, it feels like its in this weird no man’s land of not compressed enough but still distorted. What do you guys think? Does it work?

Sony Zeiss 55mm 1.8

The 55mm 1.8 lens is a beast. Incredibly sharp, perfect for both flatlays and bigger scenes in food and product photography. It get’s heavy usage. Wide enough to show context and a surrounding scene, but still a long enough focal length to start compressing things into a pleasing image that is pretty close to what we see with our native eyesight…give or take. This image is starting to look like more of an image you’d see in catalogues. Clean, representative of the product and wide enough to still maintain context. A great all around lens.

Zeiss Batis 85mm 1.8

The Zeiss Batis 85mm 1.8 is my absolute go to for portrait photography. I absolutely love it. Normally, I’d opt for the 90mm macro for for this focal length for food and product photography, but with bigger objects the depth of field with the Batis is better and provides for a more versatile option. The 85 compresses nicely and gives a beautiful shape to the product. There’s a reason this focal length is used so often in these types of shoots. It gives a bit more definition and refinement than the 55.

So, after looking at the 4 focal lengths, what are your thoughts? Do longer focal lengths reign supreme or do the wide angles sit at the table too? I’d love to hear your thoughts!

Lee Starnes is a food and product photographer based in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Be sure to head on over to Instagram to check out more of his work.