Corporate Portrait: Comparing Hasselblad to Canon 5D

In this corporate head shot session, I did a comparison of medium format Hasselblad camera with digital Leaf back versus 35mm Canon 5D mark 2.

Canon 5D mk ii
Canon 5D mk ii

I set up the lights first, invited the model to step in, and shot a set hand held with the Canon. Then I switched to Hasselblad on a tripod and shot him in the same pose and same marked standing location, same lighting again in another set. I switched the backdrop twice: first I used dove grey seamless and later medium grey seamless. The Hasselblad is so bulky and heavy, I had to set it up on a tripod. The focusing is more difficult on Hasselblad compared with Canon to get it tack sharp on the subject’s frontal iris. There is no enlarger 5X or 10X on the screen back and I didn’t tether it. I can get the model involved more and get more response when I stay behind the lens and talk to the model compared to staying in front of the computer screen. The digital back actually cut off the top, so what you see on the back screen during the shooting doesn’t match the actual image you get. So you’d better be careful about your framing and give extra space on top. The digital sensor back is not sealed on the back of the camera; it’s exchangeable with a film back. So the CCD sensor gets dirty rather easily. Either clean it before the shoot or PS the dust spots away during the post processing.

Hasselblad 100mm
Hasselblad 100mm

It sounds like I’m complaining a lot about Hasselblad.  But when the image comes out, how I love the result. The quality of the image is unparallelled (unless it’s 8X10 film). The ISO 50 and 56 MB file size at 6088×4550 resolution on Hasselblad compared to ISO 100, 23MB file size at 5616×3744 resolution of Canon is crispier and cleaner. Every pixel is physically larger, so it’s less noisy. The dynamic range of Hasselblad for sure gives more room for manipulation than the Canon. It’s way more vibrant and satisfying for this shot. I do love my Canon camera. But for carefully set up shots almost like still life portraiture shooting, there is great merit in using larger format.

Extra benefit: you rewind it each time before pressing the shutter and manually switch to the F-stop you want. It gives such a nostalgia feeling like a film camera. It’s tangible and intimate. I heard that every Hasselblad camera body is hand crafted in Sweden for a year before coming out to market.

 

 

Esperanza Services Christmas Gift 2013

Fyffe_Lynn__MG_4061My friend Allan Gluck (pictured here with Mark), who is a philanthropist on the board of Esperanza Services, asked me if I’d like to shoot for their clients as free Christmas gifts. It has been a pleasure to visit their office in Alhambra and work with the crew. They are truly warmhearted people caring for others in need. They’re a group of happy and cheerful people.

Fyffe_Lynn_Esperanza_0003The elves bring happiness to children.Fyffe_Lynn_Esperanza_0002

Clients:

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Fyffe_Lynn_Esperanza_0005 Fyffe_Lynn_Esperanza_0007 Fyffe_Lynn_Esperanza_0009

Fyffe_Lynn_Esperanza_0013  Fyffe_Lynn_Esperanza_0012

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Staff:

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Kimono Girls in Wonderland part 5

Fyffe_Lynn_RedQueen_MG_3392This is the final post of the Kimono Girls in Wonderland series. Red Queen and the Card are the last two characters in this show based on Lewis Carroll’s book.

Fyffe_Lynn_RedQueen_MG_3422 “Off with her head” The character of Queen of Hearts from Kimono Girls in Wonderland is modeled by Elizabeth. Her makeup is done by  Saiko Okagaki and her hair by Jun Zaemonn.

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Fyffe_Lynn_Card_MG_3197“A large rose-tree stood near the entrance of the garden: the roses growing on it were white, but there were three gardeners at it, busily painting them red. … Why, the fact is, you see, Miss, this here ought to have been a red rose-tree, and we put a white one in by mistake; and, if the Queen was to find it out, we should all have our heads cut off, you know..”

Fyffe_Lynn_Card_MG_3192Fyffe_Lynn_Card_MG_3198The Card character from Kimono Girls in Wonderland is modeled by Amber. Her makeup is by Saiko Okagaki and her hair by Jun Zaemonn.

Fyffe_Lynn__MG_3611The show was a hit at “the Last Book Store” in downtown Los Angeles, California.  Kimono stylist Rinko Kimino accepts the crowd’s applause.Fyffe_Lynn__MG_3578

Check out more credits and behind the scenes stories at Kimono Days.

Producer/Stylist/Creative Director: Rinko Kimino
Assistant Producer/MC: Amelia Cantlay
Project Manager: Satomi Imai
Hair/Makeup Design Lead: Dali
Stage Director: Eriko Azuma

Kimono Girls in Wonderland part 4


“In that direction, lives a Hatter: and in that direction, lives a March Hare. Visit either you like: they’re both mad.” – Lewis Carroll

Fyffe_Lynn_MadHatter_MG_3386The Mad Hatter character from Kimono Girls in Wonderland is modeled by Erika. Her makeup is done by Kazuyuki Ervin Okada and her hair by Mayu Ikeyama and Kinuyo Takasima. Kimono Styling: Rinko Kimino; Production manager: Satomi Imai.

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You’ve got to listen to her singing in the show. Such a wonderful voice.Fyffe_Lynn_Madhatter_MG_3374Fyffe_Lynn_MadHatter_MG_3349Fyffe_Lynn_MadHatter_MG_3368   Fyffe_Lynn_MadHatter_MG_3383

 

Fyffe_Lynn_Gigi_MG_3178“‘I breathe when I sleep’ is the same thing as ‘I sleep when I breathe'” – by Dormouse from “Alice in Wonderland”. The Dormouse character from Kimono Girls in Wonderland is modeled by Gigi. Her makeup is done by Minaho Takahashi and her hair by Mayu Ikeyama and Kinuyo Takasima.

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Kimono Girls in Wonderland part 3

Fyffe_Lynn_Trio_MG_3151The trio has so much energy, it’s really fun shooting them. Kimono Styling: Rinko Kimino; Production manager: Satomi Imai.

Fyffe_Lynn_Cat_MG_3102When Alpha stepped in front of the camera, the naughty Cheshire cat came alive. Her makeup is by Minaho Takahashi; hair by Mayu Ikeyama and Kinuyo Takasima.

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Fyffe_Lynn_HornWorm_MG_3078Every shot of of Hitomi works. The way she carried the Hooka prop and her expressions immediately brought the caterpillar character to life. Her makeup is by Tomoko Miyamoto; hair by Mayu Ikeyama and Kinuyo Takasima.

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Kimono Girls in Wonderland part 2

Fyffe_Lynn_Rabbit_MG_3264Fyffe_Lynn_Rabbit_MG_3252Here comes the white rabbit character from “Alice in Wonderland”. You can see the clear resemblance of her high rising hair with bunny ears. The hair stylists did a fantastic job. I heard from Satomi that the team brought the hair props from Japan. Tick-tock, tick-tock, you’d better hurry. 

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Fyffe_Lynn_Rabbit_MG_3255Model: Miki; Makeup: Kazuyuki Ervin Okada; Hair: Mayu Ikeyama and Kinuyo Takasima; Kimono Styling: Rinko Kimino; Production manager: Satomi Imai. 

Fyffe_Lynn_Twins_MG_3334This is Tweedledum and Tweedledee modeled by Julia and Kanae, makeup by Tomoko Miyamoto, hair by Mayu Ikeyama and Kinuyo Takasima. Can you tell which is which? I can’t tell. 

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Kanae’s makeup is pink and red theme which is hard to wear for normal people, but she wears it well with her yellow kimono. It’s truly juicy fruity couture which reminds me of the makeup book I read by Akemi Nakano. I purposely didn’t retouch the two brown dots on her face away. They look very cute on her face and also fit the character of Tweedledum/dee. Remember in the 50’s, Hollywood star Marilyn Monroe drew a mole on her face as her beauty mark.

Fyffe_Lynn_TwinRed_MG_3059Fyffe_Lynn_TwinYellow_MG_3310Fyffe_Lynn_TwinRed_MG_3065Fyffe_Lynn_TwinYellow_MG_3302Fyffe_Lynn_TwinRed_MG_3042

Kimono Girls in Wonderland part 1

I had an amazing photo shoot with the group of talents for the fashion show “Kimono Girls in Wonderland” at “The Last Book Store” in downtown Los Angeles, on this year’s Thanksgiving weekend. I shot the girls right before the show started when they were being prepared by the professional stylists. We worked on a tight “beauty assembly line”. After each model finished her makeup, hair, and came to me,  I got 3 to 5 minutes to photograph her before the next model stepped in.

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This is the show host Amelia.  Her makeup is by Minaho Takahashi and hair by Mayu Ikeyama and Kinuyo Takasima from Dali Salon in Osaka, Japan. She is reading from the book that inspires the Kimono show. Kimono Styling is by Rinko Kimino; Production manager: Satomi Imai. 

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The trio from Kimono Girls in Wonderland (Caterpillar, Alice in the middle, Cheshire Cat) are full of playful energy. Models: Hitomi, Mayuko, and Alpha; Makeup by Tomoko Miyamoto, Kazuyuki Ervin Okada, Minaho Takahashi; and hair by Mayu Ikeyama and Kinuyo Takasima.

More than 20 people worked in a tight conference room upstairs of the bookstore. When they walked to the door, they had to pass the maze of my lighting gear and be careful not to knock down the softbox on their way.  Time was pressing and space was small though everyone was so courteous and full of fun spirit.

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The character of Alice is modeled by Mayuko. Her makeup is by Kazuyuki Ervin Okada, and her hair by Mayu Ikeyama and Kinuyo Takasima. Mayuko is such a versatile actress. I didn’t even recognize her at first sight even though I’ve shot her last year in a different role.

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There are 11 girls in total that I shot in this less-than-one-hour photo session. I have more photos to be processed and I am going to post them in a series on my blog.