Black Ricco wrote:
You're not kiddin' anybody... that was done in Photoshop.

Actually, Ricco, it was NOT done if Photoshop! I used a black backdrop, red gel and got the color in camera. It's easier than you might think.

Black Ricco wrote:
Uh huh... yeah, right.

You're tellin' me that if I put a blue gel on a grey muslin that it will show up as a blue background?

Go ahead... pull the other one.

DUDE!!!


Background is gray mottleed - used a blue gel to match my shirt. Viola!  Try it before you go dissing me and others who know it works!

Black Ricco wrote:
I can't believe these guys are trying to trick us!

I know... these newbs blow in here and think we're a bunch of fools.

Changing background colors with gels...

yeah, right.

Check this out.  Some "photographer" told me he can turn a black background white by adjusting his lighting.

Black Ricco wrote:
Check this out.  Some "photographer" told me he can turn a black background white by adjusting his lighting.

What??? LOL Some of crazy things you read on the in-ter-net.

Check this out... I once had a "photographer" tell me that if I had a light 6 feet from a subject at f/11 and I moved it six feet further away from the subject my light would diminish by TWO stops!

Crazy shit.

Oh sure.  Some whiz bang mathmatical fomula or something I bet.  How could you ever calculate something that?  I'm sure.

Black Ricco wrote:
Oh I see someone posted some more Photoshop tricks.

Yes.  Another one!  That's just soo easy to pull off in Photoshop.

ei Total Productions wrote:
I do it all the time









All of the highlights are done with gels NOT PHOTOSHOP

I am not a newbie.  For the record, black is probably the easiest color of backdrop to color with gels.

How do you get the pretty colors to go exactly where you want them like that?  Is your backdrop see through and you've got the lights right behind it?  It just seems it would be easier to paint the sheet everytime, that way you could paint out any wronkles too!

Steven Seehafer wrote:
Photography is all about capturing reflected light.  By throwing a given amount of light of a specific color against a background you will reflect a specific amount of light from that background to the camera.  That's what you capture as the background color.  It was done all the time BEFORE photoshop with FILM.  It still works with digital and without needing to use photoshop.

Thinks he's a scien tist.  Hah!

Black Ricco wrote:
Who do they think they're kidding?

Apparently everyone who came to the workshops where many of those pictures were taken.  Why not go to my workshop site and then you will realize that we all shot the same thing.  I must have thousands of images that I somehow colored exactly the same.

Ricco, grow up and learn about photography.  Using gels for highlights is photography 101.

Also, you can open the images in photoshop and you can easily tell that they are unaltered.  I don't use photoshop.  Nearly everything on my site is exactly as it came straight from the camera.

Steven Seehafer wrote:
Photography is all about capturing reflected light.  By throwing a given amount of light of a specific color against a background you will reflect a specific amount of light from that background to the camera.  That's what you capture as the background color.  It was done all the time BEFORE photoshop with FILM.  It still works with digital and without needing to use photoshop.

THANK You!!!

Chris Keeling wrote:
How do you get the pretty colors to go exactly where you want them like that?  Is your backdrop see through and you've got the lights right behind it?  It just seems it would be easier to paint the sheet everytime, that way you could paint out any wronkles too!

I have a full compliment of modifiers.  I use snoots, grids and flags to direct the light.  I also own about five different sizes of reflectors.  I have a compliment of Norman, Photogenic and Hensel lights in the studio each with different modifiers.  I also have two booms so I can locate my lights pretty much anywhere that I want to.

ei Total Productions wrote:

Apparently everyone who came to the workshops where many of those pictures were taken.  Why not go to my workshop site and then you will realize that we all shot the same thing.  I must have thousands of images that I somehow colored exactly the same.

Ricco, grow up and learn about photography.  Using gels for highlights is photography 101.

Also, you can open the images in photoshop and you can easily tell that they are unaltered.  I don't use photoshop.  Nearly everything on my site is exactly as it came straight from the camera.

How much would your workshop cost me to learn how to make those pretty background colors?

Also, how did you get that ghosting around her body in the last picture without using photoshop?  That's a really neat in-camera effect!

Black Ricco wrote:
You know, I could almost believe that you could pull off changing the background color with a gell if you were extremely knowledgable about lighting, but multi-colors???

No friggin' way!

Most of what you see was shot with 3-5 lights.  I generally use a main light, with or without a fill.  I will use a hair light, typically with a bastard amber gel.  I can locate it on a side stand or on a boom above the model.

As for the background colors, I use one or two background lights, with either similar or dissimilar modifiers.  The lights need not have the same gels on them.  Indeed, one of the tricks I like is to use multiple gels on a single light to more dramatically modify the color of the light being cast.

Do some experimenting.  What I do is pretty basic, but I am fairly experienced at it.  I have a great deal of control over the light that I use.

ei Total Productions wrote:

I have a full compliment of modifiers.  I use snoots, grids and flags to direct the light.  I also own about five different sizes of reflectors.  I have a compliment of Norman, Photogenic and Hensel lights in the studio each with different modifiers.  I also have two booms so I can locate my lights pretty much anywhere that I want to.

That's really cool!  I only have 4 lights and a gray background.  Mine never comes out those pretty colors though.  I need to get me some gels. 

Chris Keeling wrote:
Also, how did you get that ghosting around her body in the last picture without using photoshop?  That's a really neat in-camera effect!

The ghosting is a shadow with an offset soft box.  In addition to using highlight colors, I also used a general background light so you are shadowing over a modified form of illumination.

I do these effects at all of my Nor. Cal. workshops.  Unfortunately, I don't do them down in L.A.  The events are too big and it is just impractical.

JMX Photography wrote:
wow, this thread went to shit fast.

I think it's because some peoples sense of humor are a little off today!

dum dee dum..........