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Nikon D700 + Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8 @ 130 mm — 1/250 sec, f/8, ISO 6400 — full exif
Being Silly!
with a mouth full of teeth, a month before one fell out
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8 @ 120 mm — 1/200 sec, f/8, ISO 6400 — full exif
Semiserious Passport Photo
Having just returned from a trip Stateside with Anthony, I'm reminded that I neglected to post these photos before leaving. Before the trip, I had posted about Curious George's new passport; these are from the same photo session in early July, where I took the photo for Anthony's new Japanese passport. (We'd renewed his American passport last year.)
Anthony was hamming it up, as you can see, but we eventually got one for his passport. Even in the one directly above, he's still smiling too much for a Japanese passport, so we had to tone it down.
Until you actually do it, it's almost shocking how easy it is to get these kinds of photos. You don't need all kinds of fancy stuff, because you only need to worry about what's in frame. (As I wrote a couple of years ago, “If It's Not in Frame, It Doesn't Exist”.)
This next shot shows the super-complex setup:
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8 @ 70 mm — 1/250 sec, f/8, ISO 6400 — full exif
Attention From the Styling Department
I had forgotten that we needed the photos for his passport application, and it was getting late and light was on the wane, so I brought Anthony out onto the veranda where there was still a bit left. Fumie happened to be around, so I grabbed a big reflector and asked her to hold it just out of frame, to fill in a bit of the shadow on the side of Anthony's face. I took a few test shots while he calmed down, some real shots, and then some more silly shots because he was in the mood. Start to finish, silliness included, was five minutes.
I used a fairly good zoom (my Nikkor 70-200) so that I could get further away while still keeping somewhat of a tight head-and-shoulder shot. This helps de-accentuate the nose, which otherwise – if you're too close – gets somewhat distorted because it sticks out from the rest of the face. This is all classic portraiture, I suppose. (For an exaggerated example of the too-close big-nose effect, see this silly photo taken with a wide-angle lens.)
Nikon D700 + Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8 @ 70 mm — 1/250 sec, f/8, ISO 5600 — full exif
Answer
to “how silly can you be?”
Here in the UK, that first sign reads a little differently and I was a bit surprised to see it on this blog. Most amusing, though. 🙂 More here.
Wow, I had no idea it could have a negative connotation. Here in Japan, pretty much 100% of the time it’s the sign for “someone is taking my photograph, and I am too mentally deficient to just smile or do my own thing”. In this case, as I hope Anthnoy’s expression illustrates, he was just being silly. He knows how much I dislike the stupid there’s-a-camera-so-everyone-do-a-peace-sign thing. —Jeffrey
So so cute. All are wonderful but I love the “Attention From the Styling Department” one. With full set of teeth he looks at least 2 years younger 🙂
Here, it’s seen as the friendly, slightly hippyish peace sign if the palm is facing away from the signer and something quite different if the palm is facing towards him. I’ve noticed the trend in Japan (and HK, following Jaoan, I believe) for people to show the v-sign when a camera is pointed towards them. It’s odd but no more so than forcing a smile, really. Wikipedia has decent references. Anyway, it beats saying “cheese” or being asked to watch the birdie. 🙂