The location was Prato Nevoso, a nice resort by the sea in the South Piedmont Region. And I had the honor to work with big names that made the history of Ski Racing like Giorgio Rocca, Kristian Ghedina, Daniela Ceccarelli and Paolo Dechiesa.
What setup and lighting did you use during the shoot?
To light the set, I opted for the Siros 800 L Outdoor Kit, one RFS 2.2, one Para 88 and a standard reflector. A very basic and simple setup. To make the shoot spicy, we were gifted a snowstorm and some real cold powder at -8°C. And I have to say I was able to complete the shooting with a single Siros battery.
After deciding the track and the angle of the turn, I placed two lights, one on the back right and one on the back left. The para 88 was on my left, inside the turn while I used the Siros with a normal reflector on the right as a backlight. Shooting on the snow is like shooting in a “white room.” The snow can reflect light better than a panel. The difficult aspect of this shooting was to keep the bounce under check to avoid drops in intensity.
During the shooting
The decision to work with a backlight was taken because the outfit were perfect for this light. A dark blue jacket at night on the snow can really be valorized by a backlight flash. If I'd only use one front flash, there would probably be a lot of uneven light, which would result in an overexposed area in the front (on the ground), right light on the subject (even if a little bit flat) and a dark – but not too much – background. Plus the white room of the spray of snow.
The skiers had to ski through the “Bron gate” like a racing track, and the first laps were perfect to take the right line. The HS mode was essential for this shooting. Modern skiers achieve a big acceleration during their turn, and the speed was at least 60km/h at the point where I was shooting. On icy slopes, the acceleration was even higher than on fresh snow, so I was probably lucky!
The slopes had the added effect of illuminating the night sky, but to be clear and safe, I also used the continuous LED light of the SIROS and I have to say it was a very useful plus to the shoot.
The effect of the snowflakes lit with a backlight was amazing, basically it was something like magic, and the skiers were super professional. They didn’t make mistakes during their runs, which meant a 100% focus on the shoots in a very "safe mode." Within a few runs, I was able to say “GOT IT!”.
Then after a few portraits, we finally celebrated the shoot with some beers at the White House.
I hope you enjoy the backstage, cheers!
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This article was originally published on broncolor.com
