Stock Shot Project

Around sunset last night I went to Times Square to photograph two models.  A wide open aperture blurred the background packed with tourists and readable signs.  I also used a slow-synch flash to blend the model more naturally into the scene and further soften the background.  There is far more light in Times Square than you would imagine at this time of day, and all I needed was an ISO of 200 on the Nikon D700.  The low ISO also allowed me to add a motion blur to the background by moving the camera rapidly from side to side with a shutter set to 1/40th of a second.  A single Nikon SB-900 was held just above the camera by an assistant to fill the models face and keep her sharp while the background blurred out.

The bottom two images illustrate the difference between two different lenses.  The top image of the couple was done with the wide angle zoom to include more of the shape of Times Square and make the shot site specific.  The bottom image was taken with a long zoom with aperture wide open to completely blur the background and give the photo a more universal use by not being site specific.  Taking both version is an important way of maximizing the sales potential of a stock photo situation.