Softly Spoken Magic Spells

[Loose Canon]

I probably won’t be around a camera for Halloween so its on early!

This is in progress and really just an experiment.

I haven’t yet got my recipe right! Not enough Eye of Newt and maybe a bit too much Wing of Bat I think!

I will continue to bubble, toil, and trouble!

[John 2]

I like this sort of thing and this is good. I agree about the eyes needing something more - perhaps a bit more piercing. Good stuff.

[Kodiak]

I will continue to bubble, toil, and trouble!

Terry, you're on to something very spooky… cool Halloween project!

[Paniaa]

Did he wander away from Star Wars?

[Shadowman]

Nice concept.

[IzzieK]

Maybe make the ball bigger and paint a light under the chin to make it more sinister. Get some face paint from one of your kiddos and look for scary face paint from google. Then and only only then can you incorporate the water ball in a bigger form. What do you think?

Just thinking out loud...

[Mike Buckley]

Can't wait to see the final rendition.

[Manfred M]

Great work so far Terry. I like where you are going with this; but would agree it's not quite ready for prime time.

1. Use the light from the orb more to light up the subject; and

2. Bring out those eyes. That dull red glow just doesn't have enough "punch".

[bnnrcn]

Very nice and interesting , I can't wait to see the final version either

[Loose Canon]

Thanks for the feedback and suggestions guys. I'll try to make good use of them.

I think I got to the point I sometimes get to where I've spent so much time with something that its hard to see the forrest for the trees!

Fortunately I have plenty of Honey-Do's to distract me!

[vaez]

Nice concept.

[Loose Canon]

Thank you Vaez.

I had been thinking about this shot for weeks. A while back I did a water splash session in the studio, which is where the “orb” came from. But I wasn’t sure what, if anything, I was going to do with it.

I finally decided it might be fun to combine the splash with some kind of portraiture. Then this idea dawned on me. It was fun to conceptualize. I had to acquire a wizard suit and I also acquired a fog machine, which was a blast to play with! I had never done anything with smoke before.

I think its fun to see a set-up for a studio shot. Doesn’t happen very often so to that end I’ll post mine in case anyone is interested.



Four lights (the round clamp light middle top is a work light and has nothing to do with lighting the scene.

Camera left red gelled and gridded back/rim light.

Camera right purple gelled and gridded back/rim light. Dual purpose for these aimed at the subject and to back/side light the smoke.

Gridded white light center aimed almost straight up to light the smoke around the head/shoulder areas.

White strip box overhead feathered forward to light a bit of the head and hand. I didn’t want a lot of light on the head and wanted the face in shadow. Below the subject a gold reflector pointed back up at the subject.

On the blue bucket sits a bowl of water to dip the hand in to have water drops dripping off the hand.

Fan at left to help clear the fog periodically when I open that big door. The fog machine would fill the room and needed to be cleared for a fresh start.

Shot tethered and by wireless remote. The camera is where I am standing for the bts shot but is about 18” above the floor shooting upwards.

Another version of the subject:



The wizard was shot @
f/11
1/200th
ISO 200
70mm FL

[Mike Buckley]

Any setup that doesn't require use of your big red bucket isn't worth setting up.

[TobyMac]

Very cool! love the idea and the execution is super!

[IzzieK]

Make your eyes more prominent, Terry....have you shown wifey-doo this project yet? Dread to think what she would have said!

[Loose Canon]

No doubt Mike! I don’t know what I was thinking!

I am nothing without the BRT (Big Red Tub)! (In fact I am nothing with it either but it sure is fun!) I take my weekly bath (need it or not) in it!

Tobias thank you.

Izzie I’ve been going around and around on the eyes thing. I’m having trouble making a judgment call on it. I don’t want to go too much. But it seems like I’m not going enough yet! If I go more it would only be the eyeballs right?

I can easily do what you suggest. I have my layer stack geared toward adjusting as many separate aspects as I could because I figured this would be a tricky process. If I do and post it could I impose on you (or anyone else for that matter) to make the call on it?

And yes Wifey-Poo has seen this! She actually thinks its pretty cool but the process has earned me a lot of head shaking (which I get a lot)! For once at least she didn’t come home with the place flooded and me holding a mop!

[Mike Buckley]

You've got plenty of time fine tune this. Holiday cards won't go out for another three months.

[Stagecoach]

One could say 'simply magic' Terry

[IzzieK]

Yes Terry only the eye part for now then see how you go...maybe you can be so bold to change the shape of the pupil to something vertical and red like how you started it too while you are there...

With the storm we have been having here lately I am glad you are still afloat there where you are...hubby did not almost made it day before yesterdee coming home from the airport. I forgot to call him to warn him about some floods along the way home. Poor beast was so hungry for his dinner he was whinging all the way...

[Loose Canon]

We’re a little further south than where those storms hit Iz. I heard 7” of rain in Kirkwood in a very short time. That’s a lot of rain for a week much less overnight.

In fact we could use a little rain down here. Kinda dry.

So you think I’m there yet with the eyes?