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As the dust begins to settle on this our latest STC seminar in Miami, and the images of chrome and tail fins from the massive collection of classic cars start to recede in the mind, I can now look back over the last few magnificent days and share with you my thoughts on what went down. I think I speak on behalf of all my colleagues, Jarmo, Steve Ales and Ric when I say we feel enormously privileged to have been with all the attendees at this seminar and have had the opportunity to discuss, explain and generally chew the fat of our lighting techniques and their applications. I personally was overwhelmed by the passionate interest and thirst for knowledge that was buzzing around for these two days.

The experience and knowledge that us the instructors have gained over decades of working in this industry have always been closely guarded secrets. Thumb screws, sleep deprivation, even water-boarding, would not have extracted one iota of information from our lips. So you may well ask … why have we now decided to share, not under duress, but of our own free will?. Well, the answer my friends, is blowing in the winds of opportunity that has been afforded us and now is the time to give thanks and give back. To help you help yourselves. To inspire and motivate you, and vice versa, as we gain from you too in equal measure.

Flying in from London a couple of days before the seminar I was launched straight into the circus of meetings and planning for the event. It had been decided that I would demonstrate my signature lighting utilizing continuous lighting sources. A visit to the hire company secured the pieces of equipment that I needed, one 1.2k HMI and five tungsten follow spots of 750k each. I already had stashed here in Miami my reflector boards and spent much time extolling their virtues over the two days of the seminar. For a tiny investment you will have these little helpers which can change you approach to lighting with great effect.

And so, as the day approaches, we all debunk to the location and get to start to build our sets, which is often the case, had also to return at 4am on the day of the seminar to complete and tweak a little. My set up being fairly simple probably needed the least tweaking because what you see is what you get … unlike the other guys and their more complicated situations. We always try to demonstrate from the sublime to the ridiculous-ly (simple) or perhaps more appropriately from the simple to the complex.

Day one dawns with meeting and greeting followed by our introductions and slide-shows. Being unaccustomed to public speaking I have to admit that my presentation was not all it should have been. Reading from a script some of the time turned out to be a very bad idea … and this is something I will be working on in the coming months. Hopefully by the next seminar by abilities in this area will be Churchillian. Moving swiftly on, mainly to spare my blushes, we returned to our stations and commenced with the real deal. While being something of a virgin in the field of instruction I surprised myself by how easily I rose to the occasion. Being passionate about one’s profession shines through I suppose, not to mention the enthusiasm of those whom I was addressing, which was contagious. We talked about the lights themselves, their characteristics and their application, how the mix of daylight balanced lights and the warmth of the tungsten blended together without the need for correction gels. More time was spent with me singing the praises of my reflector system, cheap and cheerful, yet solid and efficient.

The arrival of my model on set, the very beautiful Vicky-Lee Valentino, who had been poured into impossibly tight pale blue and cream latex top and skirt, was, I am happy to report, received with much enthusiasm. Being a great believer in appropriate clothing for the situation, I bought with me from London an outfit which I had previously had made for a Playboy pictorial entitled ‘Stretch your Imagination” which was published in the magazine in 2007. The set became believable and I took some care in color coordinating the costume with the Vespa so all was harmonious. Coming back to the wondrous Vicky-Lee, which I have to tell you I am more than happy to do, with her sublime and curvaceous figure, beautiful face and eyes that would melt even the most frozen of hearts, I fired off a few exposures to establish which would be correct. Immediately I had her framed in my viewfinder I knew that she was a keeper. Her natural elegance and warmth shone through and I was particularly drawn to the way her hands just fell perfectly and beautifully into the most exquisite positions. Hands are always something I pay much attention to when shooting….no need to with Miss Vicky. I have never seen handsthat are so graceful

So we talked photography and we chatted about other matters of interest … whatever came up. It was fun and engaging. I found time between the groups of attendees arriving and departing to visit briefly the sets of my fellow instructors all who were using the terrific, affordable Hensel lighting equipment. Each had something different to offer, the girls moved fluidly and the cars glinted in the glow of the modeling lights taking on what seemed was a life of their own. As each group passed through my set I explained with increasing animation the thinking behind the setup and lighting. Questions were asked and hopefully answered satisfactorily. We at STC take very seriously comments that are made to us about any aspect of these seminars. I know that some of you wished that there were more opportunities to shoot, and this is certainly an issue that will be addressed at future seminars. You ask and we strive to deliver, although one must bear in mind that these are educational photography and lighting seminars not shoot-a-thons. And so, day one came to a close with elation and fatigue close bed partners. I slept with strange dreams of a host of people towering over me saying ‘which f-stop, what’s the color balance, it doesn’t look right on the histogram etc, ad infinitum. Or perhaps I was still awake!.

Day two was the shooting opportunity day. Each attendee got to shoot every situation that had been built and lit by the instructors. I stayed close at hand to give advice if requested, but people seemed quite content to get on with it and shoot, which is the way it was, and should be. I had not had time to photograph Vicky-Lee myself except for the odd test shot here and there to check lighting balances, so it was cool to see the great shots that were being produced. Lenses were zoomed in and out and I have been pleased to see many postings on the fan page with examples of people’s work on my set.

In closing may I say a big thank you to ALL the attendees for their interest, support, enthusiasm and dedication. Needless to say, we could not have done it without you.

Byron Newnam – ShootTheCenterfold.com