Recently I've been trying out some watch images that are just a little different to the norm. I've been simulating, "in-action" type shots or focusing on some aspect of the weapons. It's just meant as a bit of fun and to keep things interesting for myself. Below are some examples.
This is a simple close-up of the muzzle end of my Browning Hi-Power along with an empty 9mm casing. I wanted this shot to capture a "suspense/thriller" sort of feel, and added a virtual waft of smoke to lend the idea that the pistol had just been fired.
Below is a more complex setup. The idea was to portray the pistol (my BHP again) in recoil with a spent cartridge case being ejected. To that end you can see the set-up I used in the small pic to the left below the main image. An empty 9mm casing was attached to the opposite side of the locked-back slide using Blu-tac putty and a small wooden dowel. The case was positioned in an appropriate orientation to simulate one that had just been flung out of the ejection port.
The pistol was shot against a plain dark grey background, a large sheet of art paper curved up behind the pistol to form a seamless background. Lighting was via a diffused overhead lamp. In the small working image below to the right you can see the wooden dowel holding the 9mm case above the pistol.
I removed the wooden dowel digitally leaving the case floating as desired. In order to add a feeling of movement and to indicate that the slide was still in motion I blurred the slide a little whilst leaving the rest of the frame in sharper focus. It's not technically correct as in such a situation all parts of the pistol would be in movement in some direction. However, you sometimes only need to suggest some degree of movement to achieve an overall effect. The image was now pretty-well complete. As a final touch I added a small amount of digitally created smoke curling out of the chamber.
Below is another simple setup. This time I shot a close-up of my Taurus Model 689 .357mag revolver, leaving room for the effect I wanted to add. Again, I added a wisp of smoke rising from the muzzle intended to give the impression of having been recently fired.
I pressed my trusty BHP into use again for the, hopefully comical, image below. The idea here was to present my version of the cartoon images I have seen in the past where the artist clearly didn't have a good understanding of how firearms and ammo work. I can recall seeing cartoons and comics that have whole rounds, cartridge case, bullet and all, being fired from guns.
This setup was somewhat similar to "The Last Round" image above. The pistol was clamped in an appropriate position and a live 9mm round was attached to a wooden dowel. This was shot against a dark background. The wooden dowel was removed digitally and a variety of effects used to give the impression of flame and smoke issuing behind the "bullet". I also added some motion blur to the rear of the cartridge case to lend a feeling of movement.
To complete the picture and reinforce that this was not supposed to be serious image I added a large cartoonish "BLAM!!!" and as a final touch added a halftone newsprint texture to the whole image, as found in comics.
You may be surprised, after all this effort, that some people still tell me, "You know, the whole round doesn't fire like that..."
The last image here is the most recent. It may look complex but it was quite easy to shoot. I set up my Taurus Model 689 revolver with the cylinder open, against a plain brown background. I loaded the chambers with .357mag casings.
I wanted to capture the look of the cylinder spinning. This could be achieved through the use of filters but sometimes the simplest techniques are best, or in fact, easier. I simply spun the cylinder with my finger just prior to taking the exposure. The shutter speed was around 2 seconds and so the cylinder was spinning for a good potion of that time. I shot a number of exposures and chose the one that gave the most satisfactory look to the cylinder. To finish the image I added a bit of texture to the background.
This is a simple close-up of the muzzle end of my Browning Hi-Power along with an empty 9mm casing. I wanted this shot to capture a "suspense/thriller" sort of feel, and added a virtual waft of smoke to lend the idea that the pistol had just been fired.
Below is a more complex setup. The idea was to portray the pistol (my BHP again) in recoil with a spent cartridge case being ejected. To that end you can see the set-up I used in the small pic to the left below the main image. An empty 9mm casing was attached to the opposite side of the locked-back slide using Blu-tac putty and a small wooden dowel. The case was positioned in an appropriate orientation to simulate one that had just been flung out of the ejection port.
The pistol was shot against a plain dark grey background, a large sheet of art paper curved up behind the pistol to form a seamless background. Lighting was via a diffused overhead lamp. In the small working image below to the right you can see the wooden dowel holding the 9mm case above the pistol.
I removed the wooden dowel digitally leaving the case floating as desired. In order to add a feeling of movement and to indicate that the slide was still in motion I blurred the slide a little whilst leaving the rest of the frame in sharper focus. It's not technically correct as in such a situation all parts of the pistol would be in movement in some direction. However, you sometimes only need to suggest some degree of movement to achieve an overall effect. The image was now pretty-well complete. As a final touch I added a small amount of digitally created smoke curling out of the chamber.
Below is another simple setup. This time I shot a close-up of my Taurus Model 689 .357mag revolver, leaving room for the effect I wanted to add. Again, I added a wisp of smoke rising from the muzzle intended to give the impression of having been recently fired.
I pressed my trusty BHP into use again for the, hopefully comical, image below. The idea here was to present my version of the cartoon images I have seen in the past where the artist clearly didn't have a good understanding of how firearms and ammo work. I can recall seeing cartoons and comics that have whole rounds, cartridge case, bullet and all, being fired from guns.
This setup was somewhat similar to "The Last Round" image above. The pistol was clamped in an appropriate position and a live 9mm round was attached to a wooden dowel. This was shot against a dark background. The wooden dowel was removed digitally and a variety of effects used to give the impression of flame and smoke issuing behind the "bullet". I also added some motion blur to the rear of the cartridge case to lend a feeling of movement.
To complete the picture and reinforce that this was not supposed to be serious image I added a large cartoonish "BLAM!!!" and as a final touch added a halftone newsprint texture to the whole image, as found in comics.
You may be surprised, after all this effort, that some people still tell me, "You know, the whole round doesn't fire like that..."
The last image here is the most recent. It may look complex but it was quite easy to shoot. I set up my Taurus Model 689 revolver with the cylinder open, against a plain brown background. I loaded the chambers with .357mag casings.
I wanted to capture the look of the cylinder spinning. This could be achieved through the use of filters but sometimes the simplest techniques are best, or in fact, easier. I simply spun the cylinder with my finger just prior to taking the exposure. The shutter speed was around 2 seconds and so the cylinder was spinning for a good potion of that time. I shot a number of exposures and chose the one that gave the most satisfactory look to the cylinder. To finish the image I added a bit of texture to the background.
It was in the 2nd setup picture that it looked like the case was far left of the port. An excellent picture and effect no matter what.