You guys in California are lucky.  All you have to do is grab an
attractive model and head for the beach. Great shots are ensured:
surf in the background, palm trees swaying in the breeze and the
warm sand under foot.
Well, for us cold weather photographers, (yes, in Michigan we
have  summer, but mostly it's cold and snowy) its not quite that
easy. Especially in the middle of May as temperatures still hover
in the high 50's to low 60's when we choose to hold a swimsuit
shoot.The challenge was to produce a convincing illusion of a
beach scene in the studio.
Photo 1 shows what we finally came up with. Granted, it is a
little restrictive in that we could only do 3/4 length shots.
But, the results are very convincing for a quick and dirty set
that cost about $45.00.
     Here's how we did it: The surf and palms in the background
are nothing more than a 8' x 6' photo mural purchased at a local
wall paper  supplier. We  chose to put ours up on the studio wall
so others could use it at any time. Our other option was to build
a flat with plywood so it would be portable.
     This thing was a nightmare to hang. The paper is very
fragile when wet and kept tearing while we were hanging it. It
also stretched making it difficult to get a perfect match at the
seams. Up close all our mistakes show let's be honest; it looks
terrible! But, thrown a little out of focus and properly lit, all
of our sins are forgiven. The problems disappear and a great 
illusion of a beach scene is produced.
     The stucco building in the foreground is nothing more than
some scrap paneling with white texture paint to give it the
appearance we wanted. This foreground prop serves a multitude of
purposes: 1) to hide the fact our background is only 6' wide, 2) 
to provide a posing  aid for model, 3) to hide the background
lights, and 4) most importantly develop the illusion that our
subject is in the shade of a building for softer lighting on her.
Oh yes, the fishnet was a prop laying around the studio we add to
give the set a little more character.
     Notice, we have done nothing with the floor for this set -
its simply our everyday studio floor. Therefore, we are limited
to the 3/4 length shots. If we did full length the floor would
show, destroying the illusion weve managed to build. For a
future shoot we would like to haul in some sand so we can do full
length. But, that's a project for next winter.The real key to
success for this set is in the lighting.
     The photo mural background was lit with a Novatron standard
head powered by a 440 watt pack bounced off a silver  umbrella to
provide overall lighting. The exposure was set using an incident
reading at the background mural. The power  to the light was
adjusted to produce a reading one stop over that of the main
light. This overexposed the mural adding  to the illusion that
the beach is outside our  building. The main light was a Novatron
Standard head powered by a 550 watt  pack in a 34 " Halo. Care
was taken to ensure the main light would cast shadows  that  were
in the same direction as the shadows on the background mural.
      Fill was provided by a Novatron 1 stop reducing head
powered by the 550 pack for the main light. The fill was bounced
into a silver umbrella set to one stop less than the main light.
Finally a kicker, which was a Novatron Standard head with a
homemade gridspot attachment, was added to the 550 pack and
placed on the same side as the main to trim the model. The kicker
was to duplicate the effect of the sun streaming in on the model
from the beach behind her. Figure one shows the final lighting
for our  beach set. I can't stress enough that all the lighting
was de-signed to duplicate what we would  find  in  a natural
setting. Care was taken to produce shadows that all went in one
direction. And, there was a reason within the set for the each
type of light experienced. In particular: the subject is shaded
by the building, producing a more diffuse soft  light on her: the
background is brighter since it  is outside the building; and the
kick is  very  directional sun light on the subject.
     A we're only human item here. In Photo 2 our background
light spilled onto the model producing a contradictory highlight
from camera left rather than camera right. Since the shadows on
the background mural were obscured, the results are still very
convincing. Sometimes mistakes work out  but don't count on it!
We were lucky on this one.  This is my third, of what I hope will
be many articles on props and sets for Glamour and Boudoir
Photography. With summer coming we'll be moving our few shoots
outdoors to take advantage of what summer we do have. In the mean
time, I'll be busy planning for our  fall shooting schedule. I'd
like to hear from the readers. Drop me a note C/O Positive
Images, 19170 Fort Street, Riverview, MI 48192. I'd like to hear
about your ideas for studio sets and/or the articles to date.
And, let me assure you that any reader ideas used in future
articles will be fully credited. HA
