My Sunday Series on Outdoor Portraits remains on hiatus as I consider changing this day’s theme to Available Light Portraiture, which is what today’s post is about.
Today’s Post by Joe Farace
“I don’t think about what camera I should use that much. I just pick up the one that looks nicest on the day”— William Eggleston
It may come as a surprise to some of you but I believe that you don’t have to spend thousands of dollars on photo equipment to make high quality glamour or boudoir photographs. Of the three Micro Four-thirds lenses that I use for available light glamour or boudoir photography, only one of them was purchased new. The others were purchased used and that’s one of the lenses I wanted to talk about today—the M. Zuiko 45mm f/1.8 lens. While new 45mm f/1.8 lenses can cost as much as 499 bucks, I’ve seen used ones available for as low as $100, which is close to what I paid for mine.
You don’t always need new gear.
There is lots of used gear available from KEH and MPB that are available at great prices as well as a subset called demo and refurbs. Refurbs are similar to used but somebody may have previously owned it and there may or it may not be come with a factory camera warranty. I recently purchased a used Panasonic Leica DG Macro-Elmarit 45mm f/2.8 Asph. Mega OIS lens from KEH Camera for less than half of what a new lens would have cost me
Local camera stores, if you’re lucky enough to have one, often have a selection of used gear. From time to time camera stores offer demo gear so it pays to have a sales person you work on a regular basis to keep you informed of these bargains. Some camera clubs or organizations sponsor photo shows where you can actually see, hold and buy used gear. Don’t forget that your friends are a good source of used camera gear too. It’s a win-win for both of you.
How I made this portrait: I photographed Erin Valakari in the doorway of a “butler’s pantry” —I don’t have a butler—that’s located between my kitchen and dining room. It was made using a combination of daylight from a large window that located on the second floor of the foyer with fill from a 32-inch round reflector that was placed at camera left.
The camera used was a Panasonic Lumix GH4 with that selfsame M. Zuiko 45mm f/1.8 lens and an exposure of 1/40 sec at f/1.8 wide open and ISO 400 with a plus one and one-thirds stop exposure compensation.
In the past, I’ve bought and sold some cameras and lenses on eBay as well as purchased a few, some from as far away as Japan.. While the bargains that abounded in eBay’s early years have pretty much evaporated it remains a good place to find and buy hard-to-find items.
The final point is, as far as I’m concerned, I don’t care if any cameras or lens I buy are used because I’m going to use them anyway. It’s like getting a door ding in a new car, the first one is painful but you soon get over it. With used equipment—cars or cameras—I don’t mind if maybe they already come with that “first dent,” so now I can just use it happily shooting and making photographs.
My book, Joe Farace’s Glamour Photography, is full of tips, tools and techniques for glamour and boudoir photography and includes information on the cameras and lenses used as well as the complete exposure data for each image. New copies are available from Amazon for $30.54 with used copies starting around ten bucks as I write this. The Kindle version is $19.99 for those preferring a digital forma