I've felt a little stuck lately, as far as photo ideas. Then a couple of days ago I had an idea to photograph my snare drum with it lit from underneath--the head making a rather effective diffusion panel. But I didn't want it to look fake, just illuminated as if sitting at the rock concert venue before the show, with fairly stark, dramatic stage lighting.
55mm, 1/60th of a second, f/16, ISO 200.
And here's the setup shot for those with a "behind-the-scenes" sense of curiosity:
That's a speedlight under the drum, remote triggered from the camera with my handy $37 wireless flash trigger kit (which I have found to be a fantastic investment--reliable as can be, a little whimpy as far as construction, but it gets the job done and has not misfired once). The light stand for this speedlight was a 27 cent you-fold-it banker's box that happened to be in the room.
Then in the background we have a studio flash that uses an optical flash trigger to sync with the speedlight. And yes, that is a massive three-foot-long homemade cardboard snoot on that light. I used that to direct the light at the snare while preventing spill into the lens or the floor within the frame. It's providing a little more of the overall light and gives a bit of a stage-spot look.
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