Cross training for runners builds flexibility and strength in muscles that running alone would not. Cross training for photographers is when we develop skills in one specialty that strengthen another. In this case our Architectural assignments developed our HDR and retouching muscles which were then used to produce better product shots and do it faster which enabled us to complete 36 photos on location in one day.
We lit the cab interior with both strobes and reflectors Which had to be placed so as to not create objectionable reflections off the camper. In order to sync with the strobes the shutter speed cannot be set any faster than 1/200 second. With the aperture set at F9 for the proper exposure for the interior our sky was blown out. We bracketed the exposures to get one image with good sky tones and one image with detail in the darker interior parts. Back at the studio we composite the images in the computer to get one image with good tonal range in the sky and in the shadows.
Tight interior spaces were lit with two small battery powered strobes with help from two studio strobes, run off a generator, spraying light through the windows.
A lengthy scout trip rendered this dramatic backdrop for the camper photos that was, for the most part, unaffected by winter with a green landscape and open spaces. many RV campsites were brown and crowded. We had to remove the side walk and parking lines in all the exterior photos and in some interior shots to show the camper parked at an RV campground.
Cross training gets results: Within two weeks the cruise America photos were published in the US, Canada and Germany.
Photoshop; Advanced Retouching
Cruise America hired us to photograph the interiors of 3 RVs. Here’s the challenge, all photos were done in their corporate headquarters