Never thought I’d end up at a cigar tasting assignment for a golf magazine. Stranger things have happened I suppose. Not only did I learn a lot about the art of cigar smoking (I wasn’t even lighting them correctly), but discovered a cool Jazz club and cigar shop rolled into one. Check out Sara and Peter Roth’s jems, tucked into Southeast metro Denver, south of Park Meadows Mall.
This was a great assignment as it challenged my lighting skills. Getting smoke to show up in photographs requires back or side lighting. Two remote strobes, the Nikon SB-800’s, were set up high on each side of the room and aimed down at the table. A 3rd SB-800 light was used on camera to not only control the remote units, but act as a fill-flash from the camera. This set-up produced nice drama to the top photograph, as Peter lights a cigar. Not only do we see the flame on the cigar’s end, but smoke in the background. The backlight was much stronger than the light in front, creating the rim light around both men’s faces and highlighting the smoke. The same light ratio provides the richness, texture, and shadowing in the middle and lower photographs.
My art of [Storytelling With A Camera] is evident even in this simple 3 photograph sequence. Wide shot, with a fisheye lens, establishes the scene, includes all 5 cigar tasting participants; tight shot of the table setting provides interesting detail; and the cigar lighting shot has action, further tells the story of the event.
