All Posts Tagged Tag: ‘dangerous’

Wom Fire Sillouhette

Fine art meets fire

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In early November, I was sent off to Paris by my agent Suzy Johnston + Associates to create a fiery series of images for sculptor and artist Cyril Anguelidis’s “WOM dog”. Of course, when I heard Paris and Fire, my first step was to call up my epic pyrotechnician buddy Andrey DAS and his crew to get them in on the action.

Our job was to create an eye-catching series of images that would feature a friendly but mysterious sculpture in a unique location surrounded by a variety of flaming effects. Though I’ve seen photos that blend fire and objects, no one (as far as I know) had ever attempted to create a series that involved sculpting fiery structures around an object. This meant that we’d have to custom build and design the effects we wanted.

DAS and I spent a lot of time in pre-production – sketching out ideas and concepts trying to figure out which would work best. We treated the WOM dog as a luxury art piece that it was to create imagery that would convey a sense of mystery and movement. While planning, it was imperative to take no risks so that the piece of art that the artist entrusted us with would not be damaged.

A detailed storyboard was required to be certain that we would get the images we needed within the time constraints given to us. This meant that we had to break down each photograph to not only ensure a striking image but also to plan out the security procedures and careful manipulations that are required when playing with fire. These unique and novel technique to mould and sculpt fire into a unique piece of artwork is a process we have dubbed “Pyroplasty”

Nicolas Sarkissian from EyeMOOV was contacted to help us cover the Behind the Scenes of this shoot and we hope you enjoy it:

 

I know that a lot of you are curious about the camera settings that were used to achieve this shot so I’ve listed the gear + camera settings. As you probably know, there is no “magical formula” to getting the perfect shot but hopefully this helps you a little :)

 

Wom fire angel von wong Nikon D800E | 24-70mm f/2.8 | 1.6 sec at f / 8.0, ISO 125

Wom fire travel von wong Nikon D800E | 14-24mm f/2.8 | 17.0 sec at f /6.0, ISO 50

Wom fire cloud von wong Nikon D800E | 24-70mm f/2.8 | 1/1000th sec at f /5.0, ISO 100

Wom fire family von wong Nikon D800E | 24-70mm f/2.8 | 2.4 sec at f / 18.0, ISO 100

In addition to the four target shots, I toyed around with the colours in post production and came out with this shot I quite enjoy that reminds me of Moses parting the oceans! Though it doesn’t quite fit the series, I’ve grown quite attached to it and decided to put it up and share it with you guys!

Wom fire sillouhette Nikon D800E | 24-70mm f/2.8 | 2.3 sec at f / 22.0, ISO 100
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FAQ:

Q: I know DAS was wearing black, but in the second shot did you have to remove him at all from the image? After all, he was lit by the fire!

Not at all. Since DAS is passing through an area that is very bright (burned) by our curtain of fire, any slight trace of him gets “erased” by the flames. Also, I was shooting at a very high aperture so the light wasn’t intense enough to cause any sort of blurring :) The fire from the rope is exponentially brighter than the light hitting DAS’s face!

Q: What were the lighting conditions that you had to deal with?

The reason why we were able to do such long shutter drags is that there was virtually no lights bleeding in from the streets where we were shooting. There was definitely light streaming in from the “pillars” as you can see since that building doesn’t actually close so that had to be dealt with but if anything I felt that it added depth to the image!

Q: Any weather challenges you had to deal with?

Actually the weather was quite mild. We were in a sheltered environment (walls on all side) so wind was not an issue. The temperature was slightly cold (approximately 10 degrees Celcius) but no danger of the fuel freezing so we were all good!

Q: How many people were on the crew?

We had 3 pyrotechnicians on set to help prep things efficiently. The rest were photography support (4) and BTS cameramen (2) and myself as well as the client.

Group shot das vonwong

Q: How did you come up with the shoot ideas?

Same way we always come up with ideas: Thinking composition, story and effects. I would toss an idea at DAS, ask him if it were possible and he’d toss back ideas. Together we overcame the challenges of lighting and special effects :)

Q:  Did you need to do anything to protect the WOM dog?

Nope. The WOM dog, though flammable would not spontaneously ignite on contact. It did mean that we had to avoid certain effects such as steel wool, but as long as the WOM didn’t enter into direct contact with the flames there was nothing to worry about. The only shot that we were slightly worried about was the one where the WOM dog is riding a “cloud of flame”. To be certain that it was safe, we put one of our camera assistants in the flames to make sure it was safe :P

Q: Were DAS/the crew/the artist uncomfortable with any of your ideas?

I think that Cyril was quite apprehensive throughout the shoot… logical I suppose as his art pieces are worth around 6000 Euros each!

Q: Any problems with the police or spectators?

The shoot took place at 11 PM on a relatively cold Paris night so we were left alone from the spectator front.  A couple people did pass by and ask curious questions but none weathered the cold very long. The police had already been notified so there was also no problem from that front!

Q: Did you have to do anything special to alter the environment for the photoshoot?

Yes! We actually poured water from a fountain onto the ground to make everything nice, shiny and reflective. We used a plastic bag to pull water from the pool and a broom we found to distribute it all over the place. Made the place quite slippery… but totally worth it !

Q: Were any of the ideas altered because of the limitations of others?

Not really. As with every shoot, there was an organic evolution of what would look best ! There was a slow but steady evolution. For example in the following shot, we knew we wanted a ring around our model. While we initially thought that a ring of sparklers would look great, we noticed that it lacked a bit of shape and structure. A naked circle wasn’t “filled enough” so we combined both together!

And finally, for those of you who are looking to do shots like these on your own, be sure to check out these 7 tips to help you shoot with fire!

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Credits:

 

  • Photo: Von Wong
  • Pyro: Andrey Das
  • Pyro Assist: Jerem Cotte, Joe Guillian
  • Photo Assistants: Nicolas Vallet, Benjamin Lecomte, David Mozelman, Felix Barjou, Virginie Marcerou
  • Video: Nicolas Sarkissian from EyeMOOV
  • Second Camera: Mathieu Hery

 

7tipsthatwillprepareyoutoshootwithfire

7 tips that will help you paint with fire

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As a special effects fire photographer with mild pyromanic tendencies, I often get people asking me a bunch of questions on what they should think about/look into when shooting fire. I’ve compiled a list of tips that should help you out if you ever get called upon to shoot a fire show, capture a memorable moment of a friend lighting himself on fire, or even juggle fire on your own. (I’ll add an FAQ section at the end of this article, so if you have any questions, leave a comment below and I’ll add the answer to the article)

Disclaimer: You should only play with fire in the presence of trained professionals. Kids, don’t try this at home. Adults, you probably shouldn’t either. Fire is very dangerous and should never be treated lightly. Please make sure to read the safety section before scrolling down this article. 

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See the BST video here

Safety First

1. Make sure you’re in the presence of a trained professional

I can’t stress this part enough. You want a professional capable of preventing things from going wrong. You also want that same professional around when something goes wrong (and I say when, not if, because it happens.) If you happen to be lucky enough to be in Paris, France… check out Burn Crew Concept!

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2. Wear organic, not synthetic

Organic clothing will burn whereas synthetic will melt. And while catching on fire doesn’t sound like the best of situations, I can assure you that it’s better than having something melt into your skin. It actually takes a lot longer for cotton to catch on fire whereas synthetic clothing will almost instantaneously melt. Don’t trust me? Try burning your shirt with a lighter. Of course, fire retardant materials like Nomex are even better but for someone who doesn’t work with fire much and who isn’t in direct contact, the best price/efficiency ratio is to have 100% organic cotton clothing handy.

3. Keep your stuff away from the fiery stuff.

Probably sounds stupid but when flammable fluids are out and about and you don’t quite understand what’s happening the best is to stay far far away. Photographers have the tendency to focus too much on their cameras and their target, but in these situations you want to stay hyperaware of what’s happening around you. Accidents happen and if everyone’s paying attention, it usually keeps things a lot safer.

4. Bring water and a towel

Though the professional there should have all safety materials, it never hurts to be too safe. If, for whatever reason, something goes wrong, a wet towel can solve a lot of your problems and put out most fires or even soothe a burn.

5. Beware the wind!

Wind can and will affect the flames. If possible, try to choose a day without wind or at least search for a sheltered location! If it’s too windy, the flames will RETURN onto a fire spitter!

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Now onto the fun part…

 

Tips and tricks when shooting fire

1. Master your camera

Fire, as most of you probably know is a pretty volatile thing. The shape, texture and colour of the flame will vary depending on the type of material and fuel that is being used. Add onto the fact that the elements (wind, temperature) will also change how the flame reacts means that you need to really be on top of your game to come out of there with the results that you want.

Don’t get caught up in one camera setting, be sure to be able to chimp quickly and recalibrate. Whether your pyrotechnician is spitting fire, lighting himself on fire, or spinning poi’s he’s playing with resources that are literally burning away.

2. Underexpose rather than overexpose

Cameras today such as my D800E have a massive amount of dynamic range. This means that you can recover an amazing amount of detail from the shadows. The same can’t be said for highlights. Lightroom 4 in particular does an amazing job recovering detail.

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Overexposed flames! No detail! Still cool… but could have been better! See the BTS video here

3. Using flashes? Add a CTO and a half!

If you plan on using flashes to capture some exciting motion blurs, keep in mind that fire burns a very strong orange! To preserve proper skin tones you’ll want your flashes to be properly gelled if you’re blending flash-frozen subjects with your flames. Failure to do so will result in ghostly white models or way-too-orange environments! Grab two 3/4 CTO gels and stack them!

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BTS video coming soon… be sure to subscribe to the newsletter!

4. Shooting a fire show and don’t have time to change settings? Try Bracketing!

I don’t know about you canon folks but the Nikon D7000 and above has a nifty bracketing function which means that you can set your camera to shoot at a variety of exposure settings without ever needing to tweak your camera settings. This can be useful when you’re not sure what the next effect is going to be thrown your way as you can set your camera to capture in continuous burst a -2EV/0/+2EV (for example) series of images that will give you a greater chance of capturing the unexpected.

Of course, as you get more and more familiar with how a show goes, you can confidently toss your camera into manual and change settings without your eye ever leaving the viewfinder!

5. Capturing someone spitting fire? Fast shutter speed!

Fire spitting essentially consists of creating a miniature explosion. This means that you have an extremely rapid “movement” of expanding gas. As all you photographers know, what do you do when you want to freeze movement? You got it! Fast shutter speed!

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BTS video coming out soon… be sure to subscribe to the newsletter !

6. Capture someone spinning fire? Slow shutter speed!

Similar to light painting, you can also do fire painting with a burning torch. Keep in mind that you can either keep your camera on a tripod to “burn” in the environment or you can paint with the camera too by moving or zooming it around.

Wom fire travel von wong

Click HERE to see the BTS video and blog post! 

7. Too easy? Try combining slow shutter speed, fast shutter speed AND flashes all at once!

Check out this article and BTS video I wrote on using multiple exposures to combine a slow shutter speed, fast shutter speed and flashes to create the image below.

Das fire angel von wong1

See the BTS video & blog post to create this image here!

Hopefully these tips and tricks helped you out. Be sure to check back on Wednesday the 1st of Febuary for yet another exciting BTS video and article on my latest fire shoot :) Subscribe to the newsletter to receive it straight in your email!

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