Airsoft blog

By PA Team

08 August 2011 21:26

I’m not a lover of early starts at the weekend, so it was fortunate for me that this shoot didn’t require an unwelcome alarm at the crack of dawn or travel to a distant location.

With the location a mere (and convenient!) 15 miles away from my house, and a very civilized 11.30am start, I pulled on a warm jacket at 11am on a cold December morning and calmly load up my car. I’d previously visited the location but hadn’t driven there from home, so I punched the address into my sat nav and headed off. Despite the icy conditions I made it along the country roads to my location in just 20 minutes.

The location was a derelict RAF base now used for airsoft games, and my plan was to set up a makeshift studio in one of the empty buildings. With slush and puddles covering the ground I had to perform several bizarre dances to move kit from my car to the dirty storage room that was to be my studio. The airsoft players were still out shooting each other when I arrived, leaving me half an hour to set up a background support with a white paper background, and, of course, some studio lights. With no power onsite I used an Elinchrom Quadra kit with two batteries to ensure I had all the light I would need. I enlisted the help of a straggler waiting for the afternoon game, and got him to stand in front of the lights so I could complete all my light tests. The key to success is having your lighting ready before your models/sitters arrive.

It was now officially lunchtime and the first port of call for most was the burger van. A few people had brought lunch with them and they sat around suspiciously eyeing my elaborate studio setup. Don’t forget, we were in a cold, derelict storeroom, so my presence was more than a little unusual. At first people were slightly apprehensive about having their photo taken, but after a few people agreed a steady trickle began. It always works this way in these kinds of portrait situations. Once a couple of people have their photo taken others relax and become more willing, and in some cases even enthusiastic.

All photos: Canon EOS 5D, 24-105mm F4 L@ 50mm, f/6.3, 1/200 sec, ISO 100 

I opted for a clinical lighting style against the white background to contrast with the location and photos I’d already seen taken of the game. Photographing players on location in all their realistic kit would have been the easy option, but I wanted something different. People have asked me if the photos were taken in a studio, and I guess they were, but with some people having red faces from running around in the cold, and others with safety goggle imprints on their faces and wet elbows, it’s not exactly your run-of-the-mill studio shoot! All the photos were shot in exactly the same way, so the focus is the people in them.

Lunchtime ended and the airsoft players dispersed as quickly as they’d arrived. It’s never as much fun putting kit away as it is setting it up, but with some photos I was happy with under my belt I could go home satisfied with my effort. And more importantly I could get back into the warmth for my own lunch!