Marcus Isaac
- Jul 15, 2018
- 3 min read

Mariam Mermaid

Updated: Jul 30, 2018

Photo composite of a mermaid lying back in shallow water, with rocks around her. Her arms are over her head as she looks into the sky.

Concept:

For this Mermaid inspired Photoshoot, my team and I created an overall look that we could composite into the desired image. A seashell top along with a headpiece were created for the model to wear. Along with that, the makeup style and colors were focused around looks that would resemble shimmering scales a mermaid would wear. Once the set was all ready, we posed the model Mariam in front of the chroma key backdrop. Various poses were asked of the model to accomplish the desired looks which would fit in well within the composite we had chosen. Poses where the model seemed to be within the water, dreamy poses, and ones where she looked off into what would be the water or sky were achieved.

Setup:

Main Light:

This composite photoshoot took 4 studio strobes to light the set and the model. Here, the keylight is a 5' octabox with a grid attached to it. I had the power set to 7.0. I used the grid to create depth on the model's face and body. The reason why I needed depth was due to the background image I was placing her on.

Tip: With composite images, research your backdrop first to know how you will light your subject in front of the green screen.

2nd Light:

This 2nd studio strobe with a grid on it is placed to light the model, as a subtle fill to the main light.

2nd light for the model, used as a subtle fill

This 2nd studio strobe was placed to light the model's rights side, as a subtle fill to the main light. I used a grid on it to narrow the light so that I could open up the shadows on the right side of her face.

3rd Light

Here we have an image of a photo studio with a green screen backdrop. There's a red arrow above one of the studio strobes indicating that this is the strobe that will light the backdrop

1st Background Light, Profoto B1 at f/7.0

This was one of 2 strobes to light the backdrop. On the profoto strobe I used a 7" reflector to direct the light onto the backrop, as to not spill onto the model. With the backdrop lights, unless used as a fill/side light to the model, you do not want any extra light to spill onto the model. The reflector was set to only light the backdrop.

4th Light

Here we have an image of a photo studio with a green screen backdrop. This studio strobe will light the backdrop to help evenly expose the backdrop

2nd Background Light, Profoto B1 at f/7.0

This strobe, camera right, was the 2nd and final strobe to light up the green screen. Both strobes, by themselves with 7" reflectors, completely filled up the backdrop.

Tip: Chromakey backdrops should be lit separately from the subject, and exposed as evenly as possible, from top to bottom, and left to right.

Finals Looks

Camera Settings: 1/200 sec, f/5.0, ISO 64

Equipment:

Nikon D850

Nikon-designed back-side illuminated (BSI) full-frame image sensor with no optical low-pass filter.
45.7 megapixels of extraordinary resolution, outstanding dynamic range & virtually no risk of moire.
Up to 9 fps continuous shooting at full resolution with full AF performance. See more.....

Profoto D2 1000Ws AirTTL Monolight

Adjustable in 1/10 f-stop increments over a 10 f-stop power range
Bursts up to 20 flashes per second with flash durations up to 1/63,000 of a second.
High Speed Sync upto 1/8,000s.
Shoot in TTL or manual mode. See more....