— From the “Old Tricks For New Dogs” series —
As I look back at some of the lighting/rigging solutions from the past, this example required lighting from below as well as from above.
Shooting an Annual Report for Rutgers’ Waksman Institute, a topic on the shot list centered around growing cultures in petri dishes. I used a Lightbank and a lighting grid from the overhead fluorescent fixture to create a light table for the bottom light.
Spreading two tables apart in a meeting room, suspending the lighting grid between, I then slid the Lightbank under to create the light needed to come through the transparent petri dishes.
The top lights were a weak light bounced from the ceiling plus a glancing accent light going across the subject from a low angle.
I wanted a lot of drama so used the “Less is More” idea, got close to a few petri dishes with the perspective of a 21mm lens. Locations can offer unique opportunities for creative solutions!
Camera: Olympus OM1 Lighting: DynaLight