Doing a photo shoot with Florence amar (my one flash setup)

Who is Florence?

Almost five years ago I met Florence Amar. She was part of the recreational center program for promising circus artists. She developed into an amazing and accomplished circus athlete and artist. Not only in her beauty and shape but also in her professionalism and discipline that is, still to this day, second to none. She now travels around the world working for the likes of Cirque du soleil and other world renowned circus troupes. We had been meaning to work together for a long time but her success was actually getting in the way. Because she traveled the world, I could not get her, while she was in Québec city, to shoot with me. This fall finally that time came. Because I am in such admiration of Florence’s shape, and the fact that it is tougher to do handstands in the snow, I decided to go all out and book a studio to shoot some real quality shots with her.

My self imposed challenge

But all photo shoots need a self imposed challenge and this shoot was no exception. I decided to restrict myself to a one flash setup. I used a sole beauty dish as a flash modifier and one sole flash. This type of flash setup allows one to create great shadows and, if placed right, will define and cut a muscular subject. The limits are endless.

I was amazingly surprised at how easy the photo shoot went. Most importantly, I realized that, with a bit more, experience and technique under my belt I was able to quickly get the shots that I saw in my head. All the shots came out as I imagined them and I also got even better shots than I thought.

The camera equipment I used

• Canon EOS 80D
• The Canon 16-35mm f/2.8 L series lens
• The Sigma 50-100mm f/1.8 ART series lens
• The Strobepro X600 wireless battery powered strobe
• A 36 inch beauty dish