Journal / ジャーナル
PHOTONEXT 2015 イルコ セミナー動画
PHOTONEXT 2015 セミナー / フォトネクスト2015年
この記事に私がカメラの大きなイベント、 PHOTONEXT 2015 に出てる動画をアップします!2日間のイベントで、今回は2日目のみアップしてます!撮影・ライブシュート&トークショー…
PHOTONEXT 2014 イルコ セミナー動画
PHOTONEXT 2014 セミナー / フォトネクスト2014年
この記事に私がカメラの大きなイベント、 PHOTONEXT に出てる動画をアップします!2日間のイベントで、一回ずつ撮影・ライブシュート&トークショーをしてるので、動画4つ入っています!長いので、是非お時間があるときに見ていただければうれしいです!2014年は私が最初に…
Photoshoot in Bulgaria, Plovdiv Old Town / ブルガリアの街並みでポートレート撮影
Finally after long time this winter I managed to go back to my home country Bulgaria and do some photoshoots there too! So here is the a BTS article of one of them, well probably one of my first shoots! I'm having info of the gear I have been using and some of the final shots in the end of the article! Also I am having a making video for the photoshoot, make sure you check it out and also subscribe to my YouTube channel!
Gear: Canon EF 24mm f/1.4 L II USM Lens
Many of you guys know that my signature and favorite lens is the Canon EF 135mm F/2, but actually there is another one that I really love, and for most of my photoshoots I go with just that 2 lenses! The second one is Canon EF 24mm F/1.4 lens! Yeah, is is a wide angle prime lens! It has very little distortions, not that this matters a lot for what I am shooting lol, and it has really great
RoundFlash™ Ring & Dish / ラウンドフラッシュ™ リング & ディッシュ
RoundFlash – RingLight & SoftBox is a really cool modifier, I've been using as a main light quite a lot for my recent photoshoots! It's very handy easy to setup, and has really beautiful light especially for closeups! I also use it just as a softbox when I'm outside! Well, I have a few videos and a lot of shots taken with it, check them out below! Some things to mention about it! ラウンドフラッシュ
Locations: Takedao abandoned railway / 武田尾 廃線 トンネル 鉄橋 綺麗な自然
For long time I wanted to introduce you one of my favorite locations in the Kansai Area, where I live, Takedao! I've been shooting there so many times that I can really call this nice spot kinda my studio! It's really close to where I live, and it is easy to shoot there without being disturbed by anyone, since not many people are going there... well probably not after I post this article! lol Why I love Takedao
Shooting it: Red leaves portrait shoot with Helios 40-2 (strobist video)
Japanese red leaves season is in it's most beautiful stage now, so here is another article with some photos taken in that beautiful time of the year! I'm having also some behind the stage video from that photoshoot! I'm also using some really interesting lens, the manual focus Helios 40-2, which is making some impressive bokeh! Model for this photoshoot is Yuzuki Aizawa, I am shooting only
Natural Light Portraits at Night / 夜景 自然光 ポートレート
Photographing people at night can be technically one of the most difficult time to do portraits, since using some lighting might be really essential and it is not as easy to go without using flash for example! But even at night if you look around there might be some items on the street that can be used to lit your subject! One of the most common light sources I would use for night portraits are
Shooting it: Self-Portrait with creative Body Painting / セルフ ポートレート
Here is a self portrait photoshoot, something I really have fun doing! We photographers very underestimate one very important thing when we want to shoot and don't have a model, it is that we could always shoot ourselves! For this shoot I'm also having a behind the scenes video, feel free to check it and also don't forget to subscribe to my YouTube channel, where I'm uploading
Location: Nakatsu / 中津 & 高架下 大阪の消えていくロケ
Recently a lot of old cool locations fantastic for photography have been disappearing from Osaka and the areas, being renewed and now having now buildings there! Nakatsu is one of them! There used to be a lot of cool spots for photoshooting an the undergrounds around the station, but unfortunately now they are not accessible! I often shoot at the night view just next to the
Single Shoot-Through Umbrella / 透過アンブレラ 一本だけで ポートレート
Portraits with a single Shoot Through Umbrella used
When I want to be really quick with my setup, this is what I am doing! Shoot-though umbrella is one of the things I definitely have with me all the time, ready to be used! It's very quick…
Portraits with Back Light / バックライト ポートレート 逆光
Portraits with Back Light used only
Shooting with a back light as a main light can be really fun thing to do, but it is also very tricky way to shoot portraits such you really need some experience using lighting, and knowledge on how light…
Night Portraits / 夜景ポートレート
Night Portraits
Here is an article I've wanted to post for long time! It is for portraiture at night, but I will not put setups for all of the photos in the gallery! Well, it is actually more a kind of gallery with photos taken at night! Generally…
Helios 40-2 85mm f/1.5 Lens
Helios 40-2 85mm f/1.5 Lens
This time I want to show you some of the photos I have taken with one really special and cool lens! Well, I had only been using it for about a month, and it was enough to see how cool it is, so now I'm thinking that…
Natural Light Portraits / 自然光ポートレート
Natural Light Portraits
Hey, I guess the image that I have for using strobes and artificial lighting on my photographs is quite strong, and I think it's normal, but to be honest quite often I do rely on Natural Light to shoot portraits! Yeah,…
Shooting it: Portraits in Cherry Blossoms / 桜でポートレート
A portrait photoshoot in the Japanese Cherry Blossoms, one of my favorite times in the year in Japan! Here it's all with one light, check out the lighting setups below! Next month in Tokyo I will be doing some really big seminars for compact strobes, if anyone is around there feel free to join to the PHOTONEXT event! 今年の桜もあっという間に終わりました!桜の時期で撮ったポートレート写真
Shooting it: Rocky Beach Long exposure strobist portrait
Here are some shots from the type of locations that really make me very excited! For this article I will be doing some long exposure strobist lighting, in order to get some more dramatic look! The model is on a rock and not really able to move too much! Also I am having a making video for the photoshoot, make sure you check it out and also subscribe to my YouTube channel!
Gear: Tokina 19-35mm f/3.5-4.5 Can you shoot with a crappy lens?
Tokina 19-35mm f/3.5-4.5 - the "Crappy lens - good photography" project!
Have you heard of this Tokina 19-35mm lens? Haha, I guess not, I didn't know it as well! To be honest it's not even a Full Frame camera lens! With this article I wanna…
Gear: Sigma AF 17-70mm f/2.8-4.5 DC Lens
Sigma AF 17-70mm f/2.8-4.5 DC
Here is a small gallery dedicated to another of the lenses I have been using through the years, and this time it is the first vario zoom lens I have used! It's the Sigma 17-70, and I used it on my crop sensor Canon…
Gear: Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II
Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II
If you are on a budget and wanna shoot portraits, and I mean you can't even afford the Canon EF 85mm F/1.8, then Canon 50mm 1.8 is the lens for you! It's the cheapest lens you can find! And especially if you are just…
Gear: Canon EF 85mm f/1.8 USM Lens
Canon EF 85mm f/1.8 USM
I often advice other photographers to get just one lens, and spend some time with it until you really master it, without even touching a different lens for a while! This time I will be talking about the lenses, Canon…
Shooting it: Photoshoot with opera singer Ayako Tanaka using Profoto B1
Here is another photoshoot with the young Japanese opera singer Ayako Tanaka! This time it's taken in some forest around Kobe! She was a great model, and we did a few photoshoots and for mose of them I was using some big softboxes with Profoto lights to shape the light on the model! I've always wanted to shoot with some Octabox but for some reason never really decided to
Shooting it: Portrait in the Stars of opera singer Ayako Tanaka using Profoto B1
Here is a photoshoot with the young Japanese opera singer Ayako Tanaka! We are doing some stars portraits here! She was a great model, and we did a few photoshoots! In this photoshoot I will be using some big softboxes with Profoto lights to shape the light on the model! I've always wanted to shoot with some Octabox but for some reason never really decided to get one and do
Shooting it: Hairmake & Body Art Photoshoot
Intro
This is a project of my hairmake friends we did together some time ago, I have another article from the same project, too I bet you've seen it, but here is the article for it too: click! It's been a really hard work putting the blue stamps…
Shooting it: Autumn shoot in Japanese red leaves (strobist video)
Intro
Japanese red leaves season is in it's most beautiful stage now, so I can't hold myself uploading an article with some photos taken in that beautiful time of the year! I'm having also the lighting setups below as well as couple of strobist videos…
Shooting it: Takedao Fashion Photoshoot
The Fashion Photoshoot Intro
This time I'm uploading a few shots from a recent fashion photoshoot, well, the location is well known from my photographs I guess! I'm using very simple lighting again, this time it's a DIY Beauty Dish created…
Shooting it: Extremely cool and high location photoshoot
Intro
This time I'm uploading another few shots, with a dramatic making video like last time I did! It was a really windy day, and and if you are afraid if high places don't watch the behind the scenes video! I'm using only one light for the…
Locations: Mayakan – the beautiful abandoned Japanese hotel マヤカン
摩耶観光ホテル a.k.a. マヤカン、Maya Hotel
This time I want to introduce you one of the most beautiful abandoned locations in Japan - the Mayakan Hotel! I have been shooting there for so many times, can't even count them. This…
Shooting it: Windy bridge fashion photoshoot (Making video)
Intro
This time I'm uploading a few shots, with a dramatic making video for the fashion photoshoot! It was a really windy day, and walking on that bridge was kind of a challenge! I'm using only one light for the whole shoot! Check out the making…
Shooting it: Mixing color filters at night
Intro
For this strobist article I will be showing how to get some colorful stuff with a really dark and far background that at first glance doesn't look to be easily modified by strobes! But it is interesting to see that in some cases if you…
Silhouette Photography / シルエット 写真
Silhouettes
I mostly post articles in which different type of lighting is involved, but in this article I will just upload some silhouette photos and no complicated lighting systems, well, not too many! Because even if you are shooting that actually…
Gear: Canon EF 135mm f/2.0 L USM
Canon EF 135mm f/2.0 L USM
I often advice other photographers to get just one lens, and spend some time with it until you really master it, without even touching a different lens for a while! This time I will be talking about one of my favorite…
Shooting it: Hairmake shoot at Mayakan
Intro
Another strobist shot from the cool abandoned hotel located in Kobe, called Mayakan! It's one of the locations I've been no idea how many times, and I still enjoy going for a photoshoot! For this shot I'm there with my friends hair-makeup…
Gear: Light Blaster
Light Blaster
So this time I would like to write about a piece that is an important part of my bag recently, it is the Light Blaster! What is it doing? Basically you need a strobe and a lens and it turns into a projector. But unlike a normal…
Before & After of 15 of my photographs – Vol.2
Before & After - Vol.2 (Click here for Vol.1)
The first article from this the Before & After series was viewed quite many times, so here is Vol.2! Many times I've been asked to show how I edit my photos! Well, in this article I will…
BTS Video – Flower & Body Art Shoot
Intro
Here is a long version of a making video for some of the articles I have uploaded recently! You can check them in the thumbs below the video! この前あげた三つの記事の長いバージョンのメイキングビデオです!ビデオのしたにスタッフ紹介とそれぞれの記事へのリンクあるので、ぜひ見てくださいね!
BTS…
Before & After of 15 of my photographs – Vol.1
Before & After - Vol.1
Here is the first Before & After article I do! Many times I've been asked to show how I edit my photos! Well, in this article I will show exactly how they look straight out of the camera, and how my final images…
Shooting it: Using Light Blaster for Flower & Body Art Shoot
Intro
This time I will be uploading a series of 3 different articles, well actually all of them were taken at the same day, using the Nissin Japan company studio, and they were kind enough to even video tape the whole shoot, so I will be embedding…
Shooting it: Color Shift in WB (Body & Flower Art)
Intro
So here I wanted to really mess up the colors, and I've been thinking about that concept for long time! What would happen if you lit something with for example RED LIGHT, but try to tell your camera that this is actually white, by fixing…
Shooting it: Body Paint & Flower Art shoot
Intro
This time I will be uploading a series of 3 different articles, well actually all of them were taken at the same day, using the Nissin Japan company studio, and they were kind enough to even video tape the whole shoot, so I will be embedding…
Locations: Osaka Sky Building Escalator
Osaka Sky Building: One of the most beautiful escalators!
With this article I am starting a series of articles that will introduce some of the spots I'm shooting more often at! I will not write too much here, you can just see the photos below!…
Shooting it: Asuka at Amagasaki (One Softbox)
Intro
I've already posted as a separate strobist article (CLICK HERE) some other photographs from the same shooting day, and now I have another setup from that photoshoot! It is a photoshoot of Asuka from some time ago, we are shooting in some…
Shooting it: Using Profoto B1 in Nakatsu
In this photoshoot I will be using some big softboxes with Profoto lights to shape the light on the model! I've always wanted to shoot with some Octabox but for some reason never really decided to get one and do it, so finally I found the beautiful…
Shooting it: Zampa Misaki, Okinawa Shoot
Intro
In this article I will introduce some shots taken in the Japanese exotic island, Okinawa! That is one of my favorite locations to shoot, and when I go there I forget about my everyday life! For this photosession I'm using only one light…
Shooting it: Cherry Blossoms Wedding
Intro
This time it will be a wedding photoshoot with very simple lighting setup, one I've been using on locations quite a lot, and still am when I am! For this shot I'm using only one shoot-through umbrella, balancing it with the ambient light…
Shooting it: Haunted Tunnel (Light Blaster)
Intro
I've really been having lots of fun with the Light Blaster recently! Here is another series of photos taken using it for background modifier! Last month I had some really big strobist seminars in Tokyo and so many people have been asking…
Shooting it: Mayakan photoshoot
Now I will be posting an article from one of my favorite locations in Kobe area, the abandoned Maya Hotel, it is a massive construction on the mountain next to the city and I like
Shooting it: Stroboscopic manual shoot
Intro
Shooting with stroboscopic photos can be quite easy if your strobes actually have Multi mode, but what if they do not support it, and they are just some manual flashes? This is what I will write in this post, it is a dance stroboscopic…
Shooting it: Light Blaster for the Background
Intro
Last week I had some really big strobist seminars in Tokyo and so many people have been asking me about the gear I will be talking in this article! Also it is the first time I upload photos taken with the Light Blaster - a pretty cool…
Shooting it: Night shoot (Using ROGUE gear)
Another night shot taken around my neighborhood industrial area which I love shooting at! This time I'm using some new gear that I started using recently, the ROGUE accessories, and some info about them I have in the end of the article! Also…
Shooting it: Stroboscopic Shoot (1)
Here is something I haven't been uploading on my page by now! It is a photograph for which I'm using stroboscopic effect, which is quite interesting for shooting moving objects! I'm explaining in detail how I'm doing it and what equipment I…
Shooting it: Rainy Blossoms
For this article I'm using what I would usually use if I go somewhere with only one modifier and I need to be quick in the setup - a shoot-through umbrella! I am preparing another article with example photos taken only with this type of light,…
Shooting it: Lighting the tunnel with gels
This is a set of shots for which I'm using color filters to paint the background in some interesting way! Playing with lighting filters is I may say one of my signature techniques since not that many people are doing it around where I'm shooting,…
Shooting it: Photoshoot in the Rain
Since typhoon is happening again in Japan now, time to write this article that I've been canceling for long time already, it is a photoshoot in the hard rain and wind form last year, a really extreme one, but that feeling is what makes us pleased after it is finished! We were I guess too crazy to shoot in the seaside, while the typhoon was actually happening!
Shooting it: Beast in Me
One of the fun things for me to do since I started photography a few years ago is to just get my gear, go out in the middle of the night, and shoot myself... alone in weird situations! Well, here is another shot from this series! And to make it clear, it has nothing to do with Halloween, just coincidence to upload it at the same time!
Shooting it: Textile Design by Arina
Here are couple of shots from a project I was a part of recently! Basically we have been using some really nice Jacquard fabric textile, that was a subject of an exhibition, and we wanted to create some nice visuals about it! You can…
Shooting it: Dreaming of Something Nice
In this post I will be very short, because it's a simple one light, shoot-through umbrella shot! And that was actually the time when I had my first touch to the lens I started loving later, the 135/2, that I was borrowing from my friend we were…
Shooting it: Married in Kobe
Another engagement shoot article, this time I will be writing about 2 shots of a night photoshoot I did in Kobe recently! I am shooting in the night, and as a location I decided to choose a spot where it is not that crowded, basically there…
Shooting it: Autumn Wedding & Bokeh Panorama
This article is about an engagement shoot I did some time ago in the autumn! The autumn in Japan is so beautiful, but unfortunately so short, so you have to be very tricky to get the best spots in the best timing! This is a public park in…
Shooting it: Golden Hour
In this article I will be uploading couple of shots from the coolest time to shoot in the day - the Golden Hour! We have been shooting in a studio that day, and this shot has nothing to do with that shoot, but after it we just wanted to have…
Shooting it: Dancing Queen (Megumi)
Finally I'm gonna write about the shot, that is on the top screen of my homepage for a few months already, although I still haven't officially uploaded it on any other social media until now! So here it is, with all the details about the settings,…
Shooting it: Asuka in the Temple
Here is another shot of Asuka at the same location as the previous atricle I have uploaded here! It is the small and nice temple in Amagasaki, called Joonji (長遠寺) a location which we often use for the shootings with her! I have already…
Shooting it: Asuka in the Temple
Here is another photoshoot of the model I've been shooting most by now Asuka! I can't even count how many times we've been shooting together! So this time we took some photos I guess nobody usually takes in a Japanese Temple, hehe, I guess not…
Shooting it: In The Blue (Using gels)
This article will be focusing on using strobes to create shadows and leading lines. After I uploaded the photograph, I had more than 10 people asking me is it photoshoped, and how did I lit it. Well, it's not photoshoped 😉 In this location…
Shooting it: RULU in a rainy night
This article will have 2 different setups included. This photoshoot was taken in Osaka, in a winter rainy night, where the first shot I will talk about is taken outside in the rain, and the second is taken in a warehouse close to Osaka station,…
Shooting it: Pole Dancer – Megumi Yuzuki
Couple of months ago I had this assignment to take some profile photos of a pole dancer, this was the first time for me to shoot someone doing this type of dance, and we did some very interesting stuff together. Her name is Megumi Yuzuki, and…
Shooting it: Colorful Spiral
This time I'm having one hard strobist shot to talk about! It is taken at a nice location near Osaka, where I've been shooting a few times, and I guess you will remember it if you see this shot: CLICK, that made many people start asking me…
Shooting it: DIY – Heart-shaped bokeh
In this article I will talk about how I usually create shaped bokeh when I'm shooting with wide open apperture! On that day with the model we were planning to do an overnight shooting in Osaka after midnight, so I asked her to prepare some interesting…
How to: HDR (detailed)
Some time ago I uploaded an article about the making of HDR images. Anyway it was not very detailed, and after a few months now I decided to re-upload it, and this time write a little bit more about the whole workflow of my HDR processing, so…
Shooting it: Rainbow Stripes
My next journal entry will be about one project we are doing with my friends, who are making some really interesting make-up artwork, and I'm honored to have the chance to take the photos of their work! I will insert their profiles in the end…
Shooting it: Under One Umbrella
Here is a shoot from last Christmas I did in Kobe. The location was around the harbor area in the city, and I clearly had that concept with the umbrella and the silhouettes of a couple lit from behind. I had the idea, but actually I didn't think…
Shooting it: Fairy of the Golden Tunnel
Recently I have been reviewing my old shots, and writing some description of how I shoot them, and last week I started doing a kinda small ebook type document with them. Now I'm uploading one of my favorite last year shots of my friend and…
Shooting it: In a Cage
Here is a photoshoot of my friend and model that I shoot pretty often, Misa. We were a pretty big team of people, having some fun time in the studio. In this shoot everyone is doing what they are best at doing, designer, make-up, hair and photographer!…
Shooting it: Shining Stars
Here is the lighting information of another self-portrait I did some time ago! That was a cold spring rainy night in Kobe, and I had just been back home from school, wet and pissed at myself why I went out without the umbrella! But after I…
Shooting it: Surfing at the beach!
Do you like surfing guys? I love it, basically that's what I'm doing every day, so I wanted to take a self portrait of me doing it 😉 Damn, of course not that type of surfing haha, I can't even swim! I really love surfing in the internet, so…
Shooting it: You’ll Always Stay Here
This photoshoot was not planned at all, we just thought we might meet up and shoot something with my friend, and as she was staying that day in Hilton Osaka, and the weather outside was quite horrible we just decided to shoot in, then this idea…
Shooting it: Rock Me!
This is a photograph of a friend of mine and a classmate in school, Mo! He is really cool bro, and we've been thinking to shoot him with his bike, and we've been thinking of that for almost an year I guess... so finally here it is! We shoot…
Shooting it: Drinking in the Night
Intro
Doing strobist things in the night can be really interesting, but what if you don't have a model to shoot? Well, it's easy, why don't you just go out and shoot yourself! Sometimes I really love playing around and shooting one of the…
Shooting it: Golden Autumn
I am uploading some lighting information for another of my past favorite shots of my friend Doris. We have been shooting at Hozukyo, Kyoto. On that day we were a big group of people with my friend Diao taking pictures there. We actually went…
Your advises
I will be more than happy to hear your advises on the blog posts, and feel free to mail me for any of the following things:
- Desired descriptions of other of my photographs;
- Articles for some topic you are interested in;
- Articles about any of the equipment I’m using;
- Just collections of photographs on certain topic;
- Whatever else you think might improve this blog!
Thank you for stopping back, and I’m looking forward to hearing from you!
Cheers!
Latest Posts
- PHOTONEXT 2016 イルコ セミナー動画July 10, 2016 - 21:51
- Photoshoot in Bulgaria, Plovdiv Old Town / ブルガリアの街並みでポートレート撮影February 18, 2016 - 15:25
- Gear: Canon EF 24mm f/1.4 L II USM LensFebruary 2, 2016 - 06:09
- RoundFlash™ Ring & Dish / ラウンドフラッシュ™ リング & ディッシュFebruary 2, 2016 - 02:27