Big tent, big lights behind the scenes of a shoot with trapeze artists

 

Photo: Tim Tadder

Under the big-top, lights are low and the aerial stunts are fast. So when commercial photographer Tim Tadder shot an advertisement featuring trapeze artists, he brought along 15 lights, and rigged them up 42 feet in the air.

Tadder’s team made a behind-the-scenes video of that shoot, offering a glimpse into what goes on in a high-flying production. From the gear side, it looks like Tadder shoots with a tethered Phase One medium format camera and a telephoto lens of at least moderate length—he’s elevated, but still below and clear of the performers. You’d think that it’d be tough to get sharp shots out of that setup, especially with so many pixels—but that’s what the massive array of lights is for.

The three-and-a-half minute clip is more of a documentary than a tutorial, as there aren’t many technical details. But it’s worth a watch just to see professionals—both photographers and trapeze artists—at work. Check out more of Tadder’s commercial shoots at his website.

(Via Reddit)