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Ilko Allexandroff

16 top tips for shooting beautiful portraits

Dec 20, 2016 by John Aldred Add Comment
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It’s that time of year again, gathered around our families. They all know we have that fancy camera. So, it’s down to us to document the event and get portraits of everybody for history. Shooting portraits, though, isn’t always that easy if it’s not something you’re used to doing.

Well, here’s Ilko Alexandroff with 16 portrait photography tips to help get you going. It’s not one of those “cram as many tips as you can into 3 minutes” videos either. Ilko goes pretty in depth on some of them, and talks about his reasons for choosing one thing over another. All in, it’s a 47 minute video, and well worth the watch.

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Create amazing night portraits with orange gels and white balance tricks

Dec 12, 2016 by John Aldred Add Comment
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Using gels to correct your flashes to match the ambient, or as creative effects is common. It’s something many of us do from time to time. Sometimes we use creative gels want that cool colour contrast. At other times we just have to deal with really horrible lighting and need to compensate with corrective gels. But, corrective gels can also be used creatively.

Japan based Photographer, Ilko Alexandroff regularly brings orange CTO gels along with him to his night shoots. They allow him to get a little more creative with the harsh sodium glow of the background while still getting perfect colour on his subject. In this video he talks us through how and why.

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Pouring rain is your shot at spectacular portraits

Sep 4, 2016 by Udi Tirosh Add Comment
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Pouring rain can be an excuse to stay home and do nothing. It can also be a great opportunity to go outside and use the elements at your advantage. Japan based photographer Ilko Allexandroff (interview) is maybe the master of shooting stunning portraits in the rain. You know what, it only takes perseverance and some knowledge to turn a rainy night into your playground.

Ilko uses a very consistent 2 lights setup, a soft(ish) front light and a hard backlight. The front light – a Nissin MG8000 with a 60×60 foldable softbox – lights the model, while the backlight – another Nissin – does a double duty. It freezes the rain drops and provides a kicker light. Both lights are triggered using a Cactus V6 trigger.

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How I Shot it: Hairmake & Blue Dots Body Art Photoshoot

Nov 29, 2014 by Udi Tirosh 3 Comments
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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. It’s been really hard work putting all the blue stamps on both the model’s face and the background, but definitely worth it, as I really love that set of images! I’m using a 2 lights setup,which I’ll write about below! finally, it has a bit of style to it, either you love it or you don’t!

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How I Shot This Light Painting Photo In Fushimi Inari Shrine, Kyoto, Japan

Oct 31, 2014 by Ilko Allexandroff 3 Comments
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The location for this light painting shoot is one of the most famous tourist spots in Kyoto, the Fushimi Inari Shrine. It is famous for its endless red gates, that look like tunnel! I’ve been there so many times, and always wanted to do something with this wonderful location, but this was the first time to actually take some photos!.

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15 Hard Core Lighting Setups To Have You Light Like A Ninja

Aug 15, 2014 by Udi Tirosh 12 Comments
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If you are struggling with your lighting sometimes it is a good idea to drop your camera for a while (ok, not drop, gently put aside) and get some inspiration from photographers who excel at lighting. Japan based photographer Ilko Allexandroff has a strong lighting style and he was kind enough to share 15 of his lighting setups with us.

If you want more info you can follow the three small little dots

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DIYP Interviews Portrait Photographer Ilko Allexandroff (From Bulgaria To Japan)

Jun 27, 2014 by Udi Tirosh Add Comment
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Aside from being a kick butt photographer, Ilko Allexandroffhas quite an amazing career course. A butterfly effect that started in a corridor chat in Ilko’s school in Bulgaria ended in Ilko being a renowned portrait photographer in Japan, we took Ilko for a round of questions and had a blast doing so:[Read More…]

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How I Shot This Portrait In Pouring Rain

Jun 23, 2014 by Ilko Allexandroff 9 Comments
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Hi, Ilko Allexandroff here, in this post I’m happy to share the behind the scenes for one of my favorite shoots that was shot in the rain. Conditions were far from trivial and I’ll share some of my secrets as well as information about my location choice, lighting and how I usually shoot in rain.[Read More…]

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Udi Tirosh: from diyphotography.netUdi Tirosh is an entrepreneur, photography inventor, journalist, educator, and writer based in Israel. With over 25 years of experience in the photo-video industry, Udi has built and sold several photography-related brands. Udi has a double degree in mass media communications and computer science.

Alex Baker: from diyphotography.netAlex Baker is a portrait and lifestyle driven photographer based in Valencia, Spain. She works on a range of projects from commercial to fine art and has had work featured in publications such as The Daily Mail, Conde Nast Traveller and El Mundo, and has exhibited work across Europe

David Williams: from diyphotography.netDave Williams is an accomplished travel photographer, writer, and best-selling author from the UK. He is also a photography educator and published Aurora expert. Dave has traveled extensively in recent years, capturing stunning images from around the world in a modified van. His work has been featured in various publications and he has worked with notable brands such as Skoda, EE, Boeing, Huawei, Microsoft, BMW, Conde Nast, Electronic Arts, Discovery, BBC, The Guardian, ESPN, NBC, and many others.

John Aldred: from diyphotography.netJohn Aldred is a photographer with over 20 years of experience in the portrait and commercial worlds. He is based in Scotland and has been an early adopter - and occasional beta tester - of almost every digital imaging technology in that time. As well as his creative visual work, John uses 3D printing, electronics and programming to create his own photography and filmmaking tools and consults for a number of brands across the industry.

Dunja Djudjic: from diyphotography.netDunja Djudjic is a multi-talented artist based in Novi Sad, Serbia. With 15 years of experience as a photographer, she specializes in capturing the beauty of nature, travel, and fine art. In addition to her photography, Dunja also expresses her creativity through writing, embroidery, and jewelry making.

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