This is one of the most colorful rooms of the exhibit. Ally chose an off white dress so she wouldn’t clash with all the color of the glass.
I spent a fun hour and a half on a location shoot with Alexandra Icela Prater at the Chihuly exhibit by the Space Needle. There are multiple rooms in the exhibit, providing many locations for a shoot. Photography, including flash is permitted, but no tripods. Ally is a model from Lynnwood, but she’s getting more opportunity to travel and pursue modeling in some of the bigger markets like Las Vegas and such. She’s very agile and nimble on the shoot. Physical fitness is not really surprising since she’s done a stint in the Air Force.
Some areas were very dimly lit so fill flash had to be kept to a minimum.
Since this shoot was in a popular museum exhibit, there were abundant onlookers. They all were complimentary and actually seemed to find the shoot interesting, adding to their visit rather than a distraction. I made a point of setting up shots quickly and then moving on so we did not stop the flow of traffic or interfere. Despite a fairly busy weekend, it was such a large space that we had little difficulty finding pretty spots to shoot where we were in no one’s way. A location shoot can draw a crowd, so it is good to treat them with respect.
In addition to indoor locations, this venue has outdoor and nearly outdoor settings as well. The large glass arch house gives dramatic shadows on a sunny day, making the graphic display in the photo. The setting is likely to require some removal of background distractions such as the other visitors. Luckily, our attention is on the main focus of the photos so any removals can be done without their being too obvious.
Ally in the glass house with its dramatic shadows on a sunny day. The opposite problems of the dark interior.
Not everything at this exhibit is glass. There are also lovely gardens, and we found a large bench carved from a tree trunk for one set of shots. This was tucked away on a side path and would be a senior portrait spot if I lived in the Puget Sound. The Space Needle is an obvious landmark and it would be simple to meet up here, but parking is not cheap. Just plan on $22 for the exhibit and another $20 for parking and another $20 for lunch at the restaurant at the exhibit (which was quite nice).
Finally, just to prove the location of this location shoot, I will include a snapshot of the Space Needle with Ally and a glass tower in the frame. Don’t expect to easily replicate this particular shot unless you use photomerge and put together about 3 images to capture all the way to the top of the needle. I got more creative and high fashion type shots in this shoot, but this one is the shot to really showcase the location of the shoot. I did not spend much time on this image, it is just to show the fact that the location is right smack dab under the needle.
I wanted to add a couple more photos, but the file sizes just get too large for a blog. So, I’ll post them on Facebook when I announce this one and problem solved. Thanks Ally and thanks to Talia Kathleen Fladland the MUA that Ally brought with her to this location shoot. Nice job to both of you!
Vertical panorama:. From Ally at ground level to Chihuly glass and up to the top of the needle.
Ally shows her flexibility as well as grace on this garden bench. Her hands are always loose and relaxed., she’s an experienced model.