On to Light Shaping: How Laurent Hini Turned a Parisian Street into a Studio

18 May, 2017

Written by: Rebecca Ahremark

On to Light Shaping is a new video series in which get to see 18 renowned portrait and wedding photographer create magic with Profoto Off-Camera Flash. In this video we join photographer Laurent Hini as he captures a series of images of a love story in Paris. When you are done watching, click here to see the rest of the series.

Paris-based photographer Laurent Hini started out as a photojournalist. But it did not take long before he discovered that this profession did not allow him to fully control the final result. He was left to capture things as they were. Unsatisfied with this, Laurent decided to change direction. Today, he does portraits, fashion and commercial jobs – shoots that allow him to shape and control light. And he has never looked back.

Laurent’s recent portrait of a young couple is part of a series of images exploring a blossoming love story in Paris. This particular shot was to be the last one in the series. As such, Laurent wanted to do something out of the ordinary, something a bit more complex. This meant that he needed a lighting solution that was portable enough to be taken out on to the streets of Paris, but also versatile enough to turn his choice of location into something of an outdoor studio.
To overcome this challenge, Laurent brought the new Profoto Off-Camera Flash system. He had a B1 Off-Camera Flash, three B2 Off-Camera Flashes and, perhaps most importantly in Laurent’s case, an assortment of Light Shaping Tools.

“What’s so great about the Off-Camera Flash system is that I can use all the different Light Shaping Tools,” says Laurent. “For each picture I can choose precisely the tool I need and get exactly the look that I want.”

The fact that the new B2 Off-Camera Flash is super compact and lightweight allowed Laurent to be extra creative. He put the B2 battery pack on the male model’s belt, hid the chord underneath his clothes, and asked him to hold the B2 Head in his hand. The head was equipped with an Umbrella Deep S Silver, but still light enough to be handheld by the model.
A second B2 with an OCF Softbox 2′ Octa was used as fill light. A third B2 with an OCF Softbox 1×3′ was used as backlight. Last but not least, Laurent brought in a powerful B1 Off-Camera Flash with a Magnum Reflector, set it to full power and used it to light up the cathedral in the back.

All four flashes were wirelessly synced and controlled with the Air Remote TTL-N mounted on Laurent’s Nikon D800E. Using a Nikon 24-70/f2.8, Laurent set the exposure to 1/125s at f/5.6, with ISO set to 400. Click. Laurent got his shot.

“To me, this is a revolution!” says Laurent. “With the B2 I finally have the portability and light weight of a speedlight, but also the advantages that a studio light brings. It really is like bringing your own little studio with you on location!”