Vianca Palacios // San Antonio, TX

My friend Joshua sent me an image of a man dancing with a woman, and all I noticed was the airplane in the sky. I thought ‘that would be cool to somehow photograph a ballerina with an airplane somewhere in the frame’. And just like that, an idea was born. 

I try to draw inspiration from anywhere; I’m constantly keeping my eyes peeled open for new influences. Oftentimes I’ll show the ballerina a reference image, and our finished product will look nothing like the image; but you’ll be able to see where the inspiration came from. 

Growing up, a lovely memory I had was going with my mother to a parking lot near the airport with peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and watching planes at the San Antonio airport. I remember this memory every time I pass by this specific road near the airport, so I knew exactly where to park to watch the planes pass overhead. 

The technical part of the image was going to be more tricky. I knew that since I was going to be shooting against a bright backdrop (the sky), I would have to light the legs… but up to this point, this project has been 99.994% ambient light (the sole exception being the first shoot I tried, when I didn’t even know I was embarking on a project). Now it was just a matter of figuring out how I wanted to light the photo. To me, the best option was ring flash*, a light that completely surrounds the lens, that gives the finished photo a very high-fashion look. 

Next, I had to figure out how to position the ballerina so that her legs would be horizontal in the frame, yet photographed in a manner so that the top portion of her legs were visible. Then it hit me: a ladder + pillow combination. Vianca could face down on her stomach, hanging over the ladder. Then, on the count of three, she could raise her legs and wing her feet appropriately (no pun intended ;), and wait a few more seconds till the airplane passes overhead; all while getting a bonafide Hasselblad Ab Workout™. 

A lot of work for a photo, and I realized as much as I love these photos, the process is much simpler with ambient light only. Nonetheless, I was extremely happy with the results. 

*Thanks to Joshua Huskin for lending me his Profoto Acute D4 ring flash, too. 

January 25, 2021