43.3

50 / 50 : Achievement Unlocked : Freedom.

So, first things first : I can't believe I make it to the end of this project.
I know, I know, I said the same exact thing at the end of my 365 project last year but, believe me or not, I found this 50 days to be a hell more daunting than all last year's 365 together.

Being it a 50of50 project, I was bound to shoot solely with my 50mm lens. And that wasn't even too difficult.
But I stupidly tied my hands with that stupid rule "I'll have to light every single photo with speed lights"

And damn, that turned out to be freaking HARD.

But I'm not gonna go down with the usual "why I hated this project bla bla bla" kinda rant, this time I want to tell you, despite the difficulties, what positives this project brought into my life.

For starters, it pushed me. A LOT.
It pushed me to ask anyone in my reach to help me, to pose for me, to hold my lights, to stop whatever they were doing 'cause I HAD TO TAKE THE PICTURE.
It pushed me to the point where I realized that most of the times, people are actually glad to have their photo taken, to help you out, to give you ideas whenever your batteries are low. You just gotta ask.

It pushed me to leave behind a lot of that laziness that I was trying to escape from : every single day I had to bring with me tripods, light stands, flashes, batteries and trasnceivers wherever I was going : but that didn't stop me.

It pushed me to go out at 1 in the morning 'cause my plan for the photo of the day had just been busted for some reason and I needed to scout a location, set up, and take yet another self portrait.

It pushed me to CREATE the opportunity to take a picture, whenever one was not being "served" to me.

That's a lot of pushing.
A LOT.

And now here I am, typing on my keyboard trying to sum up some of the thoughts I have screaming around in my head, with a huge smile printed on my face. Is it 'cause I know that I won't HAVE to think of a photo for tomorrow? Probably. Is it 'cause I know I won't HAVE to take another self portrait in case my plans go flat? Probably. Is it because I feel damn proud of myself for going through this and making to the end, making it clear especially to myself, yet another time, that photography is something that I want to pursue with all my heart? Most certainly.

Today I finish this project with more pride, more technical knowledge, more confidence and a handful of good photos (not to mention the bucket of CRAPPY ones but, what can we do about it?).

I have this overwhelming feeling of freedom and satisfaction that is simply priceless.

Tomorrow's another day, and I'm a bit more ready to take on it that I was before starting this project.

Onward, my friends!

ABOUT THIS PHOTO: Ok I wanted to challenge myself a bit harder for this last picture so I went for something that would have needed a LOT more post production than usual.

The image is a final edit from 3 different images.
I first placed the lights and had my roommate Lucio take a picture of me in mid air on the roof. After a few tries, we got the right one. Then I took, with the same aperture but different shutter speed, a photo of the background light and the floor / roof structure. Lastly, since it took too much time and the sun had almost set already, I cranked down the shutter speed and took a third photo of the sky/background area.

3 hours of photoshop later, this is the result. It's the most complex image i've ever worked on but I'm kinda digging how it turned out.

The concept comes from RICK NUNN , the guy I need to thank for inventing the 50of50 project and for going through not just one, but TWO of them!

On his last photo of his second 50of50 (THIS ONE) he's hanging from the ceiling, visually telling you all that the project almost killed him.

I liked the idea but I was not too fond of the whole "i'm dead, this project killed me" thingy, so I started to think backwards : what if someone had to show the freedom that comes with finishing such a daunting project?

Fifty done. OVER.

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Nikon D700 | 50mm (ƒ/1.4G) @ 50mm | ƒ/2.8 | ISO 800 | 1/180th s — Camera on Tripod

-Nikon SB900 | 1/16th Power | Full Cut CTO gel | Bare | Lighting the background hidden behind the corner

-Yongnuo YN560 | 1/64th Power | Bare | In a 20"x20" Walimex foldable softbox lighting me from above and haldheld by my roomate | Then removed in Ps