Image of the Week : Seth Langner

“And, oh, yeah - the breakfast was deelish”

— Seth

How did you manage to achieve the shot?

This was shot, for all intents and purposes, impromptu. That said, I did bring the camera along to our favorite neighborhood diner that morning because I knew the high contrast of bright morning sunlight pouring in through the front windows and the dimly-lit interior of the diner would give me a chance to play with the Active D-Lighting settings on the camera. And they worked like a charm, balancing out ye ol' histogram beautifully, bringing out the details in the highlights and shadows. 

It took a while to get all the elements right. For layering - situating the stuff on the table (still not sure I like the placement of the water glass), folks in the booth behind Rosa leaving so the back wall could read, getting the sign outside to read well-enough. And for leading-lines - angling the curtain rods and window frame to subtly frame her face. Lastly, I had Rosa sport my Ray-Bans® for the final flourish and . . . voila! 

But, let's face it. Rosa is gorgeous, so, you know, that helps. A lot. 

Oh, and by the by, the breakfast was deelish. If you're ever in Jacksonville, FL, you gotta stop by The Fox in Avondale. It's kinda like the Southern mecca of greasy spoons. 

What gear did you use?

• Nikon D610
• Sigma 35 Art 1.4

What were the camera settings?

• Aperture: f/1.4
• Shutter Speed: 1/1250
• ISO: 200 
• Active D-Lighting: Normal