Vividly Neon: A Night in Odessa with Yana Fedotova

A lover of street photography, Lomographer Yana Fedotova a.k.a. yanafedotova.l knows how to restructure the outdoor context and make it into hybrid styles. One fine example is a recent series from her during an evening in Odessa with a model, where she showcases her careful yet bold visions for analogue.

The streets are where Yana feels relaxed at, and it's where she also the environment she likes to shoot. Usually, she'd ask or invite a model to take part in her creative shoot, walk around the city, chatting and filming places. In this particular shoot, most photographs were taken in the amusement park where the neon lights aided her experimental framework.

"We just walked around the city in a relaxed atmosphere, and I took photos where it was better to highlight the subject and achieve the desired result. I used the light from completely different sources, from the sign of the pharmacy to the light from the ATM and the sign of the pedestrian crossing, most of the shots were taken in the amusement park."

The photographs speak for themselves -- how harmonious the light and shadow are, the balance of colors present in her shots. Yana achieved such results through trial-and-error, mostly playing and experimenting with light.  "I love working with light and colors in photography, I try to read a lot about working with this or that film and practice. I also try to observe more and be inspired by the masters of photography and cinematography who work best with color and light at night."

As a lover of films and cinema, she learned in the visual languages of "Fallen Angels" and "In the Mood for Love" by Wong Kar-wai, "Taxi Driver" by Martin Scorsese, and "Drive" by Nicolas Winding Refn.
 
Another thing admirable is how Yana is set and focused on what she wants. And what she wants for herself — her photography — is clear, even with how she connects to her subjects and what she asks from them. One of her favorite shots was created when she asked the girl to climb up a pedestrian crossing sign, and it turned out one of the most interesting shots.

For night photography, Yana stresses that choosing the right film and having a sufficient amount and intensity of the light source is crucial. The photographs were taken with Kodak Vision 500t cine-film.

" If the light is not intensive it is better to use a long exposure, a tripod, and the release cable. In this photo shoot I used a shutter time speed from 1/250 to 1/30, depending on the light source. And it is advisable to use a light meter to achieve an accurate result."

Learn more about Yana through her Instagram and LomoHome!

escrito por cielsan el 2021-01-24 #gente #lugares #night-photography #neon-photography #yana-fedotova