How to use your Nikon D90 to create beautiful fashion photographs.

How to use your Nikon D90 to create beautiful fashion photography: It’s easy! Just point and shoot! The photographs below were taken in all natural light. With two I used a reflector for fill. I love my Nikon D90. It has gotten me out of a bind several times. When in doubt, D90. Let me explain:

I shoot a lot of fashion photographs for various assignments. Sometimes I travel internationally to places like: London, Milan, Paris, Tokyo or Sydney. I am tough on my photography equipment so I need reliable gear. When I travel I must have backup cameras with me. The D90 is my favorite by far.

Why? First, its price. The Nikon D90 is priced at a meager $900+ dollars U.S. I love the screen on the back of the D90. It is huge in comparison to most digital cameras. The D90 is a 12.3 megapixel camera and it has a high resolution 3 inch LCD display.

I love to shoot in the water. I love to shoot in tight spots. Perfect for the D90. This summer I was shooting in Athens, Rome, Milan, Santorini and London for various assignments. I was walking down a flight of stairs in Gaeta, Italy when I lost my grip on my Hasselblad. OOOpppsss! My bad. I looked to my backup cameras and immediately went for the D90. It’s just so easy to use! Here are a few pics I took that day with it.

Shot in Gaeta, Italy with a Nikon D90.

Shot in Gaeta, Italy with my Nikon D90.

Shot in Gaeta, Italy with a Nikon D90.

Model Anna Grigorenko.

For many more images shot on the Nikon D90 or to see these images larger please visit my site at:
Fashion Photography by Robert Voltaire

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Travel photography – Rio de Janiero – Day one.

Not a breath of wind, warm sun and laid out before me – Ipanema.

I can’t easily express how happy I am to be here. I think it was a book… No, a film. I think it was a film that I saw a long time ago that took place in Brazil which inspired me to create something here. I love fashion photography.

There was a model in LA that wanted to be here but her agent said, “she doesn’t test.” Personally I can understand that she would miss work by leaving the country. But when I suggested shooting in Los Angeles her agent said, “No, she is too big to test.” Later, I told an A list actor friend of mine about this. He said, “Great. Maybe I should quit studying my craft. I guess I know everything there is to know about it right?”

It worked out for the best as things usually do. I went to a casting today at an agency in Rio and met a few amazing Brazilian models more than willing to shoot.

One is here with me now. She is very tall. Young. She just parked her bike in the sand and put her things down by the yellow beach umbrella. White tennis shoes. White shorts. Cotton shirt. Blue eyes. Black hair.

Ipanema Beach by Voltaire

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Travel Photography – Greece Day 4 afternoon.

This place is like a movie set. Being here, taking pictures, is a little too easy.

It’s an incomparable pleasure. The funny thing was I couldn’t find anyone in America to travel with me on such short notice. All my friends were booked. It happened that way for a reason. Now I know why.

The streets are empty. Here I am on the studio lot during a short break. I am the director of this silent film.

There is music flowing from a distant courtyard. She perks up and begins to dance. I take a few pics. She knows all the songs but hums the lyrics. There’s a popular but very old French song playing now, one my mother used to play. I try to sing along to it but I botch the lyrics as well. Finally she relaxes, still humming and plays with her hair.

Click.

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Travel Photography – Santorini, Day 4.

Olga is still asleep in our villa. I let her have my room. It’s the best. I fell asleep outside on a hammock. We’re living like kings here. Special thanks to Eric for putting a blanket on me. There’s mosquitoes at night.

It’s 5 a.m. I have already been up for an hour. I love writing to you.

There is a cobblestone road leading up to our villa. Gas powered street lamps. The sky is blue as is the air in front of me. The kind of blue light you only find in the early morning. This island is ancient.

There are white villas on both sides of the street stretching for several blocks.

Olga is awake now. We don’t speak. It’s too early.

She is a very young girl. A teenager. Barefoot. Slim. She has the longest natural hair I have ever seen on a model. “Agencies and clients love her or hate her for it,” her agent in Athens told me. She won’t cut it. I don’t want her to.

She sits down next to me and smiles. There’s still the language barrier. I like the silence. Like a great silent film we communcate with our bodies. But not now. We’ll just sit for a couple minutes. Then we will get up and walk down to the church. The white one by the sea. We’ll take a couple pictures and see what sort of magic the day will deliver.

Olga Syzmanska

Olga by Voltaire

Greek Church

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Fashion Photographer – Milan, Rome, Gaeta, Italy, Day – Five

Early morning. The rain just stopped. The clean sand i was intending to shoot on is now speckled. We move to the water. Salvatore is videotaping from the shoreline.

Anna has a little dolphin tattood on her butt. Then it occures to me. “Il Delphino.” “The Dolphin.” A great idea for a series of portraits. So, I ask her to become a dolphin. And she does. She glides through the water. Jumping. Splashing. Bending. Twisting. She’s free. Women often are. They tend to be able to access emotions more quickly than men. She is free from the world.

I can see my son a distance down on the beach playing with a dinosaur toy he found this morning. He’s five years old. He loves dinosaurs. Sometimes he is a dinosaur. For hours at a time. He knows how to play as Anna does now. There are four great actors here.

The rain starts to return. The water is amazingly calm here. No waves like the Pacific or Atlantic. We are in the Mediterranean. Far away from home. The dolphins skin is shiny and wet. Everythings perfect now. Press the shutter release button. Is that what they call it? I’m not very technical. I just take photographs.

Tomorrow I need to take my family to Rome. That’s what we’ll do. We’ll go to Rome. I will take my son to the Coliseum. Better tell him about the Christians vs. the Lions before we go to sleep.

I think i got the picture. I know I did. I can’t hear anything now. I am deaf and everything is in black and white.

Fashion photography by Voltaire.

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Travel photography – Gaeta, Italy Day – Four

I have officially fallen in love with Italy.

This is Italy. There is much beauty here. People are friendly and want to know more about me and my work. There is a post production party tonight at the restaurant with the blue shutters down by the river.

This morning we spent a lovely day at the beach and then back to shooting personal projects. I have a lot of freedom here. My wife and son are playing in the Mediterranean with Anna’s daughter. Anna, Salvatore and I had lunch at a small roadside stand. Then it was back to shooting. There is a lot of laughter here and then constructive work. I think some of these images will define my work for a long time to come.

Anna is crying. She doesn’t want us to leave. My wife is crying too. We are all friends now. We are friends with the ballet dancer and her charming husband from Italy.

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Travel photography – Gaeta, Italy Day – Three

Today we shot at a farm between Gaeta and Sperlonga. We had to keep the crew small because we did a bit of trespassing. The owner of the farm didn’t seem to care but his sons were circling on their motorcycles trying to get a closer look. I am sure you can understand why. We shot lingerie images for my client and at the end images for my fine art book. I was pretty shy when the motorcycle boys came out but Anna insisted on working. What a great model. At the end of each day when i want to put down the camera she keeps going and going like the Energizer bunny.

Tonight we will have a private dinner with Anna’s family and mine at a restaurant in her hometown. The people here are so friendly! They are already trying to get us to move here. I have to admit I am a little bit tempted. This whole place is intoxicating. But, I have a life in Los Angeles that i have to get back to. Or do I have to???

I will add some video soon.

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Travel photography – Gaeta, Italy – Day Two

Incredible! We are having an wonderful time here. Last night for dinner I had a delicious filet mignon with Italian wine. I don’t remember which one but it is not important. It was a great meal.

Anna’s husband, Salvatore, is a great and gracious man. I can already tell, given time, we will become close friends. There is a spiritual connection between her family and mine. Perfect circumstance with the perfect model.

Anna herself is one of the best models I have had the pleasure of working with. She moves like a ballet dancer which makes my job easy. All i have to do is point the camera and shoot. She also trusts my vision implicitly which is one of my favorite qualities in a model. She is open to shoot whatever I suggest. Perfect. The images are inspired by our surroundings and our mutual tastes. I scouted out a village near Gaeta which we shot at during the towns afternoon nap. Good thing people were asleep because the pics were artistic and very sexy and we may have gotten thrown out!

Tomorrow we are shooting at a farm. I saw some beautiful haystacks in a field.

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Travel photography – Gaeta, Italy. June, 2009. Day – One

Gaeta, Italy is stunningly beautiful. Right now i am on the patio of our gorgeous suite at Le Grand Hotel Le Rocce. I am very lucky to have my family here with me on this trip. A lot of time when I travel it is just myself, models and crew but sometimes I get to bring my family with me and this is one of those times! I just met up with the designer from Rome and fashion model Anna. Anna is stunning and I can already tell we will have an amazing collaboration. She is here with her husband and daughter. We are all very lucky to work in this atmosphere of wine and cheese, sea and sand. I don’t speak Italian so there is a language barrier here too.

Here is a pic from this mornings shoot. Much more to come!

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Travel Photography – Athens, Greece

This summer (2009) I spent a couple of days in Athens Greece. Athens is one of the world’s oldest cities, approx. 3,400 year old!

I was surprised, however, my first few hours in Athens. As old as the city is the newer parts reminded me of North Hollywood. Nothing too exciting there. As I ventured further into the heart of the city i did come upon a few gorgeous sites in Athens. The Acropolis of Athens with the Parthenon on top is staggeringly beautiful. Now this is why I came to Greece! When I was younger I studied Greek Mythology and even appeared in a few Greek Plays. Being here brought all that back. This part of the city has amazing power and history. Something I will never forget. The surroundings are perfect for travel photography as well.

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