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superkev — Kung F-U

Published: 2006-02-12 16:48:47 +0000 UTC; Views: 5414; Favourites: 100; Downloads: 1354
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Description This is Toronto Improv team Kung F-U. It's a very funny bunch of people, and I've been lucky to work with some of them both on stage and behind the camera Anyway, I'm pretty proud of this shot. It's real ghetto photography to me They told me that they wanted a group photo that was in the same style as movie posters for a caper movie.

I kept my eyes open as I drove around the city for a cool location, and on the night of the shoot, I took them to this dark alley that I had spotted earlier in the week.

The shoot was very challenging. First of all, it was dark. The only light was from the headlights of the two cars I set up behind them to cast interesting shadows on the wall and ground. It was also cold, with wind whipping down the tunnel of this alley. Poor Amica in her little kilt and tank top was freezing. I don't know how she managed to stay looking so hot

I had my little battery-powered Vivitar 283 flash on a skinny portable light stand to provide main light on the scene. The wind kept catching the white umbrella I used to to diffuse the light, and the whole thing was always in danger of falling over. To get this low angle and make them look dramatic, I had to crouch in a pile of something squishy I can only hope was tortellini. It was dark though, and I couldn't really see what it was.

I used a 24mm lens to slightly exaggerate the perspective and make that tunnel look long, and to make Kung F-U look imposing. We shot until the cold killed the batteries in my flash, and this is one of the results. I only had to give them minimal direction, and it was mainly to get them positioned in the frame how I wanted them. As you might expect some of from Toronto's best improvisers, their poses and expressions are perfect for the shot.
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Comments: 126

nomoreshitfromyou [2007-02-16 01:42:51 +0000 UTC]

hahah funny

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Meggzie [2006-08-10 05:55:42 +0000 UTC]

you've dont it again...awsome...the white light pointed onto the band members really puts emphasis on them...& the hea-lights gives a dramatic spot-light kinda glow...the dark tunnel is jenus......

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Miinikin [2006-06-25 13:38:09 +0000 UTC]

Holy sweet mother of God that is awesome! [I guess you know that already tho ]
The expression of the guy with the red thing on his head is exhilarating! It looks like they all are going to kick your arse
Anyways awesome photo!

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youhandsomedevil88 [2006-06-12 04:39:07 +0000 UTC]

wow i just found this in leo's latest journal. It is such a cool shot... hahah i love it. the light, colours and there expressions are gold!

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superkev In reply to youhandsomedevil88 [2006-06-13 14:26:20 +0000 UTC]

thank you very much

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subaqua [2006-06-10 10:22:42 +0000 UTC]

awesome shot! the dude in the front is the king

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FinalSin [2006-06-03 20:45:26 +0000 UTC]

Fantastic expressions on each and every one of them, and the whole composition seems so balanced! I really love it.

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cabin-pressure [2006-05-22 10:33:42 +0000 UTC]

Quite a funny shot Made me smile. What do you mean by "We shot until the cold killed the batteries in my flash"... Was it that cold?

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superkev In reply to cabin-pressure [2006-05-22 14:54:56 +0000 UTC]

yes, it was cold. i wouldn't make that kind of stuff up.

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cabin-pressure In reply to superkev [2006-05-23 14:03:56 +0000 UTC]

well than... if you'll excuse me i'd like to bow in front of the "hot" lady now. she's barely wearing anything... that's the main reason i asked that question

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superkev In reply to cabin-pressure [2006-05-23 15:23:18 +0000 UTC]

oh yeah she was freezing thanks

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Virtu-Imagery [2006-05-18 01:50:51 +0000 UTC]

I love the humor in this photo.
You can read so much from all of them.
Love the tunnel idea.

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Sawababa [2006-05-10 19:11:32 +0000 UTC]

Excelllent! Very professional shot! Very good looking (but i don't know the band in france

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Hiawatha [2006-05-04 16:48:43 +0000 UTC]

I wanna see these people up close now Very cool pic, props to both you and the subjects

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Ciril [2006-03-18 11:27:41 +0000 UTC]

hm classic. already seen aproach. floor is distracting.
but nice expressions.

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kasyah [2006-03-17 16:21:32 +0000 UTC]

5D...darn.....yummy~!

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trinket [2006-03-01 17:35:17 +0000 UTC]

before I even read the description of this, I thought they looked like the improv sort of group type... reminded me of a thing I went to earlier last fall with an improve group performing...
but anyways, what I am saying by that is you did a really good job capturing their personality in this shot.. turned out great, I like the mood a lot

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yinetyang [2006-02-28 19:38:42 +0000 UTC]

Soooo great! I love it! Obviously kitsh! And that's what you wanted.I dream of making such a photo with my friends.

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only-zuul [2006-02-28 00:59:40 +0000 UTC]

OMG, I LOVE LOVE this. Their expressions are priceless and fantastic. This is so Reservoir Dogs or some kind of bad-ass movie. You just know they could bust out with some serious moves. They've got to be thrilled with this photo. It would look excellent on a poster or advertisement card.

And yes, the girl looks really hot.

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lsevenl [2006-02-25 15:46:35 +0000 UTC]

bad ass photo! I love the 'feeling' of this. Very serious, but commical. nicely done

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Scarladawn [2006-02-24 13:22:40 +0000 UTC]

Awesome picture, well worth the terrible shoot conditions with your end product. You are a truly talented Photographer!

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mnoo [2006-02-22 19:23:46 +0000 UTC]

This kicks some serious ass. I really think you did an excellent job.
I also happen to like all of their expressions, they intrigue me, which is only a good thing.
Well worth crouching in something squishy. Sometimes only the hardest way pays off.

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hesitation [2006-02-20 05:15:36 +0000 UTC]

okay i finaly realized what bothers me about this image - it's unbalanced. the right part has these awesome interesting characters... all dressed in black and left has three bright colors (white blue and yellow of the jacket) and less impessive characters (at least what this picture)

I decided not to go into the details of the fact that I dont like the girl's outfit at all and assume that it's her character who's supposed to dresshorribly, so i'll just suggest to switch the yellow jacket with the guy with an earphone.
there

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superkev In reply to hesitation [2006-02-20 12:28:01 +0000 UTC]

hmmm good point about the colorful/not-colorful characters. amica's wardrobe was my choice, really. i wanted her to be wearing something bold and bright because she is very tiny compared to the rest of them. i wanted her to be wearing something that was attention-getting to give her a boost in the image

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hesitation In reply to superkev [2006-02-20 15:54:03 +0000 UTC]

well yea i guess you got what you wanted then
you forgot to choose a face expression for her though

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superkev In reply to hesitation [2006-02-20 21:35:14 +0000 UTC]

or maybe i screwed that up too!

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hesitation In reply to superkev [2006-02-20 22:26:28 +0000 UTC]

oh maybe i just dont get it

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superkev In reply to hesitation [2006-02-20 22:42:25 +0000 UTC]

it's my fault. i should have brought hesi along to assist

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Marie-Aude [2006-02-20 02:25:45 +0000 UTC]

for the story behind the shot, and for the shot as well. They all have different faces and funny expressions, even if trying to look so serious ! I hope you had a nice comforting frink after all that

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zrastrowany [2006-02-19 19:17:32 +0000 UTC]

extended version of black eyes peads ?! .. lookes like.
jokeing was great for .. i don't know .. komedy sitcom
"people from yellow tunnel" ?!

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Pytik [2006-02-19 18:07:02 +0000 UTC]

Funny, I almost can imagine you clenching you camera and wishing the wind would stop to blow! I must have been a hell of fun to shoot this bunch of people.
Composition is usuell, but I like the effect you made with the backlight. Also the way they stand is good, the girl under the tall funny face with the red hat. Well, those two give this image a lot of juice.
One small thing bugs me, the man at the left is turned outwards. I thing the narrow tunnel just screems for him to be turned inwards

GJ

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rollingpeople [2006-02-18 22:25:36 +0000 UTC]

ufff.... the Gang!

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philcopain [2006-02-18 12:22:12 +0000 UTC]

Great picture !! i love it !!
The expressions are Excellent !!

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Neneisme [2006-02-18 04:13:49 +0000 UTC]

canon eos 5D?? woooah.. great tone.. great pose..

Great job!

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KleinJinx [2006-02-17 23:39:33 +0000 UTC]

i asolutely love it... i like the different expressions on each one.. everyone has their different personalities..
cool colours....
greetz
jinx

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swallowingwords [2006-02-17 03:19:48 +0000 UTC]

This shot is spot on to the humor of improv. They look like a bunch of superheroes...I absolutely love the poses and facial expressions. Great on location work. It turned out wonderfully.

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sumajarong [2006-02-17 02:21:18 +0000 UTC]

Fantastic work Kevin..truly. Thanks for describing what you went through to get it..let's everyone know what it takes sometimes to get such great results.

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superkev In reply to sumajarong [2006-02-17 02:27:31 +0000 UTC]

glad you liked it thank you

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schwarze-Feen-lara [2006-02-16 23:12:44 +0000 UTC]

seems to be really cool to have a friend like you i'm sure i could a lot of stuf from you

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escapism [2006-02-16 17:51:45 +0000 UTC]

You certainly achieved the goal you set out for yourself (or that they set out for you!) It does have the movie poster feel to it and I would take it further and suggest that it could be advertising a film such as Lock Stock and Two Smocking Barrels Truly well executed and each character represents something different in this; the rich guy and his trophy wife (who is obviously up to no good), the tall lanky bumbling fool/comic relief guy, the leather jacketed tough guy (black jacket), the sly petty criminal (tan jacket), and the geek that knows them all and sets them all up on a crash course against each other.

Sounds like a good movie to me! When is it going into production?

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superkev In reply to escapism [2006-02-16 17:56:03 +0000 UTC]

haha you got all the characters right! actually they're an improv team and each one of them is capable of playing any one of those characters you mentioned too. that's the cool thing about improv... to see the tall lanky and goofy guy on stage playing the part of the trophy wife up to no good

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escapism In reply to superkev [2006-02-16 18:00:42 +0000 UTC]

I don't know if I'd want to see him in that skirt! It might be a little too short!

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superkev In reply to escapism [2006-02-16 18:24:09 +0000 UTC]

good point. when we do improv, all of the costumes are imagined. we usually just wear plain shirts and pants

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elbooga [2006-02-15 20:59:28 +0000 UTC]

thats a great shot, the personality really comes through

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murskaa50makki [2006-02-15 15:36:07 +0000 UTC]

i like this,


--
i'm the face in your dreams of glass

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Starkhyel [2006-02-15 15:31:24 +0000 UTC]

Oh man, this one's great. I like this kind if portraits, almost cinematographical. Definetely material. That golden patch of light on the left gives it some strange warm effect that works really well. The poses are great too.

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superkev In reply to Starkhyel [2006-02-15 22:47:28 +0000 UTC]

thanks for the comment and the fav

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CandYstore [2006-02-15 05:55:04 +0000 UTC]

simply outstanding... love the caper style, the faces are simply perfect for their outfit and "personality", you can see various stereotypes over there... and that last guy from the right look like if he was took from SNL!! jaja wow... damn nice equipment too... what camera and equipment would you buy for 1grand? i mean... i wanna take photography serious... i'm starting to fall in love with it... so i'm going to work to buy my own DSLR... hope you can help me out... or, like there should be lota ppl who has the same question... maybe you can do a tuto or something like that... it would be most than appreciated from the community ... thanks kev

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superkev In reply to CandYstore [2006-02-15 14:39:03 +0000 UTC]

thanks there's an excellent "what kind of camera should i buy?" thread that's a sticky in the photography forums. you should check it out: [link]

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CandYstore In reply to superkev [2006-02-27 20:54:08 +0000 UTC]

cool!! thx that will really help me out i don't really look out at dA forums, i guess they help a lot...

you know what i'm nervous of... of buying the camera and going out for freestyle photo, and getting it robed!! damn... i'm nervous...

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