Okay, so I bumped into the name Steve Sires recently. Didn’t know much about him before, maybe saw some photos floating around online, you know? Mostly remember seeing some really striking underwater pictures and some fine art stuff. Got me curious, thought I’d dig a little deeper, see what his deal was.
It wasn’t like a formal study session, more like me just messing around, trying to get a feel for his style. You see these photos, especially the underwater ones, and they just have this look. It’s not just pointing a camera underwater; there’s something about the light, the mood.
My Little Experiment
So, what did I actually do? Well, mostly just looked. A lot.
- Spent a good while just staring at different photos I could find online. Trying to break down the lighting. Where was it coming from? How soft or hard was it?
- Tried to figure out the composition. It often felt really deliberate, you know? Not just snapshots.
- Thought about the post-processing. How much of the final look was done after the shot? Couldn’t really tell for sure, obviously, but I wondered.
Then I actually tried to replicate some feelings, not the exact photos, mind you. I don’t have an underwater rig or anything fancy. It was more about the lighting principles.
I grabbed my old DSLR, nothing special. Found a glass vase, filled it with water, and dropped different objects inside – some shiny, some dull. Then I just played with a couple of cheap LED lights I have.
Man, it was harder than I thought. Getting that soft, diffused light you sometimes see in underwater shots? Total pain. Light reflects weirdly off the glass, water distorts things. Took ages just to get something that didn’t look like a complete mess.
I also looked at some of his other work, the portraits and fine art nudes. Again, the lighting stands out. Seems like he really understood how to shape things with light and shadow. Tried some basic portrait lighting setups on a mannequin head I have lying around (don’t ask). Just simple stuff, one light, two lights. Trying to get that dramatic feel.
What Came Out Of It?
Honestly? Mostly frustration! But in a good way. It really makes you appreciate the skill involved. It’s easy to look at a photo and think “yeah, nice shot”. It’s another thing entirely to try and figure out how it was made, even on a basic level.
Didn’t become an underwater photography expert overnight, obviously. Didn’t even take any amazing photos. But it was a good exercise. Made me look closer, think more about light. Just spending time trying to deconstruct someone else’s style, even if you fail miserably at copying it, teaches you stuff. Made me realize how much control guys like Sires have over their environment and tools. It’s not just luck.
So yeah, that was my little dive into Steve Sires’ work. Just looking, thinking, and fiddling around with some lights and water. Worth doing, I reckon.
