Quick Rigs for 30-Second Portraiture

WHEN MICK AND THE BOYS SANG “Time Is on My Side,” they weren’t singing the anthem of the photographer. Time is rarely our ally. Ever been on a job where the promised two-hour timeframe becomes one hour, which in turn becomes ten minutes? Twice last week, you say? No surprise there.

Speed is the watchword of photography nowadays. “How long is this gonna take?” is our subject’s most popular question. Which is cool. Look, many of our shoots are not exactly the stuff of which photo dreams are made. So why not get ‘em over with quickly? I vastly prefer a short, brisk whipping to a long, drawn-out torture. And besides, if I only have to shoot Mr. or Mrs. Important for five minutes, I’m actually making ...

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