Nick Fancher 3/29/24 Nick Fancher 3/29/24

Photo Shoot with Ballerina Dancer

I rarely go into a shoot with a fixed notion of how I want it to go, or how I want the images to look. I often base my techniques, color palette, and post processing on what the moment dictates…

Nick Fancher 3/18/23 Nick Fancher 3/18/23

A Study of Form: High Contrast Black and White Dance Shoot

A study of shape and tone. Thanks to @kristielatham for bringing power and grace to every shoot, and thanks to the @ohioartscouncil for the grant which allows me to make art.

Nick Fancher 3/14/23 Nick Fancher 3/14/23

Photo Shoot with Ballet Dancer Caitlin Valentine

I had a lot of fun exploring my new @nanlite_global Pavotubes. I set them to rapidly change through the prismatic spectrum while @bemycaitlinvalentine danced. I explored a range of techniques from long exposure to using prisms to shooting through reeded plastic. I’m super excited to explore the lights in greater depth.

Nick Fancher 10/5/21 Nick Fancher 10/5/21

Bold Colors and Shapes with Ballet Dancer Kristie Latham

My latest shoot with dancing queen, Kristie Latham. We’ve been shooting together for over a decade now and it’s fun to look back at how our work together has evolved over the years. I started off with a simple color and shape study with the Lindsay Adler Optical Spot (Kristie styled her wardrobe). Then I finished the shoot with some long exposure work (I don’t think I’ll ever tire of this technique).

Nick Fancher 9/29/21 Nick Fancher 9/29/21

Shoot with Ballerina Francesca Jordan Dugarte

My latest attempt at capturing the beauty of movement over time. Been exploring long exposures while rotating my @prismlensfx linear filter and multi-strobing my flash. Excited at the possibilities! Also really loving the hard light and fast falloff I can get with my @lindsayadler_photo @westcottlighting Optical Spot.

Nick Fancher 8/19/21 Nick Fancher 8/19/21

Images From My Creative Portrait Workshop

This past weekend I hosted a 2-day Creative Portrait workshop at my studio. In an effort to keep the atmosphere intimate and allow for a lot of hands-on time for students, I capped the workshop at 5 students. We covered a range of techniques such as using flags to shape light; color theory; making and using snoots; long exposure portraits; and lighting with projectors. We packed a lot in, as you can see below…

Nick Fancher 10/5/20 Nick Fancher 10/5/20

Long Exposures with Dancers Wrapped in LEDs

In my last post I mentioned how I’ve struggled for years to capture the essence of a dancer in a single frame. These are more attempts in this ongoing quest…

Nick Fancher 10/2/20 Nick Fancher 10/2/20

A Window to the Soul: Long Exposures of Ballet Dancers

Sometimes all you need is time. I photographed Caitlin and Karen last week, two dancers from Ballet Met. The sessions were deceptively simple. A dancer, a window, and a tripod. For some of the shots I froze their movement, highlighting their pose and their poise. I also explored making long exposures in an effort to capture the grace and fluidity of their movements (for years I’ve struggled to adequately capture a dancer in a single frame). I also used my fungus-filled lens on a few of the long exposures, resulting in especially ghostly images. Here are some of my favorites: