One Bad-Ass Chair
Some chairs have adjustable polyurethane padded arms and a multi-function 3-paddle 
control mechanism for ergonomic comfort. This one had no comfort features and was seemingly made from dozens of medieval swords.
It was the throne featured in the HBO series “Game of Thrones,” and arrived by forklift to the site of an event I shot last week about innovation in entertainment at Sony Pictures Studios. Event guests would be able to pose for photos in the throne, but in ordinary light the bad-ass chair looked a little dull (right).
Inside, the setup crew covered the background (the cashier line of the Sony Pictures commissary) with red velvet curtains and added a couple hot lights on either side — better, but still didn’t do the throne justice (left).
I would have gone for multiple strobes in key spots for the right highlights and shadows, plus a fog machine. But I had to cover the red carpet activity outside so I kept it simple with a two-strobe semi-wireless setup.
On top of my camera I had a 580 EX II and Lumiquest promax diffuser throwing some light forward onto the throne sitter. But on camera right I set up a second 580 on a tripod and covered it in a blue gel, throwing cold light onto the throne from nearly 90 degrees.
My on-camera flash triggered the off-camera slave with its infra-red beam, and the two worked together to light the subject and add those cool blue highlights. I kept the ambient exposure low to keep the backdrop dark and maintain deep shadows between the throne’s swords.
The result was a fun photo prop that the guests loved (right). These included the First and Deputy First Ministers of Northern Ireland.
I’d say it wasn’t their typical parliamentary photo op.
