Sky

“Climb up on that rock—I’ll stay down here.”

Bob steadies himself. “Woah… little vertigo.”

“Find a point off to your right—lock into it.”

“Yeah… that helps.”

“Good. Now lean away—think Michelangelo.”

Bob shifts. “Like this?”

“Perfect. Hold it.”
Click.

1. Bob Birdsong - Jim French

We start with Bob Birdsong—black and white, perched up on a rock, looking like he could’ve stepped right off the Sistine Chapel ceiling. There’s that Michelangelo lean, weight into one leg, body stretched and sculpted against a gray sky. Light skin, dark hair—the contrast does all the work. He almost looks like he’s floating.

2. David Byrd - Bob Mizer

3. Oscar Navarre - Bob Mizer

4. Don

From there, the sky starts to shift depending on the film—gray in black and white, blue in color—but the idea holds. These shots are usually taken from below, so you get that upward pull, a little foreshortening, a bit of exaggeration here and there. It’s the same trick museums use—look up at a sculpture or a ceiling painting and suddenly everything feels bigger, more mythic.

5. Joe Cataldi - Bob Mizer

6. Barry Tuck - Jim French

7. Jason Boyd - Jim French

What I like is how this moves us out of the studio. Natural light, real space, a little unpredictability. The sky brings its own mood, and the setting adds a hint of exposure—like these guys stepped out into the open and said, why not? It’s bold, a little risky, and yeah… the perspective doesn’t hurt either.

8. Pat Sutton - Jim French

9. Chad Hazard - Jim French

10. John Pruitt - Jim French

Thoughts?

What do we think of these shots?  If my sources are accurate all in this set are either by Mizer or French (Colt), but I am sure others used this technique...Whitman seems like an obvious for all his outdoor work.  Anyone have info on this?