A pirouette turns out beautifully

I’ve shown you the A1 photographing sequences of birds and cats, but I thought it was time for something different: a dancer - meet Renee, who dances ballet professionally.

I was planning to shoot with studio flash, but the natural light coming through the high windows in the industrial-chic space was far too tempting. Besides, I cannot shoot at 20 frames per second with studio flash, and dance makes for fine sequences. So much so that we’re going to start with a pirouette sequence.

Click on the gallery below to see the details. 11 consecutive images, shot at 20 frames per second (so half a second from start to end. None of these frames have been cropped, and they have had minimal processing. Shot at ISO 500, f/1.8, shutter speed from 1/800 to 1/1000, using the Sony 50mm f1.2 GM and the Sony A1.

This shoot was enormous fun. A tip for those who haven’t worked with a professional dancer before: be prepared to keep shooting, lest you miss something fabulous!