Nikon Z6III + Nikkor Z 50mm f/1.2 S: First Fall Portraits with Rosina in Midtown Sacramento

Another photoshoot with Rosina (@rosinashakirova), and this one is special: it's our first shoot of the fall season. After a summer of bright garden colors with the Fujifilm X-H2 and XF 56mm f/1.2 and a late summer session with the Sigma 135mm F1.4 DG Art, we went for something simpler and moodier this time: a black sweater dress, sheer knee-high socks, Mary Jane heels and a woven clutch, with her hair up in a loose bun and soft bangs. Black is an easy color to make look flat, but against the warm late-afternoon light it ended up being the perfect start to fall.

We met up in Midtown Sacramento for this one. Midtown is one of my favorite spots in Sacramento for portraits because it has so many different backgrounds within a few blocks: tree-lined streets with dappled light, old red brick storefronts, clean white buildings, modern black-and-white facades and green restaurant patios. That variety made it easy to get six very different looks out of one outfit, all within walking distance.

I brought the Nikkor Z 50mm f/1.2 S on the Nikon Z6III again, a week after its first outing with Sofia in Roseville. Every frame here is wide open at f/1.2 and ISO 100, edited with VSCO C8 Pro. We started around 4pm, shooting straight into the sun first and then working our way around a few blocks of Midtown.

Gear:

Backlit Portraits

We started right in the late-afternoon sun. I shot straight into it so the light rim-lit her hair and the loose strands around her bangs, while the trees and the dappled shadows on the street melted into bokeh behind her. The black sweater dress keeps the frame simple, so all the attention goes to the glow around her face. At f/1.2 in full sun the Z6III went up to 1/2000 to 1/2500s at ISO 100, no ND filter needed.

Rosina backlit by the late afternoon sun in a black sweater dress, Midtown Sacramento

NIKKOR Z 50mm f/1.2 S · f/1.2 · 1/2000s · ISO 100 · Model: @rosinashakirova

Rosina backlit fall portraits on a tree-lined Midtown Sacramento street, Nikon Z6III Nikkor Z 50mm f/1.2 S 1 of 24

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The Cream BMW

Just down the street a cream white BMW was parked along the curb, and it made a great prop. The light car body is the opposite of the black dress, so she really stands out, and it bounces some soft fill light back onto her. A few leaning full-body poses with the knee-high socks, then I moved in closer for half-body frames with the sun still lighting up her hair.

Rosina leaning on a cream white BMW holding a woven clutch, backlit hair

NIKKOR Z 50mm f/1.2 S · f/1.2 · 1/2000s · ISO 100 · Model: @rosinashakirova

Rosina leaning on a cream white car in Midtown Sacramento, black sweater dress 1 of 8

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Red Brick Walls

Around the corner we found a block of old red brick storefronts. The warm, textured brick pairs nicely with the black dress and her brown hair, and since we were now in the shade, the light on her face got soft and even. We moved from leaning against the brick wall, to a recessed entryway with a red wooden door, to the storefront windows where the street and trees behind her turned into soft green bokeh.

Rosina leaning against a red brick wall holding a black woven clutch

NIKKOR Z 50mm f/1.2 S · f/1.2 · 1/500s · ISO 100 · Model: @rosinashakirova

Rosina portraits against red brick walls, a red door entryway and storefront windows in Midtown Sacramento 1 of 31

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Street Intersection with the White Building

At the next intersection, a white building across the street with its warm string lights made a bright, clean background. At f/1.2 the columns and the lights turn into soft shapes and bokeh balls, and her dark outfit pops against all that white. This is also where the cover photo came from.

Rosina standing at a Midtown Sacramento intersection with a white building behind her

NIKKOR Z 50mm f/1.2 S · f/1.2 · 1/640s · ISO 100 · Model: @rosinashakirova

Rosina street portraits at an intersection with a white building and string-light bokeh 1 of 8

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White and Black Building

Next, a modern building with white stone walls and black window frames lined the sidewalk. The black-and-white facade matches her outfit, and the long sidewalk and window lines lead straight to her. I shot a walking set here first, then moved in for closer half-body frames with the trees in the background blurred into gold and green.

Rosina in a black sweater dress next to a white and black building on a Midtown sidewalk

NIKKOR Z 50mm f/1.2 S · f/1.2 · 1/320s · ISO 100 · Model: @rosinashakirova

Rosina portraits along a white stone and black window building in Midtown Sacramento 1 of 17

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Black Patio and Green Trees

We wrapped up at a restaurant patio with black planter boxes, tall green hedges and trees. Lots of dark tones with green around her, which gave the last set a quieter, moodier feel to end the shoot.

Rosina leaning on a black patio planter with green hedges behind her

NIKKOR Z 50mm f/1.2 S · f/1.2 · 1/400s · ISO 100 · Model: @rosinashakirova

Rosina portraits at a black patio with green hedges and trees 1 of 8

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Shooting Notes: Nikkor Z 50mm f/1.2 S

A few things I noticed on the second session with this lens:

Backlight is still its best trick. Shooting straight into the sun, contrast held up and the rim light on her hair looked clean, with no flare washing out the frame.
Black clothing keeps its detail. Even wide open, the knit texture of the sweater dress stays visible instead of turning into a flat black shape.
A 50mm keeps the location in the story. Car, brick, intersection, building: every set still shows where we were, while the background falls away smoothly at f/1.2.
Fast enough to shoot wide open in full sun. At ISO 100 the Z6III shutter stayed between 1/320s in the shade and 1/2500s in the sun, so I never needed an ND filter.