©Brian Mercer

Kirkland used a Canon EOS-1D Mark IV for this HD video with an EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens. He shot at 30 fps at 1920x1080.

Erika Lemay, the woman in this photo and video, is a unique artist, an aerialist with the form of a great dancer. I've seen her perform around the world, and each time I'm moved by her celestial grace. I created "Objet de Desir" as an homage to her artistry that would live long into the future. Rather than being literal, this work captures the spirit and mood of her performances. In this still image, she is a butterfly at its optimum point of beauty.

Canon's wide range of lenses were essential to the success of this project. I worked with the EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM, the EF 16-35mm f/2.8L USM for unique wide angles, and the EF 70-200mm f/2.8L USM. For the video, I used the 16-35mm lens, which is totally unorthodox for this type of work but which produces compelling results. There is one point in "Objet de Desir" where you see her turning, and it provides a very unusual perspective.

Our lighting setup was comparatively simple: We used two 2,000-watt spotlights with blue gels behind her and one 750-watt spot directly at her from the front, and we set up two smoke machines from each side in the back, so that the light would filter through their mist and give the images a mysterious dimension. The lighting was key to the feel of this project, so using the Canon EOS-1D Mark IV was a huge advantage-I could set the ISO to 5000 and still produce a refined image with a minimum amount of noise, providing a comfortable F-stop and speed. That would have been unthinkable five years ago.