Softboxes with speedlights for on-location lighting
Off-camera flash is the easiest way to create dynamic lighting - and using a speedlight with a softbox, is on-location lighting at its most elegantly simple. For most of my on-location portraits, I like to travel (fairly) light, and my lighting of choice is a speedlight, wireless transmitters and a softbox. The softbox is either held up by a light-stand (which I weight down with my camera bag), or held up by an assistant (with the softbox on a monopod.)
I like TTL flash - it often gets us there faster than manual flash. But for Read more inside...
Dramatic lighting effects for portrait photography (model: Jessica Joy)
For this dramatic Hollywoord Glamor inspired portrait sequence of Jessica, I used two Litepanels Sola 4 LED Fresnel Lights (B&H / Amazon). But there's more that happening here with the lighting than just the main light and the rim light. There is the splash of color in the background, augmenting the blue rim-light coming from behind.
Jessica's reaction to the first test shot was amusing - a surprised,"where did that come from?", when she saw the image on the back of my camera. The blue tones and Read more inside...
Best portable softbox for on-location headshot photography
I vary the lighting kit that I use for on-location portraits and headshot photography. It could involve multiple lights, or a single-light setup on location. My choice of lighting is most often decided by how complex it need to be, and the logistics of getting to the location and setting up.
More than struggling with something, I detest the appearance of struggling with something. Let me explain - when working with clients, it all needs to appear smooth and efficient. Everything in place, and professional. No struggling Read more inside...
Many of the tutorials and articles on the Tangents blog deals with getting the best from your on-camera flash. My approach has always been one of - what technique would give me the best light? Of course, there are so many different scenarios we could find ourselves in - so we have to adapt to where we are, and what we want to achieve.
With on-camera flash, I've always pushed back against the idea of there being a single do-everything device that will make your flash photography look better. Specifically with light and lighting, We Read more inside...
These are good times for photographers who love using off-camera flash. There are more and more options coming out for us to choose from and use.
B&H has rebranded their own version of a popular series of flashguns. The Bolt VB-22 bare-bulb flash (B&H) looks like the Cheetah Light CL-360, and the Godox Witstro AD360, and the Neewer AD-360. They all seem to have similar spec. So if you've been browsing for any of those options, B&H has the Bolt VB-22 flash at a competitive price.
For the photo at the top, I had my camera set Read more inside...
Comparing power: Studio lights vs. speedlites / speed lights
Speedlights pack a huge amount of light for the size. Very portable, and loaded with sophisticated features, owning a speedlight is a must. A simple choice.
Studio lights and the larger portable flashes such as the Profoto B1 TTL flash (B&H / Amazon) , offer a lot more power than speedlights. Exactly how much more powerful, isn't all that easy to gauge. There's very little available as direct comparison. Even the specs aren't directly comparable. Speedlights' power is given as a Guide Number (GN), and studio Read more inside...
Headshot photography: Studio lighting - Westcott Eyelighter
With portrait lighting for head shots, there are so many configurations - all the way from dramatic lighting, to very even light - but always keeping in mind that the lighting needs to look flattering. It is all in how we balance the various lights, and how we add fill-light.
Westcott has released a curved reflector, the Eyelighter (B&H / Amazon), and it is quite versatile: Read more inside...
Studio photography - Image projection effects for creative backgrounds
Working with an idea in mind in the studio - a moody B&W portrait with a stylized cityscape as background. Using the Light-Blaster again in the studio, this final image was a progression of that idea. I knew I wanted to use the cityscape background of one of the metal gobos that came with the Light-Blaster kit.
Because I wanted the final photograph to be black and white, I set my camera to Monochrome so that I'd have a good idea during the shoot what the final image would look like. Since I shoot in RAW, Read more inside...
The material covered, and the gear used in the flash photography workshops, are constantly being fine-tuned and adapted with each workshop. With the first workshops (around 2006) centered around bounce flash photography. Over time the workshops expanded from that fairly simple premise, into what is a more comprehensive on-location lighting course.
The past two years there has been a surge in the various brands and types of flash. For example, Canon used to be just the 580 speedlights and wireless system. There's now the 600EX Read more inside...
You'd think that light-stands are light-stands. They hold up studio lights or speedlights and any kind of light modifier. But what sets light-stands apart from each other, are the other features - such as portability and ease of use.
I mostly use the Manfrotto 1051BAC / 1052BAC and 1004BAC light-stands. My review of the Manfrotto light-stands explains this. What I like most about them, is that they are stackable. They clip together in quite a compact set of light-stands. Easier to carry with one hand. The clipping-together feature also Read more inside...
