simple on-location lighting techniques – reflector & flash
Chuck Arlund is a Fashion photographer based in Nashville whose work constantly impresses me. As a friend, I occasionally have the privilege of getting to interrogate him on his technique. What surprises me every time then, is the simplicity of his lighting. His setups are rarely complex, but always effective. I feel quite fortunate that he agreed to a guest spot this week to explain more about his approach to on-location lighting. (Chuck also offers workshops and mentoring sessions.)
simple and effective on-location lighting techniques
a guest post Read more inside...photo session: Jeannie Dee
photo session: Jeannie Dee
Last weekend I had the great pleasure of photographing Jeannie D, a well-known South African TV personality. Actually, "well-known" is an understatement - she's a bit of a star. The shoot was for the cover of Top Billing magazine. The cover image had specific requirements for the setup of the scene - a Manhattan apartment, with a view of the city in the background. I'll post more of the actual cover shoot later on, but in the meantime wanted to show some of the portraits of Jeannie D that I got in between the TV crew setting up, and the setting being Read more inside...Flash photography tips – Start with the ambient exposure
Flash photography tips - Start with the ambient exposure
An icy cold day in the Meatpacking District in Manhattan ... and a brave model that insisted on going bare feet during this Photo Shootout in New York. There were many familiar faces in today's group amongst the new. Thank you to everyone who came up to me to introduce themselves, or re-introduce themselves. I gave some instruction on some of the basics of manual off-camera flash to the group. We worked with a Q-flash and a softbox (and sometimes without the softbox), and a bunch of Pocketwizards that I handed to anyone in Read more inside...lighting for boudoir photo sessions
lighting for boudoir photo sessions
The one type of photo session where I work the most at getting my lighting just right, is with a boudoir session. These intimate photo sessions can be quite a challenge since you have to get a variety of looks in a short time. For this you have to not only concentrate on posing and angles, but also concentrate on the lighting. On top of that, you have to make sure your model or client is comfortable and relaxed at all times. The session has to be fun and really show her off at her best. I bring a variety of lighting equipment to these shoots - Read more inside...flash & low ambient light – adapting during an outdoor wedding ceremony
wedding photography: flash and low ambient light - adapting during the shoot
I'm often asked what I would do when I encounter a situation where you need to use flash, but there is no easy way to bounce flash. My flippant answer is ... you're screwed! Well, not really. My advice is that you have to improvise and in some way of finesse your use of light. In tough situations, you still want to try and shy away from using direct on-camera flash whenever possible. Direct on-camera flash as the main source of light is rarely aesthetically the best choice. Read more inside...combining flash and ambient light
combining flash and ambient light
Going by the emails that I receive, one of the areas that many photographers struggle with is that of combining ambient exposure and flash exposure. This question is also expressed in other ways. It can be a frustrated, "where do we even start?" I also often see it expressed as an involved step-by-step deconstruction of technique, making the entire process more complex than it is. In reply to that, and many other emails I've received in the past few months, I'd like to offer an analysis of a few images from a recent shoot. One of my Read more inside...Portrait session using a beauty dish
Portrait session using a beauty dish
As my daughter, Janine, grew up from being a baby, it became more difficult getting photos of her. I think most parents can relate to that increased resistance by your children to having their photo taken. This is Janine, a few moths after her 16th birthday - since I have so very few recent images of her that are of professional quality, I was able to cajole her into this on this snow-bound afternoon. She loved the results: "Facebook profile photo FTW!" I set this up in our living room, with a grey paper backdrop to create a quick home Read more inside...Bounce flash technique – mimicking soft window light
Bounce flash photography technique - mimicking window light
The classic shot - a beautiful bride lit by soft window light. That's a yes on the beautiful bride - but it's a solid no on the window light. What you see there is on-camera flash. (Which most likely won't be a surprise to regular readers of the Tangents blog.) This image is from a wedding this past weekend, and it makes a great example of how light, choice of lens, composition, angle and technique come together to make an image work. With a bit of post-processing added finally for that vintage Read more inside...lighting the wedding formals (part 3)
lighting the wedding formals
In the first of two postings on how I light the wedding formals, I showed how I use a single flashgun when photographing smaller formal groups indoors. The equipment is relatively simple then - a single flashgun (Q-flash) and a large 60" umbrella to give me good lighting. The flashgun that I use for these, is a Q-flash. Specifically the older T2 model since I only use them in manual mode here. When I have a larger group I use two of these flashguns - each with an umbrella. But more about that in a follow-up article coming up soon. What I wanted to Read more inside...- « Previous Page
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