Flash photography tutorial: Balancing flash & ambient exposure
Flash photography tutorial: Balancing flash & ambient exposure
This topic - balancing flash and ambient exposure - seems to one that many newer photographers struggle with. The big hurdle seems to be the basic starting point - how do you decide on the exposure for each? I'd like to explore this topic a bit with this post. The trigger for this was a question that someone emailed me regarding an image in one of my books on flash photography. Instead of answering the question directly, I thought that a wider answer might be more illuminating. We're still on that perpetual quest Read more inside...Creative portrait photography on location
Creative portrait photography - Allowing opportunities to happen
There was an interesting challenge for me during a recent individual photography workshop in NYC - Don (who arranged the workshop), already knew the essentials of lighting techniques, and said what he really wanted was insight into the way that I see a photo before I take it. How do I know something will work or not. Don was particularly impressed with the series of photos of Anelisa that I shot for the review of the Profoto B2 Flash. The shallow depth-of-field images was a particular draw-card. Serendipity - I love Read more inside...review: Profoto B2 Off-Camera Flash – photo shoot
review: Profoto B2 Off-Camera Flash - photo shoot
Over the years I have used a variety of off-camera lights on location shoots and at weddings, and have worked my way up from Dynalite and Quantum flashes (and speedlights), to the Profoto B1. The Profoto B1 (affiliate) has made such a difference for me in the ease of use, the speed of setting up, and the sheer power of 500Ws of light. I love my B1 flash. For example, here is how I used the Profoto B1 flash at a wedding. Profoto has now released the Profoto B2 250Ws Air TTL Flash, and it comes as two options: - Profoto B2 Read more inside...Flash photography: applying the Sunny 16 Rule & Flash Guide Number
Flash photography: applying the Sunny 16 Rule & Flash Guide Number
In essence, if you know the GN of your flash, then you could use (bare) off-camera flash to match the sunlight, without even metering! There is a super-useful shortcut built into those two simple values: Sunny 16, and the Guide Number. Now, I am pretty sure that when you hear mention of the Guide Number of a flash, you're most likely switching off already, thinking that it is just an arcane list of numbers - different apertures against different power settings. But hang in there - this is very useful stuff Read more inside...review: Bolt VB-22 bare-bulb flash
review: Bolt VB-22 barebulb flash
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...High-speed flash sync (HSS) with the Profoto B1 flash
High-speed flash sync (HSS) with the Profoto B1 flash
The already impressive Profoto B1 flash (B&H / Amazon) became even more awesome in Dec 2014 when high-speed flash sync (HSS) capability was added through a firmware update. The photo above was taken at 1/2000 @ f/1.4 @ 100 ISO. I wanted that super-shallow depth-of-field, and I wanted the light to be more flattering than you'd get from a bare speedlight. In this case, I used a Profoto RFi 1'×3' softbox (affiliate), with the Profoto B1. (I kept both baffles on the softbox.) The summary: it Read more inside...Lighting and Design: (de)-constructing a photograph
Lighting and Design in photography: (de)-constructing an image
For me, Design in photography relates to the way an image is constructed at the time of shooting. Composition and content. Lighting. Every element which forms part of a successful and eye-catching photograph. Some of the elements in the photograph are pre-visualized, some of it a kind of serendipity that is then expanded on at the time. Some of it might only be understood afterwards in looking at the photograph. My latest book, Lighting and Design for Portrait Photography, looks at exactly that thought-process Read more inside...On-location headshots and promotional portraits
On-location headshots and promotional portraits
One of the things I like the most about photography, aside from the cool toys, is that you get to meet interesting people. Characters. People with spark. The challenge is then to capture that and show it in the photographs. A headshots photo session needs to be more than just a mere glimpse of your subject's personality. Jonathan Arons, also known as “the trombone dancer”, is a multi-talented actor, singer, dancer and musician, based in New York. Jonathan needed some professonial headshots and some portraits for promotional use. We Read more inside...Progression of an idea in a photo session – cosplayer
Progression of an idea in a photo session - cosplayer, Ger Tysk
For me, there's always some anxiety before a photo session - especially when you have the opportunity to photograph someone quite unusual and photogenic like Ger Tysk, a cosplayer. (She also creates cosplay outfits for others, and has published a book on Cosplay.) Her latest outfit is Black Widow (from Marvel.) Now, the stressful part before a photo session like this, is that there is the pressure of having a great opportunity, and then having to create a photo series that is worthy of the moment. Even if you don't quite Read more inside...- « Previous Page
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