With this image from the workshop in Seattle, we were working outside the hotel and the city scene there wasn't all that hip and urban. It was visually quite cluttered. So when I wanted to use this image, my first thoughts were to simplify it a little since there is a LOT going on in the background that doesn't add to the image and just detracts from our model Julia. The leading lines of the cars, overhead train lines and the pavement all do help to give a more dynamic composition .. along with Julia's crazy body angles. But the image definitely needed some work. Here is the image Read more inside...
video clip – photo session with Jen & David
photo session with Jen & David
Jennifer and David met up with me on their first anniversary of their wedding for a photo session in the same place where we had their engagement photo session - Skylands Manor in Ringwood, NJ. What I really like about the estate grounds is that it offers such a variety of beautiful settings for portrait sessions. Here is a video clip of the photo session as another glimpse in how I work with my clients and look for opportunities and angles to give my client a variety of images. Here are a few of the images from the session that were used in Read more inside...recap: Photography workshop – Seattle (2009)
recap: Photography workshop - Seattle (2009)
And well may you ask what is going on here!? As we were walking back from the session outdoors during the flash photography workshop in Seattle, we still had our off-camera lighting ready - two soft boxes with speed lights. When we bumped into these two characters, we had an impromptu session right there in the hotel lobby. Electronic Arts were holding a Community Day for the video game titled "Army of Two: The 40th Day". A community Day is when a video game company (such as Electronic Arts) brings in some of their biggest fans, as well Read more inside...bounce flash vs video light
bounce flash vs video light
With the recent posts on using video light for stills photography, the question comes up why one would want to use video light over flash. Two of the main advantages are that you see exactly what you're going to get; and also that video light gives a certain dramatic quality. With video light the fall-off to the edges of the spot is fairly abrupt. But it is exactly this quality that lends itself so easily to giving you that dramatic lighting. With the photo at the top, I use bounce flash to light the model .. and the entire scene. That's the Read more inside...directional bounce flash
directional bounce flash
With this recent wedding - the same one as posted here- the ceremony was moved indoors because of the approaching thunderstorms. The ceremony was going to be held in the large reception room in the late afternoon, under the chuppah. I once again had no choice but to add flash to balance the shaded side to areas lit by window light. I want to post this image as an example again of how I use directional light from my on-camera flash. Instead of using a generic light modifier on top of my speedlight, I used The Black Foamie Thing. I was using the Read more inside...when your flash fails to fire ..
[ click on the image to see a larger version ] What do you do with an image that is under-exposed but there is a certain moment that you love? Well, perhaps you get lucky that when you convert it to B&W and crank up the exposure and embrace the noise / digital grain ... and all this adds to the mood and in this case even poignancy of the moment. Here is the original unedited image of the bride dancing with her dad ... Read more inside...
exposure metering and adding flash
A question that came in regarding material covered in the book on flash photography techniques .. Sven Pohle asked: I am reading through your book (second time already) and have a question about metering plus adding the flash. I do meter for a white tone in my image and add +1.7 or 2 (I'm on Nikon) to my exposure. Now without flash my image is exposed correctly. But if I add the flash then the white starts to blow out as it does add flash light to it. So this is there i am confused. Would you rather go and meter for the background to get that right and then just add the flash to bring the Read more inside...
shutter speed choice with flash
choosing your shutter speed when using flash
A question that I was asked via email, that I thought would be of interest to everyone: When using ambient light, I understand that you set your exposure using the camera's manual mode, then use flash to fill in. My question, when your shutter speed goes below that usually used hand-held, do you count on the speed of the flash to produce a sharp image or go to tripod or monopod? Or, increase either ISO or f-stop until you reach and acceptable shutter speed? This is entirely correct in that I usually increase my ISO or open my aperture, Read more inside...WPPI 2010 – flash on the run
I was thrilled to bits when I heard that my proposal for a presentation at WPPI 2010 in Las Vegas, had been accepted. And here it is now officially announced in the latest issue WPPI's Rangefinder magazine. Oh yes, a slight typo on the name as is usual. But nothing as strange as the 'Van Elk Freek' I was once listed as by a car rental company I had booked a car with over the phone. But I digress ... it really is a huge honor to be able to be able to do a presentation at WPPI, amongst some of the biggest names in the photography world. My presentation there will be as a Masterclass, Read more inside...
review: Nikon D5000
In testing cameras these days, they are rated not just for specification, but for their primary qualities in helping you take great photographs. And for that, judging the camera according to handling, image quality and auto-focus speed and accuracy, becomes even more important than just the list of specs.
Nikon D5000 hands-on review
So with that in mind, when I recently got my hands on a brand-new Nikon D5000, (B&H), I thought I'd hit the streets and see how it performs. I took it for a late-night stroll around Times Square in New York, armed only with a Nikon 50mm f1.4G AF-S, Read more inside...- « Previous Page
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