No doubt, strobes are generally the tool of choice for lighting studio portraits, but constant LED lights have seen an increase in capabilities and popularity in the last few years. If you are thinking of using them as an alternative to strobes for your work, this excellent video tutorial will show you some important techniques, camera settings, and helpful tips for getting the best possible results.
Artificial lights and modifiers can quickly add up in cost, but you might be surprised by just how much you can accomplish with only speedlights and basic modifiers. This excellent video tutorial will show you how you can produce professional-level portraits using just speedlights.
Once you have mastered the basic properties of light by working with a single source, you can begin to explore your creativity with more advanced lighting setups. This fantastic video tutorial will show you an advanced four-light headshot setup for creating an eye-catching image and everything you need to know to replicate it in your own work.
I’ve used a ton of constant lights. What they almost always have in common is that they just aren't powerful enough to keep up with the majority of shooting conditions. The StellaPro CLx10 solves that problem plus so much more.
Is having old or entry-level gear a limitation to taking good quality images? Just how good can you make portraits with basic gear and what does it prohibit?
There is a lot of content out there showing you how to light various scenes, but if you want to push yourself — really push yourself — behind-the-scenes footage of high-end cinematography can teach you a lot.
Beauty dishes are a traditional choice for a lot of portraiture work, but parabolic reflectors have seen an uptick in popularity in the last few years. Which is better for your work? This awesome video overview takes a quite in-depth look at a variety of different modifiers and the sort of results you can expect from them to help you decide which is right for your style and work.
Are you feeling comfortable with working with a single light and the basic properties of how light behaves and how to leverage it for your portrait photos? This great video tutorial will show the thought process behind a multi-light lifestyle portrait setup with v-flats to create a clean, natural look suitable for a wide variety of applications.
Lighting can make or break a fitness portrait. Our goal is to highlight the form and definition of your subject as well as the movement if the intended photo involves action. In this tutorial, I'm going to walk through a few basic fitness photography lighting techniques.
Finding inspiration for your next shoot can be difficult, but going for a vintage vibe can offer so many avenues with all the various eras to choose from. While it's nice to see Gen Z embracing the 90s, we don't often see much love for the 70s in popular media these days, but thankfully this world-famous fashion photographer found just the right props at bargain prices to produce something magical.
Perhaps no lighting modifier is as versatile for the price as a v-flat, filling in as a flag, reflector, or even a background. This fantastic video tutorial will show you how to use one both to create dramatic hard light and flattering soft light for compelling portraits.
Profoto sent us a couple of newly released softboxes. Let's test them out.
Rain is one of the most desirable and effective weather conditions for portraying mood and a more somber aesthetic, but waiting for it to occur naturally is rarely viable. In this video, watch as a small production team creates a melancholic scene by faking rainfall and controlling the light.
Lighting dictates an enormous amount about your final image, from mood and feel, to exposure and color. However, whether the light is hard or soft can also make a significant difference, and knowing when to use each is crucial. In this video, learn different lighting setups for each and the benefits of them.
A one-light portrait setup may seem simple, but it needn't be. There are so many different ways to manipulate artificial light that even if you limit yourself to just one, you can create a plethora of different, interesting looks. Here are twenty-one different lighting setups for you to try.
GVM recently sent me their new 50SM lights, and in this video, I do a quick overview and put them to the test filming a puppy adoption video.
If you have a big budget for an editorial shoot or you're lucky enough to live near some beautiful scenery, then finding an ideal location for a portrait or fashion shoot won't be an issue. However, the vast majority of photographers have to work with less than that, so here are some great tips to get creative in ugly environments.
Aputure has been one of the most interesting companies in the lighting space over the last few years, with some brilliant and affordable options. This latest projection lens attachment has had me very interested indeed.
Lighting equipment can be expensive, confusing, and cumbersome, but it doesn't have to be. Some of the most interesting and enjoyable lights to use are much cheaper than studio strobes and can unlock real creativity.
A portrait with a dramatic golden sky behind the subject is a highly popular and timeless look, and it is also a fantastic way to learn how to balance artificial and ambient light. If you are new to the technique, this helpful video tutorial will show you how to set up and shoot such a portrait, including a lesson in using high-speed sync.
Lighting equipment can get really expensive quite quickly, but one of the most useful pieces of lighting equipment is actually extremely affordable. The 5-in-1 reflector is something that should be in every photographer or videographer's bag, and this excellent video tutorial will show you how to make use of it to dramatically improve the look of your video and images.
In this day and age, more and more people are setting up recording spaces. Whether for simple work meetings, live streaming, or recording content, the need for a good-looking space is in high demand. This is a walkthrough of how I have my space set up and lit.
If you look at the work of professional portrait photographers, you will probably notice that they frequently use more complex two- or three-light setups. Such setups certainly have their place, as they enable a lot of creative flexibility, but that does not mean you cannot take professional portraits with just a single light. This excellent video tutorial will show you an effective single-light portrait setup for taking compelling images.
With gear paralysis definitely being a thing when starting out in food photography, it can result in a lot of frustrating trial and error when equipping your new home studio. This guide is definitely useful.
A lot of the work by professional portrait photographers uses more complex two- or three-light setups. And such setups absolutely have their place and give a wide amount of technical and creative control, but you can also accomplish quite a bit with only a single light. This excellent video tutorial will show you five great one-light setups for portrait photography.
Controlling reflections on your subject has to be one of the trickier skills to master in photography. It's a deep and nerdy topic to dive into, but this video is specifically about food photography and how simple changes in your shooting angle can dramatically affect the final image.
Filters can be used in a variety of situations, particularly in landscape photography, but do you need them when you do night photography, and will they improve your images?
Lights and specialty modifiers can be quite expensive, and filling out your collection can be a major hit to your wallet. However, one of the most versatile modifiers and a favorite of many studio photographers is also one of the cheapest. The humble v-flat is tremendously useful, and this excellent video tutorial will show you how to use them to create eye-catching light.
Learning how to balance artificial light with ambient light is one of the most important and versatile skills for a portrait photographer to learn. If you are still working on that, check out this fantastic video tutorial that will show you a series of outdoor portraits shot using a combination of strobes and ambient light and how they were lit.
You have probably seen professional headshot photographers using powerful (and expensive) studio lights, and while there are certainly benefits to those, that does not mean you can't use things like speedlights to create compelling images. In this excellent video tutorial, well-known photographer Peter Hurley will show you how you can light a headshot even using only speedlights.
There are many modifiers out there, but there are almost always more than you realize. Here is a term you may have heard of, just not with optical in front of it, and it opens up a lot of room for creativity.
Submit Your Best Images With Unique Shadows
In this week's contest, we want to see images that focus on the absence of light. We want to see the unique ways you've used shadows in your photography.
Most professional headshot photographers use strobes for their studio work, but of course, that does not mean you can't use continuous or even natural light for your work. This excellent video tutorial from the one and only Peter Hurley will show you how to use both natural light and continuous lighting for taking headshots.
When it comes to lighting for portraits, we mostly focus on learning how to light our subjects; after all, that is what the eye is drawn. But a complete image involves accounting for how the background is lit as well, and that can be the difference that makes your photos truly professional. This helpful video tutorial will give you five tips to improve the lighting of your portrait backgrounds.
It is not something we do often, but shooting portraits in the rain can be a great way to give your images a different look that captures the eye. This excellent video tutorial will show you how to light and shoot compelling portraits in the rain.
She Dies Tomorrow has been celebrated for its unsettling sensibilities and unorthodox filmmaking techniques. Independent Spirit Award-nominated cinematographer Jay Keitel's work on the film is one of the main factors in the film's moody success. I recently had the chance to ask Keitel a series of questions about his approach to filmmaking on She Dies Tomorrow.
Whisky bottles are a favorite subject for product photographers and this shot adds an interesting twist: the bottle and tumblers are impossibly balanced on one another. How was it achieved?
When we learn about lighting, we most often focus on the quality of the light and all the things that contribute to that. However, light can be more than just that which gives you the correct exposure and renders your subject in a flattering manner. It can be used to add mood and interesting atmosphere to an image. This great video tutorial will show you one such example using a fake window to complete a shot's aesthetic.
Outdoor portraits with a dramatic sky behind the subject are a popular and timeless look, but usually require an off-camera flash to get a proper exposure on your subject. If you are new to working with artificial lighting, this excellent video tutorial will show you how to use off-camera flash to balance ambient light and produce a compelling portrait.
Mastering light can mean many things, from the manipulation of natural light through to how to setup multiple strobes for a specific look. However, there are a few more niche techniques that are both incredibly fun and rewarding. One of these is light painting.
Having a strong enough grasp on lighting to control your surroundings — no matter what they may be — can be a powerful tool. Here is a brief tutorial on how to make your indoor portraits look like they were taking outdoors.
When working with lights, be they artificial or natural, the tendency when starting out is to light from the front, or at least at 45 degrees. But if you want to create something moodier, using your main light source as a backlight is possibly the quickest way to get something interesting.
“I only shoot natural light. I’m a natural light photographer.” I can’t even begin to count how many times I’ve heard some variation of this statement. It doesn’t get any less silly each time I hear it, though. Why would anyone want to box themselves into doing only one thing?
The inverse square law is one of the most fundamental and important concepts in lighting, and as such, any photographer working with artificial light should have a good understanding of it. If you are new to it, this helpful video tutorial will show you everything you need to know, from the way the law works to the practical consequences it has on your photos.
There is a common misconception about strobe lighting that might be holding back your images, and it's an easy one to make. Here is a concise and clear explanation of the problem.
Lighting holds the keys to the overall feel of an image for the most part, particularly with portraiture. In this video, you will see behind-the-scenes of a dramatic, moody portrait shoot with some tips on how to replicate the style yourself.
Great portraiture can be created with anything from natural light to a studio full of the most expensive equipment, but if you — like most photographers — are closer to the natural light setup than a high-end studio, perhaps this video might show you just what you can produce with one, cheap light.
There are few types of video more valuable than a good behind-the-scenes, particularly when it walks you through the process. Jump backstage in this tutorial to see how this beautiful, fine art portrait was taken with four lights and a purpose-built set.
How do you know if an umbrella costing $100 is any better than the $5 one? It's quite hard to tell the difference in terms of light quality, especially if you're a beginner. But I assure you, expensive light modifiers are quite different from the regular cheap ones. That difference is noticeable only after you've used them for some time.
How do you position your artificial light sources?