Telling a story doesn’t stop at your subject in photography; everything in an image gives the viewer context clues to build a narrative around. One of my favorite ways to facilitate interest and story in photography is incorporating color effect gels into the scene, but what are the best ways to use them and why?
Ever wondered how the filmmakers of probably the best-looking Star Wars movie managed to light Darth Vader's blacker than black costume without seeing the light fixtures in the helmet? The answer to this and a few more nuggets of film history and cinematography tricks are revealed in this short but fascinating interview.
I shot these images for fashion ecommerce store Zilingo when we were doing a recent campaign/catalog shoot. What a fun team to shoot with! They really have a vision for what they want to pull off and are very supportive in terms of getting there.
Besides shooting cars or architecture, light painting can also be useful when you want to achieve creative results without spending lots of money.
I’ve always loved the color red and the emotions it invokes. I suppose that's the fun thing about backgrounds, props, and general settings in that a color theme can evoke so many different thoughts and emotions. Needless to say the power of a model is critical but what you can create around the model can go a long way in conveying the feel you’re aiming for.
When you are new to artificial lighting, the veritable plethora of terms, modifiers, prices, and more can be a bit overwhelming and paralyzing when you are attempting to put together your first kit. This helpful video will give you all the guidance you need to put together your first lighting kit and be up and shooting in no time.
Understanding how to use light is one of the most important lessons a photographer needs to learn. Master this easy yet effective setup before your next shoot.
Sometimes you look at a photo or scene in a T.V show and think "that looks rubbish." For me, 9 out of 10 of those cases are the result of flat lighting. Let Vanity Fair's Reverse Film School series show you exactly how much of a difference it makes.
Being new to strobe lighting can be a bit overwhelming, but learning some fundamental techniques and manners of working can have you on your way. This helpful video tutorial will show you one of the most important techniques: balancing strobe light with ambient light.
I get emails almost weekly, asking me about certain light setups. So I decided to start doing a weekly light series on YouTube. I thought, "what's the best light setup to start it with then with one of my favorite lighting set-ups?" Hard Light! I will be rolling out a new lighting setup once a week. They will range from basic to a bit more advanced. I am very excited and happy to do this and teach some of my fellow photographers.
The wonderful thing about the internet is how incredibly easy it is to instantly access a veritable plethora of masterful photographs to inspire you. But do you ever attempt to recreate those photos yourself? This great video shows the challenges and benefits of trying to recreate other people's photos.
When Canon and Olympus were experimenting with live view on their cameras in the mid-2000s, it seems almost comical now that they didn’t think to record video with the feature that already existed on their cameras. History is repeating itself, but this time with the lowly pop-up flash.
The Profoto A1 was supposed to be a revolution in speedlights (though the company refers to it as the "world's smallest studio light"), though it carried with it the typical Profoto price tag. The Godox V1 is a very similar light with a much more affordable price. How well does it work in practice? This great video review discusses just that.
When you are new to artificial lighting, it can be a bit of a tough world to navigate. This great explores one of the most fundamental concepts behind working with artificial light and why it's so useful for photographers.
ACDSee recently asked to sponsor a video where I use their new Photo Studio Professional software. I thought it would be fun to do an entire portrait session from start to finish.
One you have started to get the hang of the basics of how light works and you feel comfortable with portraits setups using a single strobe, the next step is to move up to two-light setups, of course. This awesome video will show you how such a photo was lit, shot, and edited.
In pursuit of showing off the beautiful set design, this gorgeous photo ended up using a total of six lights, as well as a haze machine. Go behind the scenes with this awesome video to see how this complex and intricate setup all came together to produce the final result.
Are you thinking of trying out portrait photography and want to get some insight as to exactly what you need to create beautiful portraits without a lot of trial and error? Read on for some tried and true suggestions that will get you started without all the hit-and-miss experimentation.
Photographer Jason D Page was invited by Wango Tango festival 2019 to create a series of light painting portraits with some of the acts playing over the weekend, including Halsey, CNCO, and The Jonas Brothers. The photos were shot in a single take, with a team creating the surreal effects using light-painting brushes.
A couple weeks ago, I did a quick photo session with my Jiu Jitsu coach, Rafael Moreno, and I filmed the process from start to finish.
Profoto has just launched the B10 Plus, a 500w/s on-location strobe that outmatches the recently released B10 while retaining most of the previous strobe’s design cues. With a well developed back panel display, a svelte body design, and a more powerful light output, is there any room for the B1X in Profoto’s lineup?
What happens when you fly half way across the world to shoot portraits of a model on an exotic beach, but then realize the light is not as soft or usable as you thought? In this video, learn how you can sculpt the natural light the way you want to create the most flattering results.
Photographers love soft light and the “wrap around” quality that large modifiers can deliver. We contemplate the large parabolic softbox we need to purchase or the huge umbrella that will help us make window light anywhere. For impactful portraits that are just as compelling maybe it’s time you took a look at hard lighting.
When you are new to working with artificial light, one of the toughest parts is learning where to actually place the light for proper images. This helpful video will show you several fundamental lighting positions that can help jumpstart your work with strobes.
When you're new to artificial lighting, it can be a bit overwhelming trying to understand how different modifiers and attachments can change how your subject looks. This great video will show you how several common modifiers and attachments make your subject look so you can choose the appropriate equipment for your shoot.
Half the fun of working with studio strobes is that you are not constrained to the available light and can experiment with all sorts of things, like the position of the lights, the relative powers, the modifiers, and even the colors. This fun video will show you how working with color gels can produce unique and interesting results.
If there is any basic accessory almost every photographer should own, it's a 5-in-1 reflector. Versatile, portable, and cheap, I have one in my bag at all times. This excellent video will show you the many different uses for a 5-in-1 reflector and how you can employ one to improve your shots.
If you are a wedding photographer, then at some point in your career you will be faced with the challenge of making great images with conditions that are less then ideal. These tips can help you make the best of any situation.
There is certainly quite a lot that you can accomplish with natural light, but you're at the mercy of the weather outside, and sometimes, adding a bit of flash can go a long way to augment the light at hand or to even reshape it entirely. This great video will show you some different ways to use a flash to create a variety of looks when you're shooting portraits outdoors.
The Profoto A1 was met with mixed reactions when it was released, with many shying away from the price, but also generally quite good reviews from those who used it. Profoto recently released an updated version, the A1X, which improves on the original in several ways. This great video takes a look at the changes in the new model and what it's like to shoot with.
When the original Profoto A1 entered the on-camera flash market, one huge hiccup that many photographers saw was the lack of a Sony option in the speedlight. Now, with a more robust and tweaked flash being released to address that concern and others, how does the new Profoto A1X stack up to its predecessor?
Lighting a scene is usually associated with placing light sources of certain quality, shape, and power on various places to illuminate parts that have to be visible to the camera. There are ways to light a scene not only without any additional light sources, but also without any white or black bounce-boards.
While you are waiting for me to finish the video edit on our last Puerto Rican Photo Challenge, we have a new competition for you guys to judge. This time I take a back seat and let Lee Morris and Pye Jirsa of SLR Lounge battle head to head in the streets of Old San Juan.
An easy lighting setup for any photographer to have in their arsenal that creates a highly sought-after look would have to be three point lighting. It’s classic, it’s easy, and you can achieve several highly stylized looks in only mere seconds by moving a light or two.
It’s one of my favorite photography tools: the simple colored gel. Not only can it improve the color balance of your image, it can dramatically boost your visual impact when used to add touches of color to your shot.
Nathan Elson, a commercial photographer from Calgary, Canada, just posted a great no-nonsense tutorial outlining his basic lighting set-up. Oh, FYI, there's also a great contest that Elson has put together with Strobepro. Go take a look.
Dedicated monolights are certainly highly useful for portrait work, but they're also relatively expensive and rather bulky. However, almost every photographer owns a speedlight, and you might wonder if you can use it in place of a monolight for on-location portrait work. This great video shows you the benefits and drawbacks of shooting with a speedlight outside.
For my latest photoshoot I decided to use harsh light to photograph my buddy Bart in two different ways. If you've wanted to learn how to get that vintage movie style look, you'll enjoy this full tutorial.
Are you enjoying your macro photography but need that extra something to make it pop? Check out these simple lighting tricks to improve your macro shots!
When I first started out using speedlights for flash photography, there weren’t many options aside from Canon and Nikon. As a result, I’ve amassed a large collection of Speedlights (and Speedlites), but now that I also shoot mirrorless bodies, are my SB-700s and 600EX-RTs any good?
Want to know a secret? You know those images that look like they’re all natural light? Well, lots of the images are produced using some sort of flash or second light source. The flash isn’t used to replace the natural light, but rather to complement the natural light and fill in where that natural light just can’t pull its weight.
Are you in need of a powerful, versatile, and compact RGB LED light that won't break the bank? I was and this might now be my favorite hot light for shooting on location.
With the light on the model's face to perfection, there's still a lot that can be done in high key, low key, and all the exposures in between.
Mention off-camera flash and people often think about C-stands, flash heads, large octaboxes, and V-flats. Hardly what you would call portable. So how do go about assembling one?
Looking for the perfect beauty shot? In this video, Daniel Norton takes us through his way of lighting the subject in order to achieve the "beauty shot".
The guys at SLR Lounge shot these two portraits in a dark alley, demonstrating how it’s possible to capture portraits that look like they were taken in the daytime, even at night.
If you're stuck in a rut or just stuck inside on a rainy day, coming up with new ways to look at ordinary household objects is one way to expand your photographic mind.
V-flats are one of those studio tools that almost every photographer should have, as their price and versatility make them almost indispensable when working with artificial light. This helpful video will show you three separate beauty lighting setups using v-flats.
Do you want some new or different ideas on how to use your lighting when shooting a scene, a portrait, or both? Do you have multiple strobes or lighting but haven’t really put them to the test outside with a client? This set of lighting tips from B&H Photo Video and JB Sallee may be right up your alley.
Are you looking for a new flash and intrigued by the Profoto A1? Maybe you’ve seen the internet rumblings about Godox’s V1 light and the alleged backdoor drama between the two lighting companies and wondered if this new light beats the top priced flash? Which round flash is the best bang for the buck and should you switch or stick with your square flash?