We've covered the pros and cons of color grading many times before on Fstoppers, though when it comes to big-budget movies like "Man of Steel" do you think its overall tone can decide whether it's a financial success?
I rarely write in first person but because this is a topic I feel very strongly about, I want to tell you about my personal experience. When I was reminiscing with my wife about the one thing that changed my photography, it was the day I saw the light. Literally. The only way I was able to conceptually grasp light and the way it works was because I started retouching.
I, like many photographers out there, don't have a studio, or don't have the money to rent out studio space every time I want to do a shoot. While shooting inside my house or garage is always an option, I found myself wanting to experiment more with ambient and natural light.
I will soon be releasing a start-to-finish retouching tutorial video here at Fstoppers on my most recent fashion editorial photoshoot. But before I do, I wanted to start warming our readers up with a complete gear list.
After 30 years in business, the popular photography and video lighting accessory company Photoflex has suddenly and without warning closed its doors. To this day, I still use and enjoy my Photoflex extra large softboxes, and I am shocked by the news considering they were just at Photokina earlier in March. Read below to learn more.
If you are fan of DIY projects or are on a budget, this tutorial shows you all the steps for creating a simple yet effective globe light modifier for Paul C. Buff (RIP) strobes like AlienBees and Einsteins. Unlike many other DIY modifiers, this globe actually attaches the exact same way the retail modifiers do. Best of all, you can buy everything you need for under $25!
If you're into macro photography, Adaptalux could be your new best friend. The new Kickstarter project is aimed to solve a lot of the lighting issues macro photographers face and offer new ways to light objects in creative ways. The Adaptalux is a small device with five ports and five adjustable LED lighting arms with different color outputs.
During the course of my 28-year photo career I’ve learned a lot from simply watching great movies, but watching great movies alone isn’t enough. You have to practice once you’ve been exposed to new information. We all love watching movies, and today I’d like to share an exercise you can do after watching a classic movie to become a better photographer.
Warm smiles and serene sun flares seem to be landing on the shoulders of portraits all over the internet nowadays. Complimented with beautiful bokeh from a shallow depth of field, the allure of a sun-kissed image image is easy to see. What happens when mother nature doesn't seem to be on your side?
The Fstoppers FlashDisc has become one of the most popular off camera flash modifiers on Amazon and BH Photo. Many of our readers have been asking for international shipping, and I am excited to announce that the FlashDisc is now available through the Amazon.co.uk store.
Recently announced at the head of WPPI a couple weeks ago, was the Profoto B2 strobe system. The unit, small in comparison of its competitors, was arguably the most exciting product announcement this year at the popular photography convention. However, the burning question everyone has been asking is… is 250Ws enough for on location work like Profoto suggests?
What happens when one of the world’s foremost portrait photographers decides to turn to photograph still life paintings instead of people? There are no two ways about it - Jill Greenberg is fascinating. Her new work is beautiful, but there is also a clear artistic statement behind it.
With the recent announcement of the Profoto B2, Elinchrom's position in the ultra-portrable strobe pack market was somewhat overshadowed as the former exceeded the Elinchrom Quadra Hybrid in many aspects. Not to be outdone, Elinchrom has now announced the release of its next generation on-location pack and head kit known as the ELB 400.
Alexis Cuarezma is back again sharing the "hows" and "whys" behind one of his latest shoots: fitness portraits of IFBB bikini professional Ashley Pfaff.
There are shooters who spend 100's if not 1000's of dollars on courses to learn what you can learn in these two videos from DEDPXL. In them commercial, editorial photographer Zack Arias goes into great detail on how to light your subjects with a seamless white background set up.
I can assure you that this isn't another boring tutorial on how not to overdo eyes with Photoshop. Searching for the perfect method has come to an end. Before diving into the simple method, it’s crucial to understand everything about the human eye and how it reacts to light.
After 13 years of being involved in academia as either a student or instructor, I stumbled upon possibly the best way to save big on photography gear: educational pricing discounts.
After becoming the best selling off camera flash light modifier on Amazon.com in 2014, we were sad to announce that we had completely sold out of our entire Fstoppers FlashDisc inventory. If you have been waiting patiently for our stock to replenish wait no more; our US Amazon Store now has a fresh batch of inventory.
Learning to find the perfect light is something that takes time and experience. But what do you do when the perfect light isn't there? Shooting in hard sunlight isn't always the most flattering or ideal situation. Don't settle for less than ideal results, bad light doesn't have to mean bad images.
When a client came to me and asked if I could do a composite that featured a dragon, my first response was, "Of course, no problem. This is going to be so much fun!" Immediately following the conversation, reality set in and the haunting feeling that I had bitten off more than I could chew began to overwhelm me.
Shooting on a clean white backdrop can be one of the more complex in-studio lighting setups around. Properly exposing for full lengths while giving your models room to work can require four or more extra lights and considerable amount of setup time.
With companies like Profoto and Elinchrom offering an increasingly broad range of self-contained strobes, Broncolor was no doubt feeling left out with its predominantly pack and head oriented lineup. That’s all changing now with the release of the new Siros strobe; a compact, wall powered, feature rich and wallet friendly flash unit.
While on location for Red Bull's King of the Air in Cape Town, South Africa, digital art photographer Lars Daniel Terkeleson caught up with professional rider Nick Jacobsen for an incredible photo session. In a unique approach to using speedlites in sports photography, he was able to capture action in rare form against the breathtaking South African sunset.
As you prepare to devour your nachos and chase it down with a couple beers you may notice something a little different about the Super Bowl today. University Of Phoenix Stadium, hosts of Super Bowl XLIX, have upgraded the old metal halide lights throughout the stadium and replaced them with LED light fixtures.
Whether you’re brand new to photography, a seasoned veteran, or somewhere in-between, learning and re-learning the ins and outs of your craft is an essential part of the continuing education that comes along with being a photographer. If you’re a professional who makes a living on taking photos, then this is even more vital.
When taking portraits with natural light, often times, there is one key aspect that is overlooked. This facet of naturally lit photos is far more important than things like shooting at a specific time of day. Before diving into what makes a naturally lit photo a spectacular one, it is important to know and understand the difference between artificial lighting and using natural light.
We all know the concept of a skinny mirror or fat mirror but lighting is really what can change your appearance in photos, especially when defining muscles.
One of the most intimidating things to learn when it comes to lighting is how to choose the right light modifiers. There are countless umbrellas, softboxes, octaboxes, stripboxes, and beauty dishes offered. All these contraptions help shape the way light spreads in different ways, and the appearance of the people and objects we photograph will be affected by this.
As a photographer, my skill set is constantly put to the test. In most cases, I’m handed an idea on a slab of wood and the mission is to hand that idea translated to a tangible artifact back to my client on a silver platter. It’s never an easy process, but it’s a part of my job.
London-based product photographer Sean Tucker is releasing a three-part video series on photographing large objects, such as chairs and sofas, in a studio setting. Here in part one, Tucker demonstrates how to set up your lighting and camera in order to achieve a great, clean image that will be easy to cut out in post-production for online product catalogs.
As the old adage goes, it’s not the gear, it’s the photographer that takes a good photo. While this is generally true, is there something to be said about $20,000 worth of Broncolor lighting gear? I mean a flash of light is a flash of light, right? Or is it?
When I was new to portrait lighting, I used to blast everything with light with reckless abandon. Although, as I grew as a photographer, I learned that the ability to control the spread of light on a multi-strobe shoot allowed you to not only create something with a more sophisticated appearance, but tell a better story.
When people walk through my living room studio, they are puzzled that I do not own or rent a permanent studio space. What many do not know is that when I’m contracted for a commercial assignment, about 80% of the time I must travel to a location or shot at the client’s home base. And, in many cases that requires transporting several 9 foot seamless backdrops and a whole lot of equipment.
The last time I talked with Alexis, he was just trying out a technique of shooting two different lighting setups with the press of a button (be sure to check that article out for details on how the SpeedCycler feature of the Pocket Wizard MultiMax works).This time around, he managed to pull off five different looks (three at one time) – nabbing himself six pages and t
Announced earlier this year, the Westcott Flex is now available in stores. This unique device bridges the gap between a light and a light modifier, as it is a little bit of both. This fully bendable mat features a 10” x 10” surface lined with 166 dimmable LED diodes and outlined with a moldable 1⁄4” black frame.
Last year, Vogue China approached Mario Testino to be the sole photographer for their 100th issue, a task which the legendary fashion photographer took to with great relish. Recently, Testino released the making-of video that documents the work that went into this issue.
For many, the 7’ parabolic umbrella seems like a one-trick pony. The textbook move of sandwiching the camera between the subject and the light for an edgy, high-key look is quickly growing old. In this video, commercial photographer Joel Grimes shows a different way of using the 7’ parabolic to create soft, high-key images best suited for beauty photography.
Benjamin Von Wong has always been known for his elaborate, fantasy-like photo shoots. However, recreating the fairy tales that he had grown up watching took time, patience, luck, and most of all, a lot of help. These jaw-dropping photographs are bound to generate the customary "Is this Photoshopped?" question.
Joey L. is a photographer best known for his stunning personal work creating portraits of the peoples of Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, and other exotic places of the world. He uses studio lights on-location to achieve his unique and dramatic look for his portraits of these exotic people.
One of the most noticeable differences between portraits taken outside using natural light as opposed to artificial light is the background. Images using artificial light tend to have darker backgrounds. This is crucial in catching the eye of the viewer and allows him or her to focus on the subject. This article is a guide in achieving this look using natural light only.
It's always nice to nail that exposure for a beautiful portrait using a balance of different lights. Check out this short video by The Slanted Lens about the basics of shooting photos with Christmas lights. With the combination of proper exposure, time of day, a dramatic sky and some other pretty simple techniques, you can take some great holiday photos this season. As J.P.
Have you ever wished that you could simply walk into your studio space and immediately have perfect lighting? Japanese architecture firm FT Architects has created a gorgeous photography studio which uses diffused skylights and windows to harness ambient light and do just that. This beautiful studio located in Kanagawa, Japan seems to be the first of its kind.
As announced in yesterday's sale, Fstoppers is having a 24 hour sale on our tutorials every day leading up to Christmas. For today's deal we have persuaded Peter Hurley to offer $100 off both of his acclaimed tutorials The Art Behind the Headshot and Illuminating the Face.
A great portion of my business is spent on architectural photography. My technique involves using a mixture of ambient light, flash, and tungsten hot lights blended and masked together in post to create well lit images that are time consuming to shoot and often frustrating to edit.
Every time I hear a photographer state, “I’m a natural light photographer”, it can carry a suggestion that they are a more honest type of photographer, better attuned to reality, and purer in motive. What I hear is, “I haven’t learned to use my flash.” This may sound harsh but I can’t help it; right or wrong, I want to call them out on it.
I guess I’ve always been different; I’ve never really yearned for a big studio space. As a freelance photographer, the majority of my clients require that I come to their location and shoot on-site. I have a strict organizational-mobile system to transport all my equipment which includes over 8 strobes, 2 scrims and a plethora of staging props and modifiers.
It has happened to all of us. We spend countless hours planning, scheduling, and coordinating for a beautiful golden hour photo shoot only to have our parade rained on by weather or other mishaps out of our control. Perhaps you didn't plan for those mountains in the background that's cutting your shoot 30 minutes shorter than anticipated.
While people around the world prepare for the holidays, photographers have something else on their mind. For all of us it's that time of year to buy your conference pass, make your hotel reservations, plan shoots with friends and highlight the classes you want to attend at the annual WPPI Photo Conference in Las Vegas from February 26th thru March 5th.
Artificial lighting can be overwhelming, there are thousands of options to modify one single light source and there are dozens of companies that claim they have the best product and best bang for your buck.
Patrick Rochon is a world-reknowned light painting photographer who recently produced a project with Infiniti, where he used their cars as paintbrushes themselves, in a manner of speaking. This video shows off what is possible when a skilled artist is given the reigns to create compelling images of vehicles, and has the support of a technical and creative team.