Knowing how to balance flash and ambient light is one of the most crucial skills a portrait photographer can have, as it will give you the ability to shoot in just about any environment with full creative and technical control. If you are newer to working with artificial lighting and want to learn this skill, check out this fantastic video tutorial that will show you how to balance flash and ambient light for better images.
Coming to you from Ian Spanier with Westcott Lighting, this excellent video tutorial will show you how to balance flash and ambient light. Having this skill will make you far more versatile, as it will allow you to make images like the classic sunset portrait, in which your subject stands in front of a dramatic evening sky. In this situation, you need to expose for the sky to prevent blowing out the highlights, which then throws your subject into shadow, which is why you need a bit of flash to rebalance the overall exposure. Check out the video above for the full rundown from Spanier.
If you would like to continue learning about how to light a portrait, be sure to check out "Illuminating The Face: Lighting for Headshots and Portraits With Peter Hurley!"
