Pye Jirsa is a director, photographer and educator. Founder and Partner of Lin and Jirsa Photography, a boutique Southern California wedding and portrait photography studio, and SLR Lounge, a photography education website, Pye devotes his time to helping photographers develop their shooting and business skills.
Website: slrlounge.com
Some of my favorite creative photography techniques to use are those that allow us to capture moments in ways we could never see using just our eyes. One technique, in particular, that I turn to for capturing unique portraits involves using long exposure, aka shutter drag. Long exposure portraits open up a number of creative possibilities and often result in “wow” moments with my clients. Putting the technique to use does require some skill and preparation, but it’s easy enough to master once you know the basics.
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.
Adding props is a simple and effective way of adding production value to your photographs. Not only do they add additional points of interest, they also can add to the story you're trying to tell. In this video and article, I'll be walking through the creative process of how an image evolves to the final version. To do this, I'll begin with a basic "walk-up" shot. From there, I'll be walking through the step-by-step changes to the shot until we get to the final image using various props.
Modifiers like softboxes and umbrellas serve as powerful tools for photographers to shape and control light. Whether they want to emulate natural window light with a touch of soft, diffused light or create an epic environmental portrait with darker exposures and higher flash powers, these tools provide portable and powerful means for photographers to bring their vision to life. In this article, we've gathered practical tips and techniques to help you effectively use softboxes and umbrellas to elevate the quality and mood of your wedding portraits.
As photographers, we come across many different scenarios, and it might not be possible to get the perfect shot with the perfect lighting 100% of the time. It could've been that we didn't have the right gear with us or that we were in a rush. Either way, that shouldn't be a reason to shy away from trying to get the best possible shot and bringing it to life in post-production. In this video and article, I'll be showing you how to fix a portrait with bad lighting in post using Adobe Lightroom.
If you’re a wedding or event photographer, it’s likely you’ve come across mixed lighting situations, and understanding how to work with or around it is crucial. If done right, mixed lighting can have a flattering effect and can add visual interest and depth to your photos.
For the longest time, my favorite lens on any camera system was a 35mm wide-aperture prime. The focal length forced me to get "in the action" for impactful portraits, yet it was wide enough to capture wide angle scenes. But a new lens has recently won my heart and assumed the top spot in my kit. In this video and article, I'll be walking through a photoshoot while demonstrating why the Canon RF 28-70mm f/2 lens is my favorite lens of all time.
When we think of family portraits, we often picture the traditional looks: everyone lined up, smiling, and well dressed. Family lifestyle photography, on the other hand, shines a new light on family portraiture. Rather than posing everybody perfectly, lifestyle captures the personality and dynamics of the family. The spontaneity is a great addition to a complete family album. Let's begin by seeing how the two styles differ.
This video is a sneak peek into SLR Lounge Premium Library with a chapter from our new course, Family Photography 101. This is a complete course on capturing memorable and unique family portraits. In this video, I had Shivani with me as we compared family lifestyle photography with traditional portraits.
Photographers understand that marketing is essential to attracting new clients and growing their business. However, marketing strategies are constantly evolving, so what worked in the past isn’t always going to work in the present or future. In this article, we will share three photography marketing tricks and hacks that actually work based on our 12-plus years of experience operating a successful multi-shooter studio!
Photographers often look for the "epic" shot — the one that will stand out, get thousands of social media likes, and get printed by our clients for wall art. While these photos are important, it's also essential to slow down and look for the other images in the scene that help tell a story and capture the vibe and emotion of the moment. In this video, we'll review a simple storytelling framework called "Wide, Medium, Tight" to help you find these opportunities.
Most photographers focus their business growth strategies on booking more clients. However, the most financially savvy photographers understand the full revenue equation, i.e. revenues equals the number of clients multiplied by the average revenue per client. So, for example, if you want to double your revenue next year, you can either double the amount of bookings or you can double the revenue you make for each booking. In this article, we’ll teach you photography pricing tips to help you charge more for each client that you book.
If you're a wedding or event photographer, chances are, you've encountered mixed lighting situations. Though mixed lighting can be used creatively, there are times when it just isn't ideal. Today, I'll be walking through several examples of mixed lighting conditions with solutions on how you can work around it on location or fix it in post-production.
In photography, the term leading lines is a compositional technique used to draw a viewer's eye to the subject of the photo. These lines can be created by any object in the scene like a road or path, a fence or railing, a distant object like a mountain, and any other structure that creates a real or imaginary line in your image.
Rain in the forecast can be a disappointment for photographers and their clients, especially if they planned an outdoor photoshoot. Rain can ruin the vision for perfect, directional lighting that was originally planned, making it difficult to capture the desired mood or atmosphere. However, instead of rescheduling or moving the shoot entirely indoors, photographers have an opportunity to capture interesting and creative photos with an outdoor rain photoshoot. In this article, we’ll provide you with some rain photoshoot tips to prepare and inspire your creativity.
If you're a photographer constantly on the go, the gear you carry with you plays a crucial role. In addition, as technology improves and the demand for quality content increases, we continue to consolidate our gear and fit everything we need into a small backpack.
