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Derrick Ruf

Gilbertsville, PA
Iron Oak Studios

Articles from Derrick Ruf

Working With a Limited Color Palette in Studio

During the conceptual stages of a portrait shoot, when deciding which color palette to incorporate, could less possibly be more? This brief video from Adorama TV features small home studio savant Gavin Hoey showcasing for us how to create effective portraits in studio within a limited color range.

Finely Tune Your Most Valuable Future Photography Business Asset

Life spent in the photography trenches is what so many of us openly desire. While you may not be ready to turn that page just yet, you can still get the upper hand on positioning for the future you want right now. Here are a few thoughts on how.

Check Out This Little Known Color Tool for Lightroom Users

Adobe Lightroom and Camera Raw house some solid color and toning options. These can be applied in a non-destructive way, and in general will get the job done, our photos finished and out into the world. However, for many others, Photoshop with its plethora of adjustment layers is hard to best when heavy color work is applied.

Embrace Photography Culture With Meetups

What if instead of settling in on yet another evening of editing that overwhelming avalanche of photos, and half heartedly watching Netflix in your pajamas, tonight you excite your palette with a tasty libation while rubbing elbows with a group of like-minded photography enthusiasts. I don’t know about you, but I’m sold.

Godox AD600 Pro Flash: Worth the Upgrade?

The Godox AD600 Pro Strobe was recently announced to the public. Having myself recently shifted from a fantastic (but also pricey) pair of Profoto B1s to jump into the Godox (Flashpoint in the U.S.) system, I took notice.

How to Combat CBSS: Camera Brand Switch Syndrome

This can be a particularly dangerous time of year for chronic camera gear switchers. For one, the new year causes most of us to self-evaluate everything from the prior year, and photography gear is certainly not exempt. Second, for some it is the off season which means a bit of down time, and any time you stop moving can be especially dangerous for your decision making and bank account. 

A Visual Explanation of White Balance

While our brains are conveniently set to auto white balance and our eyes view a properly adjusted color temperature, our cameras, try as they may, are not quite as advanced and sometimes rely on us to provide assistance to them. For our image color and tone to be as accurate as possible, we have to command control of this setting ourselves. 

Build Rapport on Your Photography Shoot With the Language of Music

At the onset of a portrait shoot it is important to come packing the usual garden variety of a few safe jokes to lighten the mood, some fail-proof poses to keep things moving, and direction for the model to play off of. It is easy to forget, with all the headspace that pours into reflecting the images from inside of our heads, towards reality, that when the time comes to start working with our subject, we are not just setting a tone visually, but also emotionally. One simple way personally for me to connect and as well bring additional personality out of a model is via the universal power of music, which has long played a predominant role in my life.

Avoid Photography-Related Injury With This One Simple Tip

Throughout the course of long, mentally intensive days covering events from behind a camera, likely the last thing on your mind is maintaining good balanced posture or equal weight distribution. String multiple days like this together in a short period of time and you are unknowingly causing long-term havoc onto your body, especially as this repeats and builds over longer periods. 

Photography Podcasts Are an Insightful Journey

Finding background entertainment is so important when you are by nature a creative who spends many long and secluded hours in front of a computer. We live in an intensely visual world, and within that space, I find it incredibly refreshing absorbing audio Podcasts in the background as I work. 

Ten Tips for Organic Growth on Instagram

It becomes obvious relatively quickly that gaining traction on Instagram can be at times daunting. You’re pouring heart and soul into your work and posting your best images, but still even then somehow you are not seeing the overall growth as quickly as you would like. 

Why You Should Bother With 4K Video

It's always a polarizing topic even from the time a new camera body is rumored. The 4K specification brings forward the passion of the most vocal in the video community. But for all the back and forth, will it alone actually make your video better?