Flash Photography Tips - Intro to Softboxes
October 1, 2008
In a perfect world, photographic umbrellas are all we would need to control our lighting. However, there are some cases when you need more control and directionality from your light source. This is where softboxes come in.
The basic principle of a softbox is the same as an umbrella: it provides a layer of diffusion that increases the effective size of your light source. Where softboxes differ is that their construction only allows light to pass through the diffusion material in the front. The sides and back are blocked, minimizing the spill of light.
Flash Photography Tips - Intro to Photographic Umbrellas
September 22, 2008
The photographic umbrella is one of the fundamental tools of off-camera flash photography. Because of the low cost, ease of use and effective ability to increase the size of the light source, an umbrella (or brolly) is a useful utility for new and experienced photographers alike.
An umbrella is a light modifier; it modifies the size and intensity of light emitted from your flash and gives you more control. Over the next few articles we’ll be looking at different light modifiers and the benefits of each. Let’s start now and look at the benefits that umbrellas give us.
Get It Local - Pocket Wizard Sync Cables
September 17, 2008
One thing that’s kept me in a perpetual state of wonderment is how in the world Radio Shack is still in business. Seriously. I remember buying some walkie-talkies from them when I was 12 years old and they seemed to be on their last leg even then. Please don’t get me wrong; I don’t particularly have anything against Radio Shack, I just fail to see how they’ve remained in business all these years. I mean, in the present day economy we’ve got the Lehman Bros. bankruptcy and the sale of Merrill Lynch, yet we can still trust Radio Shack to ask for our phone number when we buy batteries.*
I pretty much had to eat my words this past weekend. I had a portrait session coming up and realized I was a sync cable short for connecting my Pocket Wizard to my Alien Bees AB-1600. I usually order my sync cables from FlashZebra.com, but I knew I wouldn’t have time to get it delivered. I couldn’t trust Walmart or Target to have the cable I needed. Thus, my only hopeful source: the local neighborhood Radio Shack. Read more
Beginning Photography Tips - Don’t Underestimate Snapshots
September 8, 2008
I personally have two cameras. I have a DSLR which I use in my professional work, and I have a smaller point-and-shoot which basically serves as a knockaround camera, or one that I can easily take with me when I don’t have room for my pro rig.
I’ve got so much gear which I use with my DSLR that when I get the point-and-shoot in my hands, I feel like it’s not even worth taking out of the bag. On many occasions, such as holidays or family functions, I’ve neglected to take any pictures because the only camera I had was my measly little point-and-shoot.
Beginning Photography Tips - Fill the Frame
September 3, 2008
In one of my college photography courses, one of the most helpful (and simple) tips I learned was from my black and white photography professor when he said, “If you’re having trouble with your photography, try getting closer.”
After thinking on this for awhile I looked back over my shots and saw that, for any given subject, I was backing up or zooming out so that I was sure to get the most content within the frame (frame, here, meaning the confines of your camera’s sensor, not the big wooden square hanging on your wall). To many beginning photographers, the concept of “filling the frame” means “fill the picture with as much extraneous content as humanly possible,” which is exactly what I was trying to do. The subject of my pictures was unclear because I had included a lot of its surrounding environment.
Digital Photography Workflow - High Contrast Effect from Start to Finish
August 25, 2008
Your digital photography workflow is important because it’s the process that you employ to create an image. Each step in the workflow is important as it makes each sub-sequent step easier and makes the overall workflow more efficient, allowing you to devote more time and energy to creating great images.
One key to creating great images is starting with a great photo and then enhancing the photo further in Photoshop. In this tutorial, I’ll explain how I setup the lighting and composition for the photo and then used Lightroom and Photoshop to end up with the final image.
No Flash Photography
August 22, 2008
Often times when you are at a public event, you will hear someone announce, “no flash photography, please.” A lot of people assume that they just can’t use their cameras because their flashes usually fire automatically. This is especially true when you’re indoors with low light.
Last weekend, I enjoyed an acrobatics show on the General Jackson. Before the show began, we were reminded that flash photography was not allowed. I grinned to myself, picked up my camera, and made a few adjustments that I knew would allow me to take great photos without using a flash.
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Beginning Photography Tips - Intro to ISO
August 20, 2008
ISO, otherwise known as film speed, is the foundation of the key elements of exposure. Your ISO setting determines how fast your digital sensor reacts to the light that hits it. The settings for both aperture and shutter speed are based on your sensor’s sensitivity to light.
ISO stands for–yep, you guessed it; International Organization for Standardization. Fortunately, we don’t need to remember this. For our purposes, “ISO” is just a short way of referring to film speed.
Off Camera Flash Photography Tips - Quality of Light
August 15, 2008
As we continue learning more about off-camera lighting, we need to examine the beam of light coming from the light source. How big is it? How close it is? Which angle is it coming from? How much did I pay for it, again?
Let’s first tackle the size of your light. It’s important to keep in mind that you should judge the size of light as it relates to your subject. If you’re shooting full-length portraits of someone, there’s going to be a difference between a “big” light source for that person versus what you’d need if you were taking product shots of cell phones, for example. This boils down to apparent light size; that is, the size of light from the perspective of your subject.
Photography Advice - From Beginner to Novice
August 13, 2008
Earlier this year, two separate things happened in my life that made me want to learn more about photography. First, my wife dropped the handy point and shoot camera that we’d had for a few years which rendered it useless. Second, this very same wife became pregnant with our first child.
So there I was, camera-less with our first child on the way. I couldn’t stand it. I talked it over with my good friend Bo (the guy who writes all the great photography and Photoshop articles for this site) and decided that I should get a nice digital SLR, a Canon XTi to be exact. That is how it all began; I had a nice camera, a strong motive, and practically no photography experience. I knew that I wanted to take nice photos of our baby girl (it’s a girl!), not to mention all the upcoming family gatherings, but I didn’t really know where to begin. The following is a brief overview of the steps I took to go from an absolute beginner to a novice photographer.
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