The Concept Driven Lighting

Two photoshoots in one day, each one different from the other.

There was a time in my photographic career when my idea of a terrific lighting would always include an umbrella or a soft box.  It's a safe bet and you could almost never go wrong.  Everyone loves soft light.  It makes skin look creamier and softer because light virtually "wraps around" your subject, hiding some signs of aging and imperfections on almost anyone's skin.  Shadows blend smoothly to highlights, it's simply beautiful.

It's just a shame that a lot of photographers can't get past this stage.  To those, every light has to be soft.  I've seen a good number who would light in the same way whatever the concept is, wherever the location is and whenever the shoot is.  As if, it's the only lighting technique anyone needs to know.

Read more »

How Do You Photograph Rain?

I don't know how many of you have tried photographing rain, rain drops in particular.  But if you have, I'm sure that in your first attempts, you were wondering why it did not appeared in the picture.  And then you thought, maybe you need rain to pour harder so you waited for a heavier downpour and tried one more time - without much luck. 

So why doesn't rain appear in pictures? 

Read more »

An All Red Affair

The ability to solve problems on the spot will help you go through difficult photoshoot sets.  At this early stage of this blog it is probably worth mentioning that we did not worked in a fully equipped studio and we only had Canon Speedlite.  We did the photoshoot in a private residence, in a rearranged living room just to get enough plain background wall, and our lighting was nothing but Canon Speedlites with various modifiers.

Read more »

Light Dance

"A light-emitting diode (LED) (pronounced /ˌɛl iː ˈdiː/[1]) is a semiconductor light source. LEDs are used as indicator lamps in many devices, and are increasingly used for lighting. Introduced as a practical electronic component in 1962,[2] early LEDs emitted low-intensity red light, but modern versions are available across the visible, ultraviolet and infrared wavelengths, with very high brightness."

I could almost feel her excitement when she sent me that email from Osaka, Japan.  Air couldn't wait to get back to Doha to tell me about a new photoshoot concept.  She said she won't be able to sleep.  I thought, Wow!! - this concept must be really something to loose sleep.  Along with the email was a link to a  YouTube video of a rave dance routine, but it was too dark to really appreciate how this would look good in pictures - except for the moving blue lights, you could not see anything at all.  But I did got the idea of what she wanted to do. 

Read more »

Hard Lighting

Here's another photoshoot where I have broken 2 rules:

1. Do not shoot under direct sunlight to avoid hard shadows.

2. Soft, diffused light looks better on female subject.

Read more »

Against the Light

"Lady of the Woods" by alexdpx.  One Speedlite 580EX II behind the model. 

A great majority of photographers starting out with lighting will use one light, will have it positioned 45deg to either left or right of the camera horizontally facing the subject mounted at a certain height and 45deg pointing down to the subject.  In simple terms, a 45/45 setup or what is usually known as "the Rembrandt".  There is nothing wrong with this setup, in fact I have used it a hundred times and they always gave pleasant results.

Read more »

Why Flash Sync Speed Matters

I don't usually bother with camera settings.  Knowing the principles behind each control in my camera and how they work together is often enough for me and I just try to make adjustments on a case by case basis.  Every lighting condition is different and therefore requires different lighting strategies and adjustments.  Getting stuck to a formula or set of numbers is a very rigid way of working - you'll find it hard to adapt to situations most particularly when shooting outdoors.

Read more »

Shutter Speed Controls Ambient

First, a short review on the purpose of shutter speed and aperture to better understand what I am trying to say in this article.  Aperture controls how much light your sensor will be exposed to.  On the other hand, shutter speed controls how long you want your sensor to be exposed to that amount of light.

Read more »

Survivors - Weatherproof, Whenever, Whatever

 Survivor - this concept was the main reason for returning to Fuwairit.  We were hoping for a sunny day but rain clouds and natural breeze provided an even more dramatic effect. 

Bad weather, for most people, is bad news.  But bad weather never really stopped me from taking pictures, especially if it's something planned for some time.  All it does is present new lighting challenges.  Remember the first trip to Fuwairit, when the day was gloomy and ambient lighting was generally flat?  I solved that with off-camera flash.

Read more »

Pocket Sunlight

You can get away with available light most of the time, especially if you're doing a swimsuit shoot.  Oftentimes, these are done outdoors - by a swimming pool or at the beach.  For such situations, you'll probably only need reflectors and diffusion panels to have some control of sunlight.  Or even use direct sunlight.  Sunset would usually be an ideal time to shoot.  But sometimes, shoot schedules go beyond the planned time - and the sun will never wait for anyone.  It will simply set "as scheduled" and you will be left without sunlight.

Read more »

Brighten Up A Gloomy Day

Example 1 Photo 1.  A little blast of flash will turn dull daylight into a warm and wonderful picture.  Unmodified flash lighting positioned at a distance to the model and at minimal power rendered it barely noticeable in this shot yet revealed considerable details and warm color saturation.  I used a wide throw to illuminate the model' from head to toe.  Whatever light spills onto the rocks is not much of a concern since I'm shooting from a low angle.  See related photo below without flash and compare.

"Learn to light at any light."  That's the motto I learned from being a regular visitor at David Hobby's http://www.strobist.com/.  Since then, no lighting (or weather) condition is too dull or too harsh for me to take pictures.  All I need is 1 (sometimes 2) speedlite.  These little babies help transform what is otherwise a gloomy scene into a dramatic one - high in contrast and rich in colors.  I have taken pictures this way countless times - under the rain, a cloudy day, a foggy day, a dusty day . . . you name it.

Read more »

"AVAILABLE" Light

Cove lighting down to the floor in one of the museum's corners to highlight the texture of this feature wall made for a nice background - and lighting, of course.  The pose was Leah's idea.

Common knowledge tells us that available light is synonymous to ambient light.  While ambient light is beautiful, it is not always perfect and for this reason I chose to redefine the meaning of "available" light.  To me it is whatever light is at your disposal - including speedlites in my hands.

Read more »

Big Lights with Tiny Strobes

That MasterCard slogan has been permanently etched in my mind, you know, "There are things in life that money just can't buy. But for everything else, there's MasterCard." I find an analogy of it with lighting that would go like tnis --> "There are lighting situations when only big lights will do. But for everything else, small strobes will definitely do."

However, it's true. Sometimes a big light is what you really need to illuminate, say, a full body shot. 1 strobe and an umbrella is usually all I need to light a head shot - even a half body shot.  But a full body shot, especially that of a leggy model, will require to light up those lean long legs as well. Otherwise, what's the point of her showing off those legs if they're gonna be in the dark?

Read more »

What You Are Not Lighting

For someone who's just starting to learn about lighting, it is a common objective to pay much attention on how to light his photographic subject.  Much attention is given to where the light - or lights - should be positioned.  For this reason, a would-be strobist will typically have an umbrella or a softbox on top of his shopping list of lighting accessories - that's what I did.  Why?  Because we are so focused on achieving what on-camera flash cannot do - soft light.  It's simply amazing how much a person could be so beautifully photographed with soft light coming from an angle that is not the same as your camera's point of view.

Read more »

Fashion and Portrait Shoot . . . with Available Light

Indoor photoshoot session with nothing but a standard sized window with drapes as light-source.

"Catch The Light" was the title of this DPSC workshop and photoshoot with our own Bench D. Yrac as guest speaker and facilitator.  While the photoshoot involved the use of a model, the focus of both workshop and photoshoot was how to use available light effectively.  I don't mind shooting fashion or portraits with available light - in fact this is what I always look for in an environmental photoshoot mostly - but that would almost always be accompanied by at least one artificial light (strobe) that I can literally control.

Read more »

Lighting To Suit Subject and Mood

I think that every photographer has a magic formula for lighting - you know - that particular setup that always works and is always the first one he pulls out of his "bag of tricks".  I do.  But there comes a time when you are presented with something different - something that calls for a different strategy.

After 3 years since learning about strobes and lighting in general, a vast majority of my photographic subjects have been beautiful women - model types.  I can now light them in a snap and direct with confidence.  I've done a few male portraits but they are more of the corporate and formal type of portrait.  Headshots and full body shots in casual or formal clothing. 

Read more »

Lighting A House Party

Many people, even the casual party snappers, are now aware of the horrible results direct flash gives.  And so with this, people will either shoot without flash or just put-up with with direct flash.  Either way, results cand't be that good.  Without flash, you get the risk of blurry pictures.  With direct flash . . . well, need I say more?

Read more »

Believable Light

"Have a cup" by alexdpx

Everyone - or at least almost everyone - is into off-camera flash photography these days.  It 's the new thing.  "Hey, you're a strobist!!  Great!!" 

Read more »

Exploring Possibilities 2 - Alternative Lighting

Mrs. Alexdpx's spanking brand new Bose Soundock II speakers for iPOD.

This is my wife's new Bose Soundock II speakers for iPod. She wanted a picture of it simply for posting to her Facebook - to show off to her friends. However, I wanted to do more than just a snapshot. It's a Bose speaker . . . a premium product, a premium brand . . . why would I just want to do a snapshot? It's a beautiful piece of gadget, it deserves something better. Well, I still did the snapshots she requested and below is one that turned out decently. After taking a few snaps, its shiny silver finish presented some problems in lighting - especially when the shot is impromptu and has to be done on top our dining table while she was testing it.

Read more »

Exploring Possibilities

Red cloth used by the store owner to cover his items.

During a recent photowalk in Souq Waqif, I noticed this nice red piece of cloth used as a cover for some antique items for sale. What caught my eyes is its vibrant color and texture. Immediately, I thought that this would make a nice photographic background. Then I noticed that myself and my companions are in an entrance to a hallway and diffused natural light is shining beautifully onto the hallway.

Read more »