Portrait Tips: Don’t fight the light
Levi Sim
If you give a boy a hammer, everything looks like a nail and he will pound it. If you give a photographer a flash, everything looks like it needs to
REVIEWS
OCF
Portrait Tips: A chance with Patch
Levi Sim
The other day a fellow contacted me about a picture I made nearly ten years ago. He was an assistant to the master woodcarver and I spent a few minutes
Portrait Tips: How to use V-flats to light a group
Levi Sim
When you light a portrait, a good rule of thumb is that your light should be about the same size as your subject. That’s easy for a single individual where
First Look: Lume Cube AIR
Levi Sim
The new Lume Cube AIR is even more compact than the original and with a longer battery life. It has a powerful magnet on the back for mounting to any
Portrait Tips: How do you develop a style? Play more
Levi Sim
I’ll keep this one quick. Each time you make pictures you are developing your own style. At first, this may be mimicking the look of other photographs you’ve seen —
Gear Review: Fractals (Your New Must-Have)
Erin Holmstead
Fractals, people, are the new must-haves in my camera bag. I was introduced to Fractals at WPPI. My friend and fellow photographer, Kathy Mukhopadhyay, bought a set and mentioned that
Creating Effect and Mood with Light
Rick Friedman
When shooting a photograph, I often feel that I am creating a single frame from a movie. The star of the movie is the subject. With the use of backdrops,
How and Why to Use a Grid on a Softbox
Vanelli
In this video, I’ll show you the power of using a grid to further modify the light on a softbox. It creates mood and makes it simple to control the
Shooting with a Beauty Dish
Vanelli
From the course: Improving Your Photography and Portraits with Lighting Modifiers Shooting with a beauty dish from Improving Your Photography and Portraits with Lighting Modifiers by Robert Vanelli Course transcript
Portrait Tips: Why You Shouldn’t Use Auto White Balance
Levi Sim
I should have followed this rule the other day. I photographed 50 people in a row and I need to finish all of those pictures for delivery. It’d be a
Lights, Colors, Fractals
Rick Friedman
I shot this photograph at WPPI in Las Vegas a couple of weeks ago. I was at the ClickProps Studio Backdrops booth. This company makes over 500 backdrops in various
How to D.I.Y. a Snoot & Grid
Erin Holmstead
What is a snoot? A snoot is just a funny name for a piece of equipment, generally a tube or similar objects such as a conical, cylindrical, or rectangular shape,
Portrait Tips: Include the No-Look Look
Levi Sim
You can double the unique pictures you make during every shoot by utilizing the No-Look portrait. Most portraits include the subjects looking at the camera smiling. But every pose you
Photographic Test Kitchen: 3 Light Setup
Rick Friedman
Work made with 3 speed lights Here’s the equipment used to create this photograph: Nikon D810 Nikon 105mm Macro lens 3 Nissin Di700A speedlights Nissan Carbon Fiber Light Stand Nissan
Portrait Tips: Subtle Spice Not Ketchup
Levi Sim
When people see your picture, they should say, “Wow, that’s a great photograph,” not, “Wow, that’s a well-lit photograph.” Once you start using flashes, it’s like having a hammer in
Skating The Ramps With Platypod Max And MagMod
Bryan Esler
A few weeks ago, I stumbled upon a photo I selected for Photographer of the Day. It was of a skateboarder at a skate park, doing some tricks. Needless to
Gear Review: Impact Large Clip Clamp with Ball Head Shoe Mount (a.k.a., Justin Clamp)
Levi Sim
The very first lighting tool I ever bought was a Manfrotto Justin Clamp because Joe McNally highly recommended it in his books. I loved it and I’ve used it all
Mirrorless Camera Maniac: Amazing Speedlight Solution for All Cameras
Levi Sim
Once I realized that mirrorless cameras were more than capable of replacing my DSLR, I dove in head first and sold my Nikons. Ever since then, I’ve been saying that the
Minimal Lighting for Funeral Portraits
Levi Sim
Funerals are a good time to make family pictures because people who haven’t seen one another in decades are together. You should take advantage of the opportunity. I attended a
Want Natural-Looking Light? Use Gels.
Levi Sim
You need great light to direct attention to your subjects and help your photos appear natural. If you want to make great light with flashes, you need gels. Gels simply
Photography Projects – Expectation vs Reality
David J. Crewe
As anyone who’s been to WPPI can tell you, it’s pretty insane. Between the Classes, Expo Booths, Parties, Socials, After Parties, Dinners, and well…everything else that Las Vegas can throw