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
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Photofocus Team
Sometimes you might not have a plethora of lights and other modifiers at your disposal. But you can still make great, impactful images using just one light source. Whether it
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: Waterfalls and speedlights
Levi Sim
What’s not to love about making portraits in front of waterfalls? Beautiful place, beautiful people, water spraying your camera, nothing going the way you had in mind — it’s a
Quick Tip: Use a fill flash to reduce shadows
Bryan Esler
When shooting in the hot sun, you will often run across situations where you have a lot of shadows on your subject. To get around this, try using a fill
The recipe for balancing natural light with flash
Vanelli
Balancing natural light with flash isn’t complicated — once you have the ingredients and know the recipe!
Nighttime actions shots with the kids
Erin Holmstead
I don’t know what it is about nighttime, but that seems to be the time when my brain is the most creative. Maybe it’s due to the fact that all
Utilizing a Fill Flash During Bright, Sunny Conditions
Bryan Esler
Oftentimes we can’t schedule our photoshoots around perfect sky conditions. Especially during the summer, the long days and high sun becomes challenging, leaving you guessing at having clouds in the
Creating Dynamic Portraits with Sparklers
Levi Sim
Happy Independence Day! You’ve got a terrific opportunity to make some fun portraits with fireworks. Kids love sparklers, and when you show them what you can do with sparklers, flash
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
Quick Tip: How to Get Rid of the Black Gradient at the Bottom of My Photo
Bryan Esler
When using studio strobes or a hot shoe flash, you might come across a black gradient at the bottom of your images. This happens when you have too fast of
What is a Softbox?
Vanelli
A softbox is a term that describes an enclosure that surrounds a light source on all sides and diffuses the light that escapes from it. Watch this video to learn more about light modifiers.
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,
Using Speedlights for Glamorous Clamshell Lighting
Erin Holmstead
Have you ever walked down the makeup aisle at a store and just stared at the images? Trying to understand what lighting setup they used to light that model/celebrities face?
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
Avoiding the Harsh, Direct Flash Look
Bryan Esler
One of the biggest reasons why I don’t like pop-up flashes is that it gives uneven, harsh lighting directed at your subject. Even with an on-camera speedlight, the same effect
Mirrorless Camera Maniac: Hallelujah! Lr Update Includes Picture Styles For Lumix
Levi Sim
Update: I’ve changed the title of this article for those who are jumping to conclusions without reading the body. Lightroom has always supported RAW files for Lumix cameras as well