MEMBER EXCLUSIVE – Lighting Tutorial – Gels – Part 1 & 2
This 40 minute class will cover everything you need to know about color effects gels!
Read details
Photo Critique with Gary Hughes
After doing a critique for Gary’s YouTube channel a few weeks ago, we decided to record one for mine, which I will post publicly next week.
Read details
Quasi-Exclusive: Transitioning from window light to flash – a beginners guide to portrait lighting
This video will help you learn essential techniques with basic equipment to create and control artificial light, so that you don’t have to worry about the weather or the time of day.
Read details
Soft boxes, parabolic modifiers and umbrella shootout! Which modifier for perfect portrait lighting?
Over the last 20 or so years, I have acquired about 20 different softboxes, but I have never actually sat down and tested them out in the studio, one at at a time, to determine the quality of light produced by each modifier when shooting portraits.
Read details
Are grids worth the money? When and why should you use them in the the studio and on location?
Watch as I unbox my new Billingham 445 (https://amzn.to/32igLwq) camera bag and move out of my old Think Tank Photo Retrospective 30 2.0 (https://amzn.to/2QrsweN) messenger bag.
Read details
Hair Light 101. Everything you need to know about hairlights.
Part of making a refined image in the studio is lighting your subject to preserve details in their hair or operate them from the background. In today’s video, I will teach you everything you need to know about hair lights. Including which modifiers to use, where and how to mount them plus how bright your lights should be.
Read details
Behind-the-scenes and lighting tutorial – four looks from my photoshoot with Justin
In today’s lighting tutorial, I’m going to breakdown four looks that I created with our model Justin.
Read details
4 amazing one-light set-ups in only 10 minutes!
What’s my motivation? is a refrain that we often hear from actors, but that phrase can mean a lot to photographers, too. Especially when I am trying to simulate natural light.
Read details
Which Mola for your moolah? Comparing three different beauty dishes during a portrait photoshoot
Three years ago I bought a Mola Setti and Rayo 15″ beauty dishes, because I wanted to upgrade from my Profoto Silver Softlight. While it was a step-up, I had no idea what I really had until I tested them a few weeks ago against my friends Mola Demi with an Opal diffusion disc.
Read details
The 10 portrait lighting mistakes that every new photographer makes
Whether your new to lighting or you have been doing it for over 20 years, everybody started off in the same place and everybody made a bunch of mistakes. So if you’re just starting out and you do any of the things I’m about to talk about I’m not mentioning these things to make you feel bad and I’ve made all of these mistakes and occasionally I still make them.
Read details
Why you shouldn’t use continuous LED lights for portrait photography
I actually think the AF in this camera works quite well. And I have owned a 1, 1n, 1VHS, 1D, 1D II, 1D III, 1DX2 and every 5D camera, and I’ve used many of them to shoot sports at a very high level.
Read details
What the hell is a kicker? What’s a key light? The names photographers use for studio lights.
Everyone has a name for every position where they place a flash on location and in the studio. But not everyone agrees on every name and this jargon can be sort of confusing.
Read details
B&W Lighting Tutorial – Use multiple lights to create maximum contrast so your portraits stand out!
After upgrading to the Canon EOS R5 I ran into problems in Lightroom Classic so I decided to try Capture One. So far I am loving the results. This video will compare and contrast the two programs from my perspective as a commercial studio photographer.
Read details
6 Portrait Photographers shootout in Las Vegas with the same model & Elinchrom ELC 500 / 125 lights
To celebrate the launch of the new ELC 125 and ELC 500 compact studio strobes, Elinchrom gathered together six amazing photographers and challenged them to shoot the same model in the same studio using the new ELCs.Elinchrom’s new studio flashes add High Speed Sync (HSS) and TTL to the manufactures compact monolight plug-in-the wall line-up.
Read details
The 4 types of gels photographers can use to kill it in the studio
The sun rises in the east with a hint of yellow; it casts unflattering colorless light at its zenith and it sets with a warm amber glow. Neon accents cityscapes at night. All of which are cues to photographers on how to employ colored gels on set.
Read details
The hard truth about softboxes
Breaking down how I use my 14 softboxes to modify my lights during my photoshoots
Read details
DIY Cucoloris for Photographers and Filmmakers made with black foamcore, Do-it-yourself
You can buy a professionally made one, or you can make your own for just a few dollars in about an hour.
Read details
The 9 types of portrait lighting photographers need to know-whether they’re on location or in studio
Studio lighting staples that every photographer should master.
Read details
THREE STUNNING ONE LIGHT SETUP LIGHTING TUTORIALS USING V-FLAT WORLD V-FLATS
Creating this studio lighting series was a lot of fun! The challenge was to create three dynamic portraits using one Elinchrom light and modifier, plus two V-Flat World V Flats! Featuring model David Horton.
Read details
The Difference Between Photography Lighting Power Packs, Monolights & Compact battery powered units!
I was recently asked what the difference is between AC Powered Studio Packs & Heads, Monolights and Battery Powered Compact photo flash heads. We will also touch on flash duration too! Hopefully this is the right answer, but if I am wrong, please comment below!
Read details
Getting Started: a Beginners Guide to Portrait Lighting gear
If you’re new to photography or just getting into portrait lighting you’re probably wondering where to begin. This video will cover the lights, modifiers and accessories you need to get started.
Read details
Why I love Aputure’s LED 120D and 300D lights for video
When I started shooting video I had to use fluorescent banks & giant hot lights. But when I replaced everything with LEDs, I could light like a photographer again!
Read details
Lighting Tutorial: The Circle of Light
You never know where you’re going to find the inspiration for your next photoshoot, so it’s always best to keep your eyes peeled and your mind open.
Read details
Lighting Tutorial: It’s a Hardbox Light
Over time, I have seen many images where a pattern is projected onto someone’s face, and I’ve always struggled to simulate this type of lighting. My attempts usually resulted in poorly defined shapes and not the sort of razor-sharp edges I was expecting.
Read details
Light Years: How my Lighting Gear Evolved Over Time
Over the course of my career I have used White Lightning, Elinchrom, Alien Bees and Profoto lights. I wanted to share with you today why I switched and what I learned along the way.
Read details
Fashion Photography: DIY Light Saver
Adapting the look of LED or Fluorescent tube backgrounds for still photography with a DIY approach using softboxes, a v-flat, a knife and three Profoto lights.
Read details
Fill is not a person, but he is your friend
As photographers we might obsess about this modifier or that one, believe me I have, but often times we fall short when it comes to shadow detail. This is something I struggle with from time to time when shooting in a new room and every shoot poses its own set of problems, so the purpose of this post is to share some basic concepts that I hope will help you maximize dynamic range and develop more details in your depictions.
Read details
Making a custom Cucoloris to create dramatic portraits
After being inspired by Sophie Palmer’s portrait depicting boredom with a Catholic priest inside the confession booth, below, I decided to try my hand at projecting divine patterns on model Alex Mitchell’s face by making a custom Cucoloris.
Read details
Elinchrom vs Profoto: Why I Own 4 Octaboxes
If you were expecting a side-by-side head-to-head comparison of these modifiers, this review is not for you. Over the course of 10 or so years I have owned 6 different octaboxes made by Profoto, Elinchrom and Photoflex. I will discuss below why I changed horses midstream to arrive at where I am today and how I felt about using each modifier.
Read details
Should photographers care about modifier color temperatures when shooting portraits?
After buying three new softboxes I had two questions: 1. What are the color temperatures of all of my modifiers? 2. Do Kelvin temperature shifts really matter?
Read details
