Creating a Simple Spray Light for Backgrounds
One of the ways to separate the subject from the background is to use a spray light. The light creates a 'halo' of light to dark behind the subject and helps make a flat background more dynamic. It is a fairly simple technique with a lot of variations possible. We can...
Creating an Ambient Look with Speedlights on Location: Tech Sheet
Here we are for our second Tech Sheet of the year. How to create a natural light look to a photograph when there is little to no ambient light to be had. We will be using a couple of speedlights for this Tech Sheet. It has been a wild first couple of weeks for me, and...
Using a Speedlight for Environmental Images that Pop
I have been working on a personal project, shooting some of the old mining towns in Eastern/Central Arizona. Sometimes I shoot natural light and sometimes I like to pull out my speedlights for a little drama. Let's take a look at some easy ways to add a sense of...
Working on the Edge of the Light: A Natural Light Assignment
Our Natural Light Assignment this week is a lot of fun and so easy to do. You only need a model or subject, a camera and lens, and a setting sun. And maybe a building or two... your call. These shots were taken in downtown Phoenix at a fun group shoot we were doing at...
Three Hot Shooters to Watch: Kate Orne, Nick Onken and Jake Chessum
Sometimes the fun of looking at images takes over and you just want to feast your eyes on pictures that amaze, involve, stimulate and motivate. The three photographers here are some of my favorites and I return again and again to their wonderful imagery. In particular...
25 New Images from the Lighting Essentials Pool
Well, the pool keeps gettin'g deeper, ya know. I was perusing it last night and realized how many incredible pics had been added recently. This pool is really rich with excellent photography. I want to build the forum up a bit, and if anyone has questions and such,...
Tech Sheet: Two Speedlights and the Sun for a Dramatic Portrait
Our first Tech Sheet of 2009 is kinda fun. I have been working on getting a client to approve a project I want to do and they did over the holidays. It will be a series of images of athletes and artists in environments that may not be their regular habitat. This image...
Welcome to the Best Year Ever! 2009 Will Rock!
Well, the last year of a strange and rocky decade draws to a close tonight. I know this past year has been an emotional roller-coaster for me as well as a very successful one with the workshops and the business. I hope you will join me in saying 'hasta la vista, baby"...
Real Simple Headshots on Location
Occasionally you may have a situation where you have to do a lot of images in a very short amount of time. These kinds of gigs can be a little disconcerting if you over think them and get caught in a web of setting up and production as time slips ever so quickly by. I...
The First Assignment: Pitfalls and Opportunities
Every photographer has a first assignment. There simply has to be one. The culmination of lots of hard work, a great portfolio and perhaps a little luck and there it is... a job. The first assignments can be very stressful or they can be a thrilling moment in the...
Tech Sheet – 12/19/08: Two Bare Speedlights for Drama
Today's tech sheet looks at using two speedlights for a dramatic headshot. We aren't doing anything really special, although I did modify a Gary Fong diffuser to give me a round light instead of the oblong/square light that a normal speedlight gives off. I wanted to...
One Setup, Two Different Shots (from the Archives)
Well this one is kind of fun. I found this in the archive box and remembered that it was a kinda fun little slide show. This "soundslide" offers a look into how I took a single lighting setup and shot it two ways. I use a big softbox often when I am working with...
25 Excellent Images From the LE Pool
Well, as the year grows to a close, I am happy to see so many wonderful images in the Lighting Essentials Flickr Pool. I went through the last 10 pages or so last night and found these excellent examples of using light to make a shot more interesting. They are all...
ON LOCATION: with Jerry OConnor, Jim Vigileos and Christina
Photographers in Phoenix like dramatic skies. We get so many days in a row of bright, blue that when it gets dark and moody up there some of us grab cameras. My friends Jim Vigileos and Jerry OConnor did that recently and along the way they grabbed Christina to add to...
Modeling the Light: A Model’s Role in Lighting
' Britney Spears "Kill the Lights! Don't be scared, make a move, see me now" A model has a role in lighting? What? Unheard of? Crazy? Not so much. A model has to do more than smile prettily and pose, she has to be aware of her environment, from the objects in place to...
One Light for a Highly Reflective Item
A simple product shot can sometimes present a lot of challenges for the photographer not used to thinking about reflected specular lighting. In this shot, the product is practically lit with specular reflection. There is very little direct light on the Hard Drive...
An Editorial Portrait Assignment on a Short Schedule
There are occasions when you need to work very, very fast and still deliver a shot that makes both client and subject happy. These types of shoots can be frustrating and challenging, but it keeps the adrenaline going and when it results in an image that everyone...
December 2008 Lighting Essentials Desktops
Here they are... a day late, but here nonetheless... Lighting Essentials Free Desktops. This time I will explain a little about the lighting so you can get some brain exercise as well as some fun desktops for your monitor. NOTE: Our schedule for the first half of next...
Let’s Do Some Lighting Today… (from the Archives)
Today's update is one from the archives, but it is still a great post you will enjoy. Even includes a 16 minute video... bad audio, but you will get the ideas from the shoot. We are doing better audio for our next releases, but this is what it is. I would like to take...
Shooting on the Beach with Two Speedlights and the Sun
This is a simple shoot that can have some very nice nuance as you work two speedlights into a shot with the sun as back/side light. Using two sources a bit apart can cause multiple shadows, so you have to be very careful to make sure they are not a problem. For this...
Cleveland Rocks: Dispatch From Beside Lake Erie
Thanks Cleveland. You guys made our last workshop of 2008 a great success. And that wasn't an easy job. Rain, thick clouds, wind, sleet, snow and temperatures that our desert bods were simply not used to didn't deter anyone from digging in and having a blast. We had a...
Tech Sheet 2, November 2008: Two Light Portrait
This weeks Tech Sheet features one of my favorite portrait techniques. In this shot I am using it as a bright, poppy front light with a very pronounced back "spray" light. It is an easy setup with lots of room for customization and personalization. It can be done with...
Clamshell Lighting for a Glamourous Headshot
Well we are back from the Cleveland workshop and it was amazing. Bright sun and clear skies were a super benefit... for someone somewhere... we had rain, wind, snow, rain, wind and cold. At least for Bri and I coming from the desert... We left Cleveland at about 28...
Using a Single Softbox with a Shiny Card for Headshots
Sometimes you just want a simple image, a headshot or a 3/4 image that has a very direct light to show the skin color, open the eyes and bring some vivid highlights to the person. I like the big softbox and how it can simply wash the person with a clean, bright light...
