I found that the best way to use strobes is to either bounce it, diffuse it further, or even both. I would use that rule at any setup, with some adjustments depending on the concept itself. Here I will be talking about different ways of using your lights, which will keep your body of work looking consistent yet diverse.
If you’re a portrait photographer, you know how important it is to master posing, especially if you work with clients who are not professional models. As a portrait photographer specialized in maternity portraits, my eye is trained to look for poses and angles that flatter every woman’s body shape while showing the belly and the curves of pregnancy.
You can create your own magic anywhere you want with a battery-powered light and a small softbox or umbrella. When shooting outside, I love using the sun as my hair light and a softbox as my main light. No matter how bright the natural light is, placing the sun behind your subject will either create a subtle rim light on a cloudy day or a brilliant one on a sunny day.
As photographers, one of the things we gravitate to is light. Makes sense right? Light is the foundation of an image. How you use light is what starts to help you develop your identity as a photographer.
So many elements and considerations go into the physical aspects of posing, from facial expression to the point of the toe. It’s all important, but that’s not what I am going to cover in this article. I won’t bore you with the usual posing tricks and principles taught in most basic photography blogs or tutorial videos on the internet.
Back in July I wrote the article on five tips for shooting the Milky Way.. In it we covered the basics of shooting this beautiful piece of our galactic home. I talked about gear, planning, safety, settings and how to set your focus for tack-sharp stars. Now I’m going to explain how to add a human subject into your Milky Way images.
Let’s start with the why. Why would you ever want to shoot in high-speed sync? Well, for starters, we have to understand a little about our cameras and how they work. In order for flash and cameras to work together, they have to be working at the same speed. Think about the light coming from your flash like a car speeding down the highway
Join top photographer Sal Cincotta in this free video where he helps you make the most out of your studio portraits with one light.
Go behind the scenes of Sal Cincotta's photoshoots and final images. Learn about the lighting, posing, editing and most importantly, the challenges faced creating the image.
Although you can simply take any color image and convert it to grayscale, I get the best results if I walk into a shoot knowing the final outcome will be black & white. I allow this to dictate my lighting and color choices, which translate into shades of gray and tonality. It’s crucial to understand what would work better in black & white or color, and this is something that can be mastered with practice.
