Much of my portrait and fashion photography is done on location, but living in a place like Colorado the models (and the photographer, too) just aren’t always in the mood to stomp around in the cold weather and snow. That’s when a studio comes in handy. Some photographers just prefer having complete control over the lighting. Instead of the hassle and cost of renting a studio, why not...
If you've been reading any of my articles recently, you're no doubt aware that I like lighting gear. I especially like studio flash generators, big pro flash lamp heads, heavy-duty movie set style Matthews "C" stands, giant...
What began as a story elicited so many responses that we've decided to continue it as a regular column. Here, technical representatives from manufacturers and suppliers share tips, techniques, thoughts, and photos with you. If you're a supplier...
When it comes to lighting tabletops, professional photographers often opt for the sweep table. A sweep table looks like an oversized chair, but, instead of cushions, it comes in an assemblage consisting of an upward curving, or ...
The heavily anticipated Paul C. Buff Celestial Light has given photographers who shoot on location and on the move a compact, reliable, and affordable lighting solution for their work.
Few people realize that photographic spot meters date back some 2/3 of a century. The very first was built by Arthur Dalladay, editor of The British Journal of Photography, in about 1935; he described it in the BJP Almanac of 1937 on pages 127-138. This meter still exists, in the possession of a...
"A lot of what we do as nature photographers is spend time looking around for places to go when the light is right," Tony Sweet says. And, once those places have been found, waiting around for the right light to put in an appearance.
I must admit that when I travel I usually don't bring along a lot of camera gear. Depending on my mood and how much I've been shooting before I travel, I can bring anything from a full medium format system with back up to a point-and-shoot 35.
Any time of year presents us with budding opportunities to shoot close-ups. We can find flowers any time of year, indoors--and possibly even outside. And we're not just limited to...
There's an old photographer's joke that goes: "If God invented light, then the devil invented fluorescent light." How times do change. With digital capture, fluorescent light can be your friend and I don't mean those long tubes hanging in lighting fixtures from the ceiling. I'm talking about a new breed of portrait lighting tools designed...
Have you ever looked at someone's outdoor vacation photographs and wondered who the subject was? The face was so dark you couldn't tell if it was your best friend. And don't you just hate those "raccoon eyes" portraits? You know what I mean; the ones...
If you are relatively new to photography and have only digital cameras along with newer digital-oriented versions of major accessories, everything you have should be compatible and work properly together. But if you have been actively involved with photography for many years through the film-based era, you undoubtedly have older accessories designed for use with film cameras that you would also...
The latest video from the Cooperative of Photography (COOPH) takes you on a psychedelic, three-minute journey on how to create some really amazing UV blacklight images. All you really need is some imagination and either a simple UV flashlight, lamp or specialized head for your flash unit.
In his new book, Wes Kroninger’s Lighting (ISBN: 978-1-608952-54-0, Amherst Media, $34.95 US), the author and photographer draws on his experience as a portrait, commercial, and editorial photographer to present strategies that will help photographers bring out the beauty and character in all of their subjects—from kids, to businessmen, to fashion models.