photography – Page 8 – Gavtrain.com

Food Photography Workshop

One area of photography that you may not know that I work in is food photography. You’ll rarely see any food photos on this blog but there’s plenty over at Sams Kitchen, which is the blog run by my wife Sam.

Sam is a food writer and recipe creator and also a darn good food photographer. Her work regularly appears in various foodie magazines as does her (and my) photos.

A few weeks back we ran a food photography workshop and will be running it again on the 13^th June… Details of the next food photography workshop are here.

The workshop was aimed at bakers who wanted to improve their food photography and photographers who wanted to learn the real basics of how the camera worked whilst photographing some great looking baked goodies.

The day was great fun with Sam demoing various food set ups and style tips, whilst I ran around answering camera questions and running through some really quick and simple post processing trick in Photoshop Elements.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ziA0gCr2X28[/youtube]
It was really great to see people getting excited about food photography and discovering how really simple changes in styling and shooting made huge improvements to the photos.

If you’d like to get involved in the next workshop visit www.samskitchen.net/?page_id=1682 for more information.

Making The Most of Motivated Lighting

Motivated light is a term that’s more normally used in the world of the movies but there’s no reason for us stills photographers not to be aware of it and use it to create some great effects.

So what is motivated light? Put simply if you can see (or think you can see) the source of the light that’s illuminating the scene, you’re looking at a motivated light. But there’s a bit more to it than that.

Usually I go to great lengths to avoid seeing my lights in the shot, especially if the light is directed towards the camera lens. Even a tiny edge of light in the frame can play havoc with contrast and flare. If I have to see a light I can minimise flare by turning the power right down but then it doesn’t produce the light needed to get the exposure right. So how can I have the motivated light source in the scene and keep control of the exposure?

The answer is… I cheat!

In the video below I’ll look at two ways to create motivated light. The first way is in camera by teaming a low powered flash with a high powered flash that’s out of shot but in the same direction. The second way is by creating the effect in Photoshop.

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6sZlhhe3h4[/youtube]

Of course motivated light doesn’t have to be done like this and by definition motivated light can be something as simple as a window or room light that’s in the shot. So the chances are you have used motivated light in the past without even knowing it.

Model: Kerry Allingham
Make-Up: Anna Matos

Gear used in this video

Canon 5D Mark III www.adorama.com/ICA5DM3.html?KBID=67338

Canon EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM Lens www.adorama.com/CA24105AFUC.html?KBID=67338

Flashpoint Light Stand www.adorama.com/FPLS9.html?KBID=67338

Black Rapid RS-7 Strap www.adorama.com/BRRS7.html?KBID=67338

Flashpoint StreakLight 360 Ws Creative Collection www.adorama.com/FPLFSL360K2.html?KBID=67338

Sekonic L-308S Flashmate www.adorama.com/SKL308S.html?KBID=67338

Flashpoint Zoom Li-on Manual On-Camera Flash http://www.adorama.com/FPLFSMZL.html?KBID=67338

Smoke Machine Background

One of the draw backs of working in any studio is the finite nature of the backgrounds you can work with during a shoot. Of course if you’re handy at a bit of DIY you can build your own sets and create some amazing backgrounds but that takes time and besides, carpentry isn’t one of my strongest skills as you’ll see when I made my current studio background.

So what can you do to quickly change the background? Well I have a bunch of different fabrics which work really well but as you’ll see in this video, nothing beats the smoke machine for effect and downright fun!

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LvLjiahVBrs[/youtube]

That shoot was part of a series I shot with a Fortune Teller theme and the smoke machine was perfect for the background, as the smoke builds up, the effect changes from a slight haze to thick fog.

The smoke is a whitish/blueish colour so to get the full effect of the smoke you’ll need a dark background and ideally a light to illuminate the smoke from either the side or back.

Adding a splash of colour to the fog is as easy as popping a coloured gel on the flash that illuminating the fog. In this case I added a red gel to the flash on the right and increased the saturation of the natural blue colour of the fog in Photoshop.

Too much smoke can ruin the shot by reducing contrast, especially if you light it from the front. For that reason I keep any smoke shots until the end of the shoot.

Finally it’s worth checking that the smoke “juice” is water based to avoid leaving a residue all over your studio and is non toxic… pretty obviously. The smoke builds up pretty quickly so also keep a check on the model and anyone else in the studio. At the first sign of problems get some fresh air.

Model: Kerry Allingham
Make-Up: Anna Matos

Gear used in this video

Canon 5D Mark III www.adorama.com/ICA5DM3.html?KBID=67338

Canon 50mm f/1.8 II www.adorama.com/CA5018AFU.html?KBID=67338

Flashpoint Light Stand www.adorama.com/FPLS9.html?KBID=67338

Black Rapid RS-7 Strap www.adorama.com/BRRS7.html?KBID=67338

Flashpoint StreakLight 360 Ws Creative Collection www.adorama.com/FPLFSL360K2.html?KBID=67338

Sekonic L-308S Flashmate www.adorama.com/SKL308S.html?KBID=67338

Flash Duration To Freeze Action

One of the many amazing things you can do with flash is use it to stop fast moving things in their tracks. Unlike working with a continuous light it’s not the shutter speed that freezes the action, it’s the tiny amount of time that the flash lasts… its duration.

Basically it works like this. The more light you need the longer the flash duration, so reducing the flash power shortens the flash duration and increases it’s freezing power.

Different flashes produce very different flash durations and older design studio heads worked in a very different fashion but if you take a standard speedlight as an example, it will have a flash duration of around 1/200th second at full power and 1/10,000 sec at minimum power.

In the video below I put the theory into practice by bumping two wine glasses together and photographing the results with different flash powers

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WwcFbRUfHkk[/youtube]

In case you’re wondering, the wine glasses are made of plastic and I drilled two tiny holes in each to attach them to the fishing line.

Gear used in this video (Links to Adorama)

Canon EOS 60D Digital SLR Camera Body Kit

Canon EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM AutoFocus Wide Angle Telephoto Zoom Lens

Flashpoint Zoom Li-on Manual On-Camera Flash

Vanguard Alta Pro 284 Carbon Tripod

Universal Swivel Holder

Flashpoint Pro Air Cushioned Heavy Duty Light Stand

My Photography Show 2015 Schedule

There’s only two weeks to go until The Photography Show opens its doors at the N.E.C. in Birmingham and I can’t wait. Running from the 21^st – 24^th March, it’s the UK’s biggest and busiest photography show and it’s packed to the roof with major photographic suppliers and small independent retailers.

But this isn’t just another trade show, there’s also loads of things to see and do. There’s a constant stream of live demos and talks from some of the best photographers in the UK and beyond, there’s also hands on workshops and masterclasses.

I’ll be there for the whole four days giving various talks and demos on Photoshop, Lighting and Photography. If you’re coming along it would be great to meet you and the best place to find me is at one of my talks either in the Adobe theatre, the Guild of Photographers “speakers corner” or in the Behind the lens theatre.

Saturday

10.15 am	Adobe theatre	Video Editing In Photoshop
1.00 pm	Behind the lens	Take & Make Great Photos
2.30pm	Guild of Photographers J75	Fearless Flash Photography
3.30 pm	Adobe Theatre	Make your photos look amazing with Photoshop

Sunday

10.15am	Adobe theatre	Video Editing In Photoshop
2.30 pm	Guild of Photographers J75	Fearless Flash Photography
3.30 pm	Adobe Theatre	Make your photos look amazing with Photoshop

Monday

10.15 am	Adobe theatre	Make your photos look amazing with Photoshop
12.30 pm	Adobe theatre	Hidden gems in Photoshop for photographers
2.30 pm	Guild of Photographers J75	Fearless Flash Photography

Tuesday

11:00 pm	Adobe theatre	Make your photos look amazing with Photoshop
1.15 pm	Adobe theatre	Hidden gems in Photoshop for photographers
2 pm	Adobe theatre	Video Editing In Photoshop
3 pm	Guild of Photographers J75	Fearless Flash Photography

All my demos are free and available on a first come first served basis. There’s no need to book but as the Adobe theatre in particular has limited seating I’d recommend getting there early!

Show tickets are free for professional photographers and the trade (if booked in advance) and £13.95 for enthusiasts (£18.00 on the door)

Controlling reflections in glasses

So you’ve got the lights, you have your model and you’re ready to shoot. Then you take a test photo and all you see is huge white reflections. It’s a problem that happens all too often but fortunately there are a couple of solutions that are quick, easy and effective.

Let’s start with the simplest solution. Get your subject to remove their glasses. It sounds obvious but it’s surprising how many photographers don’t have the nerve to ask. Whilst this can work wonders with occasional spec wearers, anyone who wears glasses full time will look most weird without their specs on. It’s also not going to work with the cool crowd who wear sunglasses all year round.

If you’re using flash or continuous light the chances are the reflections are likely to be from your lights and where you position the lights will affect the reflections you see in the photo.

Light from the front (including on camera flash) will produce the biggest, brightest and least attractive reflections. Because light travels in straight lines it’s going to hit the front of the spectacle lenses and bounce right back in to the camera. This really is one lighting position to avoid.

Knowing that light travels in straight lines means that moving the light source to the side will move reflection. Here the light is at about 45 degrees and the result is a reflection that’s much reduced in size.

Taking the idea a bit further, if the light is fully 90 degrees to the glasses results in a tiny reflection but also produces a split light effect which might not be the look you’re after. If you look really close you’ll still see a slight reflection. Why? Well the surface of glasses isn’t flat like a window, it’s curved so you’re never at a 90 degree angle across the whole surface of the lens.

To minimise and remove reflections the best position for the light is up high. By elevating the light the reflections will disappear and the lighting pattern remains flattering too. Asking the model to drop their chin or slightly angle the glasses down can have a similar effect.

In the video below I go through all of the tips in this post in more detail and even give you some tips on how to add a reflection of your own choosing.

[youtube]http://youtu.be/kOzPWkkmZPE[/youtube]

Gear used in this video

Canon 5D Mark III www.adorama.com/ICA5DM3.html?KBID=67338

Canon 50mm f/1.8 II www.adorama.com/CA5018AFU.html?KBID=67338

Flashpoint Light Stand www.adorama.com/FPLS9.html?KBID=67338

Black Rapid RS-7 Strap www.adorama.com/BRRS7.html?KBID=67338

Flashpoint StreakLight 360 Ws Creative Collection www.adorama.com/FPLFSL360K2.html?KBID=67338

Sekonic L-308S Flashmate www.adorama.com/SKL308S.html?KBID=67338

Westcott Rapid Box 26″ Octa Softbox www.adorama.com/WERB26OM.html?KBID=67338

Softbox Size vs Soft Light

One of the primary uses of a softbox is to give soft lighting, but with so many sizes available, which one should you use?

The answer in part comes from the classic rule with soft lighting which is this. The bigger the light source (relative to the subject) the softer the light produced. In other words bigger softboxes give softer light and as long as your softbox is close to your subject that holds true. To test it out I got my 28″ Parapop softbox from Adorama, a medium sized softbox and borrowed a giant 7′ Westcott umbrella softbox.

You can see this in action in the three photos above. In each shot the distance from light to the model was 1 meter and the light was metered at f/8. Notice how the shadows blend in with the highlights as the softbox size increases and that’s soft light in action.

Now remember I said the softness of light is also relative to the subject size. Well here’s what happens if you zoom out and shoot a larger, full length portrait. Once again the distance and settings are the same in all shots.

Look at the shadow behind the model. With the small and medium sized softboxes you’ll see a sharper, harder edge to the shadow then the big softbox. You’ll also see that the smaller softbox gives a smaller spread of light compared to the more even illumination of the large softbox.

So if you want to shoot full length portraits with soft light then an oversized softbox is one answer but it has another use to. Unless you want to spend time in Photoshop cloning out the light you’ll need to back it up. Moving the light away from the subject makes it that much smaller and therefore harder. Oversized softboxes allow you to get soft light without the source being in the scene.

Take a look at this video where I cover all of this and more.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a-rAnxVX9kE[/youtube]
Of course there are a few downsizes to large softboxes, one of which is the lack of directional control. In the video above I add some control using Photoshop but in the next video I’ll add it to the light.

Gear used in this video

Tips for buying a camera

With the January sales either looming or already here, you might be considering buying a new camera. Now I’m not going to tell you which brand and model of camera you should choose as there are countless options out there and not one of them is right for everyone. However here are some things to consider when buying a camera

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_P_3lgXYkpM[/youtube]

The two most important questions are…
What sort of photography will you be mostly shooting?
How much do you want to spend?

Answer those and your search can begin in earnest.

There are basically four types of digital camera. DSLR, Compact System camera (CSC), Bridge Camera and Mobile phone. All types have their pro’s and cons

If you’re want the best quality images then DSLR is probably the way to go. If you’re after great quality but with less bulk the CSC is the answer for you. Need portability and flexibility? Then a Bridge camera could be the answer. If you just want a point and shoot then the mobile phone ticks that box.

Don’t forget the lens. If you’re buying a DSLR or CSC then you’ll need to budget for a lens or two. When it comes to image quality the lens you use can make a bigger difference then the camera it’s attached to.

Bridge cameras are famed for their super long zoom lenses but often that comes at the expense of a true wide angle. The lens is built into the camera so make sure it can do what you want before you buy one.

Mobile phones can get a hard life inside pockets and bags. Before you take a photo check the lenses is clean and scratch free.

Whatever style of camera you choose and whatever name is printed on the front, remember it’s the person behind the camera that makes truly great photos happen.

Photo Quiz 2014

Test your camera and Photoshop knowledge with 15 questions. At the end of the quiz you’ll be given a score based on how man errors you make
NOTE: Click the arrows to move from question to question.
[mtouchquiz 4]

Red Riding Hood Photo Shoots

You probably already know the story of Red Riding Hood, it’s a timeless fairy tale about a girl and a big bad wolf. It’s also a popular subject for photography and something I wanted to take on too.

Traditionally the Red Riding Hood story takes place in the woods but I’m lucky enough to have access to my own studio space and that’s where I started. I also had a can of fake falling snow, which is actually foam and a home made red velvet cape.

For my Red Riding Hood I called upon the services of local model Fern Meave who was amazingly talented and suited the role perfectly. For the lighting I went with my two Streaklights, a small beauty dish and some coloured gels.

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8t29AbUGJJg&list=PL821B7D720DEA39FA[/youtube]

Fun as the studio shoot is it’s never going to be the same as shooting on location in the woods. So for the second video that’s exactly what we did.

Weeks of planning went into the shoot but the weather was out of our control and sure enough on the day of the shoot the sky was grey and it was freezing cold. None the less we pressed on with the shoot and in the video I also pass on plenty of tips for balancing flash with low levels of ambient light.

Fern was my model once again but this time I swapped my Streaklights for a more powerful Rovelight which I reviewed a few weeks back. As it turned out I didn’t need the extra power of the Rovelight but that’s the weather for you

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ywShIOcqLBU[/youtube]

Below a few photos from the shoots which you can see in more detail by clicking.