Brain Food: Three New Offerings

Over the last two weeks, three new educational items of interest have popped up on the radar. There are new video tutorials from Dave Honl and JoeyL, and John Harrington has evolved his Best Business Practices book into a magnum opus, 500+ page second edition. More on all three, and which ones may or may not be for you, inside.__________Best Biz 2.0Harrington's...

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A Filthy Language Primer, Courtesy Chase Jarvis

At first glance, this appears merely to be a very cool behind-the-scenes look at the high-speed flash shooting Chase did last month in New Zealand. Lotsa high-tech flash talk, impossible sequences, killer pics -- yadda, yadda, yadda.But the real takeaway here is of the etymological variety.To wit, the adjective "sick." Which, of course, means "good." (Back in my day we went with the much less confusing "bad" when we meant "good.")But what if something is really sick. As in, sicker than sick? That calls for the word, "filthy." And if it is filthier...

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Ray Flash vs. Orbis vs. AlienBees ABR800 Review, Pt. 1

Ring light has, for me, gone from a curiosity to what I consider to be an essential part of my lighting kit. I do not always use it when lighting people, but I always bring it. And I frequently end up using it -- but rarely as a main or only light. In this first of a two-part series comparing ring flashes, we'll be taking a look at the two direct competitors...

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PocketWizard Wraps Up Canon RF Noise Problem

If you have purchased (or are considering purchasing) one of the new PocketWizard TT5/TT1 remotes for the Canon system, keep reading. If not, save the electrons ... __________Surprised by not only the magnitude but the variable nature of radio frequency interference put out by some of the Canon flashes, PocketWizard has addressed the Canon flash RF issues with the release of the AC5 RF Soft Shield. It's basically an RF-blocking cloth shield which muffles the Canon flash noise and allows the TTL/HS sync-capable remote units to do their thing. It...

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On Assignment: Weed Eaters

I spent Tuesday afternoon shooting a fleet of all-terrain mowers in Herald Harbor, MD. Using goats instead of herbicides to clear land is growing in popularity, especially where runoff and watersheds are involved. And you have to admit, it is a pretty cool way to clear a monster patch of kudzu that has taken over a cliff.__________Brian Knox is the...

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Kevin Winzeler BTS vids: Big Lights, Small Lights

Got intro'd to Park City, Utah photographer Kevin Winzeler by a mutual friend last week and got a look at a couple of behind-the-scenes videos from his site. Nothing heavy today, no tutorial stuff. (Hey, it is Monday.) Just good block-and-tackle examples of what every commercial shooter should be doing as standard marketing in 2009. (And, of course, a little lighting pr0n for us.)The first one, above, is big-lights shoot of several MLS players in Salt Lake City. You have to pause the vid periodically to get an extended look at the results. But...

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International Gels; OCF Mags Galore at PhotoPlus Expo

Two quick updates on previous Strobist items today: First, the international rollout of the Strobist gel kits, and second, how to score one of many free Strobist OCF magnets at PhotoPlus Expo in New York this weekend. (More on both, after the jump.)__________First, on the gels, many of those of you who were looking at usurious international shipping...

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Lighting 101 in German and Polish, And a Solution for Blogger-Blocked China

Two more lovingly, hand-translated Lighting 101 .pdfs are linked after the jump. And in addition, a solution for readers in China, where the entire blogger platform is blocked in most areas.__________Dziękuję, and Danke!Polish is long overdue (these guys have been done for a while now) but I try to gang up language release posts for efficiency.Thanks to the polish translation team of Piotr Bizior, Bernard, Norbert Dąbkowsk, Michał Dulemba, Maciej Gajewski, Robert Grubba, Tomasz Kołtys, Adam Mikosz, Marcin Retecki, Jarosław Sikora, Piotr Slopnicki...

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Rob Galbraith Posts Full AB Einstein Spec Sheet

I have been in the email loop with Paul Buff on the upcoming "Einstein" monoblocs. And FWIW, they look to be pretty hot. But I was operating on the assumption that we were dealing in privileged info. Well, darned if Rob Galbraith didn't just let the cat right out of the bag. (I am pretty sure Rob checked it out with Paul first, 'cause Rob is a pretty...

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Consider Your Palette

As a lighting photographer, you have a significant amount of control over the tones and colors in your photos. How does that control affect your photography?Do you know? Do you care?A few thoughts, after the jump.__________Use of Color as a SignatureHow many times have you walked past a magazine at a newsstand and somehow knew who shot it before you...

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QnA: Big Group in a Big, Dark Room

Laaaate Wednesday night, Strobist reader Vicki Madden asked, via Twitter:"Need advice on big job on Friday -- large group in high school gym?"__________First of all, not even 48 hours before a "big job" is not the best time to be asking for vague advice. And using @Strobist on Twitter probably is not the best venue. (Try the Strobist Flickr group for...

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A Simple Idea to Improve Flash Photography

This is something that has been bouncing around in my mind for the last six months. It's simple, yet could improve the flash photos of every pro (and serious amateur) shooter.The beauty is, it even could be done retroactively for pro and prosumer cameras already in circulation via a simple firmware upgrade. And it could help Nikon flash shooters, whether...

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Alexx Henry, on Magazines and Motion

This whole convergence thing kinda makes my head explode a little -- especially with the lighting ramifications. We get a peek at exactly that in this "Living Magazine Spread," by Alexx Henry. In it, the whole crew -- continuous light and all -- has to keep up with a triathlon runner. Yikes.But for those of you interesting in the convergence of still and video, it's certainly worth five minutes. And if any magazines are still around in five years, they are gonna be awesome.-...

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Nuthin' But 'Net

This one's gonna make the rounds. Kelby and McNally, apparently having way too much free time on their hands, went and made a spoof of the classic Bird-Jordan McDonald's commercial.As for CLS believe-ability? They lost me at the Pepsi machine. But then, it is McNally, whose flashes work amazingly well -- unless he is trying to demo them for more than 50 people. Heh.And if you are under 30 and have not seen the original classic commercial, hit the jump (so to speak).__________These guys were amazing. Shame about Jordan's whine-athon Hall of Fame...

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On Assignment: Open Shade Opera Singer

I did a headshot of opera singer Curtis Bannister recently as part of my project with the local arts council. We worked outside in the shade to make a quick, makeshift studio -- using the ambient as our first light source.Shade, shade plus flash and my secret weapon for black-and-white conversions, inside.__________Shade is Your FriendI know I am broken...

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Team Strobist

First of all, thanks for reading! The fact that you are here is kinda critical to the whole process. And as such, I thought you might like a look into the ecosystem in which this blog exists.I started Strobist in 2006 as a way to pass along what I have learned about lighting to photojournalism students and young professionals. I had been a staff newspaper...

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Quick Heads-Up on the Mexico Workshop

The economy being what it is, full-week photo workshops are in general seeing slow sign-ups this season. And Santa Fe Workshops is certainly not immune to that.That said, I have just received a commitment from them that my small flash intensive is on for November 8-15 -- no matter whether we have a dozen people signed on, or half that amount. Props...

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