How to: Track Ambient Automatically While Using Manual Flash

Here's a cool tip that some of you might not know about. If you are using manual flash (for consistency) you can still work in a quasi-auto mode in an environment where the ambient light level may be moving around on you.

It works great for using manual flash against fast-dropping light after sunset, for instance. And you can control the flash and ambient very easily from your camera. Read more »

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A Special Note for Multilingual Readers

UPDATE: Okay, it is not perfect. Not even close. But it is helping enough people so that I decided to leave it in. Use at your own risk, and I hope it helps!

-DH
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I have added a machine-driven Google translate module to the site, in the drop-down menus on the right. Alas, I have no way of judging how good it is, and it obviously will not be great. And my heavy use of colloquial English will not help matters.

Question is, is it serviceable or is it so bad as to be laughable? I would note that you can improve any translation by holding your mouse over it for a couple of seconds.

I will decide after one week, based on your comments below. It is an all-or-none thing -- we can't cherry pick the languages. But please help me decide by giving it a try and leaving a comment. It can be as simple as the language tested, and a rating from 1 (awful) to 10 (wonderful).

If you are one of the people who are reading this in email or RSS, please click through to the main site and give it a whirl.

Thank you!

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On Assignment: Radio Silence

Last Friday I went out just before sunset to set up and shoot a lit photo of the Wilkins-Rogers flour mill in Ellicott City, MD. It's a behemoth of a building (at least by our local industrial standards) and I was shooting a exterior for their new website.

My plan was to sculpt the building on the rear 45's with flash. And to balance everything (flash, ambient dusk and interior lighting) for a cool, mixed image. At least that was the plan going in.

Instead, this post is about what happens when things head south quickly. Read more »

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JoeyL is on Ovation TV Tonight

UPDATE: The doc has aired, and Joey has posted a ton of pictures and background info on his blog. Neat stuff, and definitely worth a look.
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Just a quick heads-up to make sure to catch JoeyL's documentary tonight at 10pm on Ovation TV. I saw an early version, and it is definitely worth your time.

It's easy to want to poke fun at someone who is so successful at such a young age. And between you and me I try to every chance I get. But if you watch this thing tonight I think you will come away with a good impression of who he really is and what is motivating him to do such amazing stuff.

If you do not get Ovation TV, he has arranged for a DVD pressing and will have them available via his blog. No idea on pricing, etc. (And w/Joey, you really never know...)

But if you have access to Ovation TV, don't miss it. I am very much looking forward to it tonight.

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Meet the New Neighbors

The area where I live has been overrun by Halyomorpha halys, AKA stink bugs. They are invasive (from Asia) have no predators in this region and are … everywhere. They even became an issue in coaching Ben's soccer game last sunday.

"If one lands on you and you have the ball or are closely defending someone, just let it crawl around on you. It won't hurt you. You can flick it off when the ball is in another part of the field…"

They are a little over 1/2" long, and mobile. I photographed one for a local photo project earlier this week, using a very simple light diffuser / bug restraint device that works well for anything very small -- moving or not. Read more »

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David E. Jackson's Creepy Circus Salon Shoot

So, if you were looking to shoot a campaign for a local hair salon you'd probably be running down some questions in your mind as you worked up your concept. Here are two of the questions Wisconsin-based photographer David E. Jackson asked:


1. Can it be dark and creepy? Yes.

2. Can it involve knives? Yes.

(His answer: "Hells, yes. Sign me up!")
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This whole campaign is 5% budget and 95% bootstrapped inspiration, which makes it especially cool. And David details both the shoot and the entire creative process involved in two lengthy blog posts.

Check out the results/BTS post first, then go back for the comprehensive creative process post, which includes diagrams, a 10-minute video discussion, etc.

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At Photokina? Tweet us Your Best Lighting Finds.

Photokina is celebrating its 20th anniversary, so this year is kinda big. If you are there, please enjoy a bier along with my jealousy.

And if you run across something cool in the lighting dept., shoot me a link/Twitpic/etc., on Twitter and I will do my best to retweet the good stuff out to everyone else.

One thing right off the bat: California Sunbounce is giving away a 200ws Lumedyne Deluxe Signature Series flash system at Photokina. This is like the M-1 Abrams of high-end, rugged battery-powered flash. They go for about $2,400.00 US.

So when you stop by CSB's booth (Hall 9, B008) to look at their new toys, make sure to drop a biz card (or just your contact info) and enter to win.

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Frio Cold Shoe: Locked and Loaded

From the Department of Better Mousetraps, here’s something pretty cool coming down the pike — A screwless, dual-lock cold shoe.

It may look a little different -- because it is. Details inside. Read more »

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Small Flashes for Big Job

Well, this is just neat.

What would you do if someone called to ask you to shoot your President's official portrait on a few days' notice?

(I'd try to figure out which one of my buds was trying to pwn me, is what I'd do…)

But that's exactly what happened to Strobist reader Karel Donk, who lives in the small South American country of Suriname. So Karel grabbed his speedlights Strobist gel kit and got to work.

Afterwards, he posted about it on his blog -- including BTS pics and lighting diagram.

What a cool thing to happen. Congrats, Karel.

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Nikon SB-700 Speedlight Misses it By This Much

Nikon just announced a new speedlight designed to complement the flagship SB-900. The Nikon SB-700 Speedlight will cost $329.95, and includes some mouth-watering features.

But they have excluded a key feature. Any guesses?

Deets, the PR and a new camera, too. After the jump. Read more »

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Lighting in the Dark: Summer Reading

It's still technically summertime in Maryland. But the temps are down, the humidity has eased and -- best of all -- the mosquitos are history. This is prime evening porch time for Emily, my nocturnal bookworm.

I walked out to visit, and to my eye the scene looked great. Unfortunately, it would look like crap in the camera. The tonal range would be far too much for the chip to handle.

But lighting is about controlling that contrast range. And when there is just a tiny bit of ambient, you need an even tinier bit of flash to fix it. Read more »

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Dan Winters: New Website; F/stop Interview

Travis Smith, Dan Winters' first assistant, emailed me last week to say that the website had been completely revamped. Where there were about 100 photos there are now around 500. Suffice to say this is probably more interesting than whatever you would have been working on in your cubicle for the next few minutes.

It gets better. Winters also gave a very good interview on The F/stop, in case you want a little more in-depth inspiration.

(Remember to look like you are working.)

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Westcott Does Us a Solid

Kelly Mondora started out with FJ Westcott as a temp in data entry 12 years ago. Now she's VP of the entire photography industry division.

Why? Because of stuff like what you see above.

Our go-to umbrella, the Westcott Double-Fold, is now crush-proof on the business end of the telescoping staff. A little backstory, a DIY workaround and a cool coupon code, inside. Read more »

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On Assignment: Armed with Preconceptions

Planning ahead is a good thing, and I always try to pre-think a job before I head out. It gives me ideas to fall back on if nothing jumps out at me at the location.

But you can pre-plan things too far. So much that they blind you to better ideas and leave you banging your head against the front windshield even as you drive away from the assignment.

That's exactly what happened to me last week when I was assigned to shoot one of the coolest pieces of tech I have ever seen. Read more »

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Gregory Heisler Whiteboards Giuliani Time Cover

Any time Gregory Heisler gives one of his iconic photos the BTS treatment we pretty much pre-empt the regular programming and turn the joint over to him. And his photo of NYC mayor Rudy Giuliani for the 2001 Time Magazine Person of the Year cover certainly qualifies.

I love this photo, and actually carry it around on my iPhone in my inspiration folder.

Before you make the jump to the very cool video inside, take a moment to reverse what he did with the lighting. And more important, why he did what he did... Read more »

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