'Shadows & Light: A Speedlight Workshop' with Jayesunn Krump

Coming this Saturday October 27th I will be teaching a speedlight workshop at Glazer's Camera in Seattle.

As a matter of fact I am on a train on my way up to Seattle at this moment.

More information after the jump.

When shooting on location you need small, portable tools that you can depend on to create beautiful light.  Speedlights are an inexpensive and effective alternative to using big studio strobes.  In this hands-on workshop Jayesunn Krump will teach you to use your flash to its fullest potential.  Through his control of shadow and light Jayesunn takes unique and striking portraits and he will teach you the techniques he uses to create powerful images.

Topics Include:

*  On- and off-camera flash techniques
*  Flash modification using reflectors, snoots, grids, and soft boxes
*  Gelling your flash for color correction and dramatic effect
*  One light, multiple light, and backlighting set-ups
*  Posing your subject

After the presentation and live demonstration of various light set-ups, you will have the opportunity to experiment with the techniques just learned.  A model will be on-site to assist with the demonstration and hands-on shooting session.

Bring your camera and flash!

---

Saturday, October 27th - Glazer's Camera

For Info & Registraton Click HERE


Check back frequently for additions and updates to this schedule!

---

'Shadows & Light: A Speedlight Workshop' with Jayesunn Krump

Coming this Saturday October 27th I will be teaching a speedlight workshop at Glazer's Camera in Seattle.

As a matter of fact I am on a train on my way up to Seattle at this moment.

More information after the jump.

When shooting on location you need small, portable tools that you can depend on to create beautiful light.  Speedlights are an inexpensive and effective alternative to using big studio strobes.  In this hands-on workshop Jayesunn Krump will teach you to use your flash to its fullest potential.  Through his control of shadow and light Jayesunn takes unique and striking portraits and he will teach you the techniques he uses to create powerful images.

Topics Include:

*  On- and off-camera flash techniques
*  Flash modification using reflectors, snoots, grids, and soft boxes
*  Gelling your flash for color correction and dramatic effect
*  One light, multiple light, and backlighting set-ups
*  Posing your subject

After the presentation and live demonstration of various light set-ups, you will have the opportunity to experiment with the techniques just learned.  A model will be on-site to assist with the demonstration and hands-on shooting session.

Bring your camera and flash!

---

Saturday, October 27th - Glazer's Camera

For Info & Registraton Click HERE


Check back frequently for additions and updates to this schedule!

---

'Shadows & Light: A Speedlight Workshop' with Jayesunn Krump

Coming up on Saturday October 27th I will be teaching a speedlight workshop at Glazer's Camera in Seattle.

More information after the jump.

When shooting on location you need small, portable tools that you can depend on to create beautiful light.  Speedlights are an inexpensive and effective alternative to using big studio strobes.  In this hands-on workshop Jayesunn Krump will teach you to use your flash to its fullest potential.  Through his control of shadow and light Jayesunn takes unique and striking portraits and he will teach you the techniques he uses to create powerful images.

Topics Include:

*  On- and off-camera flash techniques
*  Flash modification using reflectors, snoots, grids, and soft boxes
*  Gelling your flash for color correction and dramatic effect
*  One light, multiple light, and backlighting set-ups
*  Posing your subject

After the presentation and live demonstration of various light set-ups, you will have the opportunity to experiment with the techniques just learned.  A model will be on-site to assist with the demonstration and hands-on shooting session.

Bring your camera and flash!

---

Saturday, October 27th - Glazer's Camera

For Info & Registraton Click HERE


Check back frequently for additions and updates to this schedule!

---

'Shadows & Light: A Speedlight Workshop' with Jayesunn Krump

Coming up on Saturday October 27th I will be teaching a speedlight workshop at Glazer's Camera in Seattle.

More information after the jump.

When shooting on location you need small, portable tools that you can depend on to create beautiful light.  Speedlights are an inexpensive and effective alternative to using big studio strobes.  In this hands-on workshop Jayesunn Krump will teach you to use your flash to its fullest potential.  Through his control of shadow and light Jayesunn takes unique and striking portraits and he will teach you the techniques he uses to create powerful images.

Topics Include:

*  On- and off-camera flash techniques
*  Flash modification using reflectors, snoots, grids, and soft boxes
*  Gelling your flash for color correction and dramatic effect
*  One light, multiple light, and backlighting set-ups
*  Posing your subject

After the presentation and live demonstration of various light set-ups, you will have the opportunity to experiment with the techniques just learned.  A model will be on-site to assist with the demonstration and hands-on shooting session.

Bring your camera and flash!

---

Saturday, October 27th - Glazer's Camera

For Info & Registraton Click HERE


Check back frequently for additions and updates to this schedule!

---

'Shadows & Light: A Speedlight Workshop' with Jayesunn Krump

When shooting on location you need small, portable tools that you can depend on to create beautiful light.  Speedlights are an inexpensive and effective alternative to using big studio strobes.  In this hands-on workshop Jayesunn Krump will teach you to use your flash to its fullest potential.  Through his control of shadow and light Jayesunn takes unique and striking portraits and he will teach you the techniques he uses to create powerful images.

Topics Include:

*  On- and off-camera flash techniques
*  Flash modification using reflectors, snoots, grids, and soft boxes
*  Gelling your flash for color correction and dramatic effect
*  One light, multiple light, and backlighting set-ups
*  Posing your subject

After the presentation and live demonstration of various light set-ups, you will have the opportunity to experiment with the techniques just learned.  A model will be on-site to assist with the demonstration and hands-on shooting session.

Bring your camera and flash!

---

Saturday, October 27th - Glazer's Camera

For Info & Registraton Click HERE


Check back frequently for additions and updates to this schedule!

---

Waves of music in a sea of beer

I have written before about how much I love my Lumopro LP160 and I am going to do it again. Another location that I love shooting in is a nice and dark bar or small club. I was shooting a local band named In Repose last night and I needed to throw in some flashes to help out lighting. I asked the band if they had a problem with lighting the playing area before I did anything. They did not have any problem with it so I went around and placed some flashes around where they were set up.

I love shooting in environments like this when the bands let me light the area as needed. I know that a lot of photographers look down on concert photography with flashes, but when there is not any real stage lighting going on I don't think it's a big deal. I just do what I need to in order to get the bands the images that they are looking for.

I set up three lights around the area that they were playing and set each one to a different group so that I could add them or subtract them from my shooting area. I had a Nikon SB900 set in the very back behind the drummer, another gelled blue with an Expoimaging Rogue lighting filter bounced off a large Rogue Flashbender, and the last one I had on the floor at the front of the playing area aimed up. As I shot the set I was adding and removing the lights via my Opas camera mounted trigger.

As the set went on I was able to turn my flashes on and off as needed from my camera position. If I had not set the flashes to different channels I wouldn't have had this as an option. All of the flashes would have fired every time I shot a frame. The main benefit of shooting this way is that when you change camera position sometimes you will get a flash aimed toward your lens and get an over powering lens flare, so using the channels feature is a great way of controlling this.

The crowd was really into the performance, it was getting rowdy to say the least, and the drinks were flowing. Now what normally happens when a great show is going on along with lots of drinks? Someone ends up spilling something. That’s exactly what happened to one of my flashes. I placed my LP160 on the ground pointed up at an angle to under light the singer and guitar player. What looked like a sea of beer came crashing down and around the LP160 and I thought it was a goner for sure.

It turns out that not only did it survive the waterfall of beer but it also kept on going while it was adrift in the sea of beer that claimed that section of the playing area. No sparks, no burning out, and no misfires.

I have no idea how it survived, but it did. When the show was over I pulled out the batteries, gave it a good cleaning, and let it dry out over night. In the morning there was no evidence of the mishap.

So this and a million other reasons go on the list of why I love the Lumopro LP160 so much. I cannot recommend this flash unit enough to photographers. It has a low price and fantastic connectivity and reliability.

Pick one up and do your best to keep it out of beer tsunamis but if you can't, you have a fighting chance of it making it through.

For more information on this flash unit you can read my review of the LP160 here or head on over to the Lumopro website at www.lumopro.com

Waves of music in a sea of beer

I have written before about how much I love my Lumopro LP160 and I am going to do it again. Another location that I love shooting in is a nice and dark bar or small club. I was shooting a local band named In Repose last night and I needed to throw in some flashes to help out lighting. I asked the band if they had a problem with lighting the playing area before I did anything. They did not have any problem with it so I went around and placed some flashes around where they were set up.

I love shooting in environments like this when the bands let me light the area as needed. I know that a lot of photographers look down on concert photography with flashes, but when there is not any real stage lighting going on I don't think it's a big deal. I just do what I need to in order to get the bands the images that they are looking for.

I set up three lights around the area that they were playing and set each one to a different group so that I could add them or subtract them from my shooting area. I had a Nikon SB900 set in the very back behind the drummer, another gelled blue with an Expoimaging Rogue lighting filter bounced off a large Rogue Flashbender, and the last one I had on the floor at the front of the playing area aimed up. As I shot the set I was adding and removing the lights via my Opas camera mounted trigger.

As the set went on I was able to turn my flashes on and off as needed from my camera position. If I had not set the flashes to different channels I wouldn't have had this as an option. All of the flashes would have fired every time I shot a frame. The main benefit of shooting this way is that when you change camera position sometimes you will get a flash aimed toward your lens and get an over powering lens flare, so using the channels feature is a great way of controlling this.

The crowd was really into the performance, it was getting rowdy to say the least, and the drinks were flowing. Now what normally happens when a great show is going on along with lots of drinks? Someone ends up spilling something. That’s exactly what happened to one of my flashes. I placed my LP160 on the ground pointed up at an angle to under light the singer and guitar player. What looked like a sea of beer came crashing down and around the LP160 and I thought it was a goner for sure.

It turns out that not only did it survive the waterfall of beer but it also kept on going while it was adrift in the sea of beer that claimed that section of the playing area. No sparks, no burning out, and no misfires.

I have no idea how it survived, but it did. When the show was over I pulled out the batteries, gave it a good cleaning, and let it dry out over night. In the morning there was no evidence of the mishap.

So this and a million other reasons go on the list of why I love the Lumopro LP160 so much. I cannot recommend this flash unit enough to photographers. It has a low price and fantastic connectivity and reliability.

Pick one up and do your best to keep it out of beer tsunamis but if you can't, you have a fighting chance of it making it through.

For more information on this flash unit you can read my review of the LP160 here or head on over to the Lumopro website at www.lumopro.com

Ray Flash Review

Ring flashes give you a very distinctive form of light and shadow characterized by the lack of shadow on the subject. Ring flashes were initially used for macro and dental photography because they gave even illumination. The ring flash does this by surrounding the lens with the light emitting flash head.

The ring flash has made its way out of the dentists office and into the world of portrait and fashion photography. Since they had such a distinctive look and a relatively high price, ring flashes tended to be used by high end commercial photographers. The ring flash units themselves were large and often needed a separate power supply.

Now there is the Ray Flash ring flash adapter. Those size, price, and power limitations are long gone. The Ray Flash is an adapter that you fit onto your camera mounted speed light changing your flash into a ring flash. It is super light weight, small, and does not change the balance of your camera when it is mounted.

You will only have about one stop of light lost with the Ray Flash, and that is definitely not bad. The construction of the unit is very precise and you will need to match up your camera and speed light with the correct Ray Flash so that they will fit together correctly. At first I thought that this was going to be a limitation if I chose to switch to a different flash unit or lens, but it did not affect me nearly as much as I thought it would.

On the top of the Ray Flash there is a locking dial that keeps the adapter on the speed light with out any problems. Once you have it fitted together you will not worry about it going any where. As I mentioned before, the balance of the Ray Flash when mounted on the camera feels just like a speedlight by itself. No awkwardness at all in handling and shooting.

The Ray Flash design for dispersing the light evenly is pretty damn good. You do not get an unbalanced catch light in the eyes. Nice and even lighting. And with that consistency you are able to use it in many different lighting situations.

Using the Ray Flash as an on axis fill is fantastic. If you want to control your hard light while still maintaining the contrast just fill it in a bit with the ring flash and there you go. I have also taken it off camera and used it as a side light mounted onto a stand. You can also bring it around to the front of your subject for some more light shaping fill while it is still mounted off camera.

The bottom line is that you have a ton of different lighting options with this ring flash adapter. I can't think of another lighting modifier that will give you this level of on axis fill so easily while still maintaining some shadows for depth.

The only real challenge to the Ray Flash is it's physical shape. As it is one molded piece it is a bit awkward to find space in your bag for it. If there was a way to hinge the part that mounts onto the flash so that it could lie flat that would be fantastic. If that is the only real issue I have with the Ray Flash then I think that they are doing many things right.

The Ray Flash runs for just under $200.00, and it is a fantastic tool to have especially at that price. Of all the ring flashes that I have shot with nothing comes close to the Ray Flash.

For more information on the Ray Flash head on over to ExpoImaging.com.

Ray Flash Review

Ring flashes give you a very distinctive form of light and shadow characterized by the lack of shadow on the subject. Ring flashes were initially used for macro and dental photography because they gave even illumination. The ring flash does this by surrounding the lens with the light emitting flash head.

The ring flash has made its way out of the dentists office and into the world of portrait and fashion photography. Since they had such a distinctive look and a relatively high price, ring flashes tended to be used by high end commercial photographers. The ring flash units themselves were large and often needed a separate power supply.

Now there is the Ray Flash ring flash adapter. Those size, price, and power limitations are long gone. The Ray Flash is an adapter that you fit onto your camera mounted speed light changing your flash into a ring flash. It is super light weight, small, and does not change the balance of your camera when it is mounted.

You will only have about one stop of light lost with the Ray Flash, and that is definitely not bad. The construction of the unit is very precise and you will need to match up your camera and speed light with the correct Ray Flash so that they will fit together correctly. At first I thought that this was going to be a limitation if I chose to switch to a different flash unit or lens, but it did not affect me nearly as much as I thought it would.

On the top of the Ray Flash there is a locking dial that keeps the adapter on the speed light with out any problems. Once you have it fitted together you will not worry about it going any where. As I mentioned before, the balance of the Ray Flash when mounted on the camera feels just like a speedlight by itself. No awkwardness at all in handling and shooting.

The Ray Flash design for dispersing the light evenly is pretty damn good. You do not get an unbalanced catch light in the eyes. Nice and even lighting. And with that consistency you are able to use it in many different lighting situations.

Using the Ray Flash as an on axis fill is fantastic. If you want to control your hard light while still maintaining the contrast just fill it in a bit with the ring flash and there you go. I have also taken it off camera and used it as a side light mounted onto a stand. You can also bring it around to the front of your subject for some more light shaping fill while it is still mounted off camera.

The bottom line is that you have a ton of different lighting options with this ring flash adapter. I can't think of another lighting modifier that will give you this level of on axis fill so easily while still maintaining some shadows for depth.

The only real challenge to the Ray Flash is it's physical shape. As it is one molded piece it is a bit awkward to find space in your bag for it. If there was a way to hinge the part that mounts onto the flash so that it could lie flat that would be fantastic. If that is the only real issue I have with the Ray Flash then I think that they are doing many things right.

The Ray Flash runs for just under $200.00, and it is a fantastic tool to have especially at that price. Of all the ring flashes that I have shot with nothing comes close to the Ray Flash.

For more information on the Ray Flash head on over to ExpoImaging.com.

Rogue Gels by Expoimaging

The new Rogue Gels come in two different versions. The first is the Rogue Gel's Universal Lighting Filter Kit and the second is the lighting filter gel kit for the Rogue Grid. Both kits come with 20 gels for a wide variety. The two sets offer the same color choices and options, but two different mounting methods.

The Universal Lighting Filter Kit is just what it sounds like: universal. This gel kit has a Gel-Band that attaches around the flash, along the lines of a custom shaped rubber band. You then take the tabs of the gels and tuck them into the side of the Gel-Band.

The gels are cut so that you can leave a bit of space between the head of the flash and the gels. The Gel-Band is a very secure fastener, it is not going to ever fall off of your flash, and the gels are held tightly and not going anywhere.

That being said, I do wish that the Gel-Band was similar to the Rogue Tension Strap found on the Honeycomb Grid. The way that the Tension Strap mounts is great and with a very small modification I am sure that it could be converted into a gel holder. But I am sure that would raise the cost significantly so it is all a matter of trade off.

The Rogue Gels lighting filter kit for the Rogue Grid is perfect in its integration with the grid. You place the gel between the bezel and the honeycomb. The two pieces line up via the grooves on the bezel and the honeycombs. It is super easy to put together and the gels cannot go anywhere because of the grids design.

In the spirit of keeping this “fresh” and trying new techniques, I decided to use these gel kits to enhance the natural tones of the location and the model. By putting a gel on my flash unit mounted in a Westcott 28” Apollo I filtered the light bringing it to a nice warm tone that complimented the model and the tones of the location.

Another technique that I tried was placing an amber gel on a flash and then bouncing the colored flash off of the wall bringing in again some warmer tones to the shot.

These two gel kits are fully capable of dealing with not only color correction but also with dramatic lighting situations. They are a truly comprehensive gel set. With 20 gels in each of these kits you have a wide range of colors to blend in or change altogether. I tried mainly to enhance the colors present instead of completely changing what was there, but these make it easy to accomplish either task.

One of the things that I love about the Rogue line is that they are small modifiers that have big results.

I always make sure to have these modifiers in my kit, every shoot. Their sublimity has a huge impact on the shot, and I love having them as an option providing so many different possibilities.

At the end of the day I find both the Rogue Universal Filter kit and the Rogue Gels lighting filter kit for the Rogue Grid just as versatile as the other light modifiers in the Rogue series. I believe Expoimaging has created a very well designed line of flash modifiers that every photographer should try.

Rogue Gels by Expoimaging

The new Rogue Gels come in two different versions. The first is the Rogue Gel's Universal Lighting Filter Kit and the second is the lighting filter gel kit for the Rogue Grid. Both kits come with 20 gels for a wide variety. The two sets offer the same color choices and options, but two different mounting methods.

The Universal Lighting Filter Kit is just what it sounds like: universal. This gel kit has a Gel-Band that attaches around the flash, along the lines of a custom shaped rubber band. You then take the tabs of the gels and tuck them into the side of the Gel-Band.

The gels are cut so that you can leave a bit of space between the head of the flash and the gels. The Gel-Band is a very secure fastener, it is not going to ever fall off of your flash, and the gels are held tightly and not going anywhere.

That being said, I do wish that the Gel-Band was similar to the Rogue Tension Strap found on the Honeycomb Grid. The way that the Tension Strap mounts is great and with a very small modification I am sure that it could be converted into a gel holder. But I am sure that would raise the cost significantly so it is all a matter of trade off.

The Rogue Gels lighting filter kit for the Rogue Grid is perfect in its integration with the grid. You place the gel between the bezel and the honeycomb. The two pieces line up via the grooves on the bezel and the honeycombs. It is super easy to put together and the gels cannot go anywhere because of the grids design.

In the spirit of keeping this “fresh” and trying new techniques, I decided to use these gel kits to enhance the natural tones of the location and the model. By putting a gel on my flash unit mounted in a Westcott 28” Apollo I filtered the light bringing it to a nice warm tone that complimented the model and the tones of the location.

Another technique that I tried was placing an amber gel on a flash and then bouncing the colored flash off of the wall bringing in again some warmer tones to the shot.

These two gel kits are fully capable of dealing with not only color correction but also with dramatic lighting situations. They are a truly comprehensive gel set. With 20 gels in each of these kits you have a wide range of colors to blend in or change altogether. I tried mainly to enhance the colors present instead of completely changing what was there, but these make it easy to accomplish either task.

One of the things that I love about the Rogue line is that they are small modifiers that have big results.

I always make sure to have these modifiers in my kit, every shoot. Their sublimity has a huge impact on the shot, and I love having them as an option providing so many different possibilities.

At the end of the day I find both the Rogue Universal Filter kit and the Rogue Gels lighting filter kit for the Rogue Grid just as versatile as the other light modifiers in the Rogue series. I believe Expoimaging has created a very well designed line of flash modifiers that every photographer should try.

Yoga shoot

I had a fantastic shoot yesterday with Rebecca at this great yoga studio in the Pearl District of downtown Portland called YoYo Yogi.

Rebecca and I have not worked together since the KROCK New York billboard campaign, and she wanted to get some shots of her doing yoga.

The shoot was a blast. I worked in some shots with the new Expoimaging Rogue Gel Kits.These gel kits are fantastic and I will be writing a review on them soon here.



For most of the shoot I used a single strobe (Nikon SB900 with auxiliary battery pack) in either a Westcott 28" Apollo, or a Westcott 60" convertible umbrella. I used a Nikon SU800 to trigger the flashes. This was one of those situations where the SU800 was perfect for controlling the flashes.

We wrapped up the session with a two light set up. One light was set with a Rogue Honeycomb grid, and the second was set up with the Rogue Gel Kit. I dragged the shutter a bit to burn in some of the ambient light. I will be posting more of the images in the next few days.

Fun relaxed shoot where we got to try some new stuff in a different location.