lighting for on-location photo sessions – pick your battles

When doing a photo session with a couple on location, I mix up the lighting often. With some photo sessions I may:
- shoot available light only;
- or I may decide with a photo session to use direct on-camera flash,
with some sequences available light only; or
- with some photo sessions I use off-camera flash with a softbox,
with some sequences just the available light.

Even in varying the way I may use the available light and flash, I still aim to have a consistent look to it all. My specific style has to be apparent. Or perhaps, in the way that I work, my style becomes apparent. The one way that I help make things easier for myself, and remain consistent, is that in working with the available light; or working with the available light and flash (both on-camera and off-camera) … I pick my battles. I don’t try and make *everything* work. Rather, I specifically choose where I pose a couple, or what I have as the background.  All of this in relation to the existing light and my flash.

camera settings for the image at the top:
1/250 @ f/4.5 @ 100 ISO … TTL flash, off-camera

With these photos of Licet and Daniel, taken at different spots in Central Park in New York, my approach was the same – shoot against a background that is back-lit, with parts of it blowing out. Then I use off-camera flash with a softbox to bring the expose of the image up to the correct level. The softbox helps give me studio quality lighting on location, pretty much every where I place the couple.

camera settings for this image:
1/250 @ f/5.6 @ 400 ISO … TTL flash, off-camera

By turning them against the light from the sun, I get some rim-lighting, and I let the TTL flash pick up the exposure. In this photo, parts of her arm is over-exposed, but this doesn’t bother me. It is more important for me to capture their expressions and how they interact with each other. At some level it is even more important for me to keep the flow of the photo session going, rather than micro-adjusting my settings and how they are positioned.

Nikon D4 (B&H); Nikon 70-200mm f2/2.8 VR II (B&H)
Nikon SB-910 Speedlight (B&H);  Nikon SD-9 battery pack (B&H)
Lastolite Hot Shoe EZYBOX Kit (24″x24″) (B&H)
(PocketWizard TT5 units for radio triggers) – TTL output

With this image, the compression of the 70-200mm lens at the longest focal length, helped. There were also groups of people in this part of Central Park, but by laying down on the ground and shooting up, and using the long lens, I was able to eliminate distractions and simplify the composition. This way, it looks like they were the only people there.

The long lens and off-camera flash help to give the photographs some snap.

camera settings for this image:
1/250 @ f/4.0 @ 200 ISO … TTL flash, off-camera

For all three preceding images, the exposure metering for the background weren’t too specific. There’s about a 2 stop leeway in terms of what would’ve looked good. So if a test shot looks good, I’m happy. I don’t drive myself nuts trying to meter for a background that has large bright areas. They can blow out.

Then I let the TTL flash take care of the exposure for the couple. TTL flash really helps in making a photo session in various locations move faster.

While looking for interesting backgrounds and good spots for the images, I am very aware of what the available light is like … and if it works, and I don’t need additional light from my flash, then even better.

Here I had Licet and Daniel under the arches at Bethesda Fountain. The available light is coming in from a perfect angle. No need to do anything to the light.

camera settings for this image:
1/250 @ f/4.0 @ 400 ISO … available light only.

Deeper in under the arches, the light is very even. But the light levels are much lower.

camera settings for this image:
1/125 @ f/3.5 @ 1000 ISO … available light only

Posing Licet and Daniel at a 90 degree angle to the direction of the available light, gave more dramatic light. But it did need subtle posing to make the most of it.

The photo above is one of the two images I selected from this sequence. The image below is one of the steps working towards this. I liked the light, but Daniel’s shoulder was blocking the light on Licet’s face. So with that pose, I quietly asked them not to move … don’t change a thing … then I told him to pull his shoulder back by an inch or two. That subtle movement opened the light on her face. Perfect.

camera settings for these images:
1/100 @ f/2.8 @ 1000 ISO … available light only

Nikon D4 (B&H); Nikon 70-200mm f2/2.8 VR II (B&H)

Again, with this image on the steps, I used the longer focal length to eliminate clutter, and simplify my composition.

In posing them, I started by positioning Daniel … and then adding Licet, by having her lean against his leg. I usually start with only one person first, when I pose a couple. Then I add the second person.

In terms of lighting – simplicity again. It’s a Lastolite softbox and a speedlight. I used TTL flash.

camera settings for this image:
1/200 @ f/6.3 @ 800 ISO … TTL flash, off-camera

Nikon D4 (B&H); Nikon 70-200mm f2/2.8 VR II (B&H)
Nikon SB-910 Speedlight (B&H);  Nikon SD-9 battery pack (B&H)
Lastolite Hot Shoe EZYBOX Kit (24″x24″) (B&H)
(PocketWizard TT5 units for radio triggers) – TTL output

Here is the pull-back shot, and the photo without flash, just for comparison.

From Central Park, we explored a little bit of the Upper West Side, visiting the areas they know, as a backdrop to their photos.

The main idea here in this article is that, while I look for variety in the images I give a couple, it works in my favor if I keep it fairly simple and consistent in terms of my lighting. The simplicity helps me in working faster. The consistency helps in maintaining my style.

I’m able to keep it all quite consistent, by specifically “choosing my battles”. I don’t try to make everything work. I just make about a dozen setups work, with different angles and poses … and then move forward.

More images from this photo session:
- Licet & Daniel – Central Park, New York – photo session
- Facebook album: Licet & Daniel – photo session in Central Park

equipment used during this photo session:
Nikon D4 (B&H); Nikon 70-200mm f2/2.8 VR II (B&H)
Nikon SB-910 Speedlight (B&H);  Nikon SD-9 battery pack (B&H)
Lastolite Hot Shoe EZYBOX Kit (24″x24″) (B&H)
(PocketWizard TT5 units for radio triggers) – TTL output

related articles:
- top 5 tips on shooting engagement photo sessions
- posing normal, everyday people for portraits
- the next step – going beyond just posing people
- the flow of a photo session
- making your images pop – through choice of lens
- why I love TTL flash
- “using the available light” is not random
-  photographing in bright sunlight – find the shade!
- off-camera flash – bringing sparkle on a rainy day
- why I love off-camera lighting
- technique – using lens flare for effect

- examples of engagement photo sessions

If you find these articles interesting and of value, then you can help by using
these affiliate links to order equipment & other goodies.   Thank you!

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Also join us on the Tangents forum for further discussions.

InstaCanvas

An interesting progression for Instagram users, and one that will make all Instagram junkies happy – you can now sell your Instagram photos, and browse and discover other artists photographers, via Instacanvas. And I’m happy to announce that my gallery is live now.

As mentioned on their site, photos are printed on museum-quality canvas with a 1.5 inch-thick frame, and come ready-to-hang. You can print your own photos too, or browse galleries of other Instagram users on Instacanvas. Coolness!

Je Revele – promotional video using the Nikon D4

My friends, Natalie Licini and Cate Scaglione, approached me a few weeks ago, after seeing the timelapse clip of New York city that I shot with the Nikon D4. They were curious how they could possibly incorporate something like this into a promotional piece for their newly launched studio, Je Revele. Well, this turned into a full-fledged video clip, all shot with the Nikon D4, with only a short time-lapse sequence thrown in there.

Today is the launch date of their new site, Je Revele, and the video clip we shot is very much part of the promotion of their brand.

I’ve shot some Fusion clips before, and this promotional video was similar, since it wouldn’t involve long video sequences. The shorter sequences made it easier to do retakes and shoot the same idea from different angles.

What really helped here was the storyboard that Cate had developed from the ideas that Natalie and Cate had brainstormed. Having a clear directive from which to assemble the footage, meant we could concentrate on capturing specific ideas – even if it meant we had to interpret or adapt the ideas.

Erik Colonese assisted me on the day of the shoot, and he was also primarily responsible for the subsequent editing of the video.

I’m proud of the video clip, and even more proud that Natalie and Cate loved it:

Working with Neil was a true collaboration, and it’s hard to now imagine working with anyone else on this. We sent Neil our storyboard, the blueprint of our cinematic dreams. Neil and Erik technical-directed the entire shoot with patience, fluidity and ease. Frame by frame, they brought our brand to life in motion picture. We edited this footage with collaboration and enthusiasm. We are proud to be the first among the many amazing commercial projects in Neil & Erik’s future and we are so thrilled to be able to partner with them going forward on our various commercial client projects. Timing truly is everything.

photo gear used during the video shoot

It really helps creating a dynamic video, by having some sequences with the camera in motion. For this, I used the Glidecam HD2000 stabilizer (B&H), and the Cinevate Atlas 35″ slider (B&H).

The opening sequence with the camera moving through the entrance, and then towards the front door, was shot with the Nikon D4 balanced on the Glidecam HD2000 stabilizer(B&H). Since it is an involved process balancing the camera and a lens on the Glidecam, it makes most sense to dedicate only one lens to the Glidecam.Most photographers use a prime lens, but I used the Nikon 14-24mm f2.8G ED AF-S (B&H). What counted in its favor, is that this lens has internal focusing. In other words, the lens barrel doesn’t extend when you focus. Neither does the lens change length when you zoom. Therefore the lens remains balanced, regardless of how you focus or zoom.

There are several sequences where I used a Cinevate Atlas 35″ Slider (B&H), to get some movement with the camera. Most notably, the short sequence with Michelle, (our model), where she was sitting on the stairs. The camera’s movement is past the railing of the staircase.The slider’s movement is fairly short, so it is most effectively used if there is something in the foreground which glides past as you view your subject.

(The image used here is a stock image from B&H, so it shows a different camera mounted.)

I attached the camera to the slider with a Manfrotto 701HDV Pro Fluid Video Mini Head (B&H). There is one sequence where the camera moves past Natalie and Cate, where I used the Fluid Head to move the camera subtly from left to right to keep them centered in the frame while the camera moved on the slider.

equipment used during the shoot:
two Nikon D4 cameras (B&H);
Nikon 14-24mm f2.8G ED AF-S  (B&H);  Nikon 24-70mm f2.8G ED AF-S  (B&H);
Nikon 70-200mm f2/2.8 VR II (B&H);  Nikon 105mm f2.8G VR  (B&H)

Glidecam HD2000 (B&H)
Cinevate 35″ Atlas slider (B&H)
Manfrotto 701HDV Pro Fluid Video Mini Head (B&H)
Manfrotto 701HDV fluid head monopod (B&H)
Manfrotto 458B tripod with NeoTec Pro Photo tripod legs (B&H)

time-lapse sequence:
Manfrotto tripods & quick releases  (B&H)
Dynamic Perception Stage Zero dolly 

continuous lighting for indoor sequences:
Spiderlite TD5 Light Kit (B&H)

Further details about shooting the video:

• We needed to keep the camera at 1/50th of a second shutter speed through-out. There are many articles online which will describe why 24fps gives a film-like appearance. And for specific reasons, it means we need to shoot at 1/50th shutter speed to maintain the 180 degree shutter rule, if we are shooting video at 24fps. So we kept the shutter speed to 1/50th shooting the video footage.

• To help keep to 1/50th of a second shutter speed, we had to use a 3-stop neutral density filter to keep the aperture within a possible range. We also had to change my ISO to suit, even though some sequences were shot at settings up to 3200 ISO. Of course, turning the footage into B&W, and even adding grain in post-production, masked any noise that may have appeared.

• We also used a Polarizer Filter with the time-lapse sequence, to help darken the skies a bit.

If you find these articles interesting and of value, then you can help by using
these affiliate links to order equipment & other goodies.   Thank you!

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Natalie and Cate are hosting a workshop on June 5 + 6, at their new office in The Castle.

Contact Natalie via email for more info.

TTL flash for the simplicity and speed

Okay, true strobists might recoil in horror, but I often prefer using TTL flash to sweeten an image when shooting on location. I just get to the final image faster than if I had gone the more methodical route of manual flash.

For some situations, manual flash is the only way to go. For example, when your subject is static in relation to your lights and you have to get consistent lighting, image after image, then manual flash makes the most sense. But for times where you want to shoot faster, and shoot on the run, I find that TTL flash is the easiest and most fun option for me.

This image of Aleona was from a recent individual photography workshop in New York. As a starting point in explaining how to balance flash and ambient light, we initially work with an easy scenario where the available light isn’t harsh, but also not all that exciting. Now we can easily finesse it with a bit of flash from a softbox …

The technique is simple in this case – under-expose slightly for the ambient light. A stop or so. Maybe 2/3rd stop. Just a bit. And then let the TTL flash, diffused by a softbox, pick up the difference in exposure. This screen capture from Bridge will show the same image without flash, and then with flash added.

Of course it helps in using sensible camera settings:
1/200 @ f/4 @ 200 ISO
Equipment used:
Canon 5D Mark II;  Canon 70-200mm f2.8L IS II  (B&H)
Canon 580EX II speedlite, triggered with RadioPopper PX units,
Lastolite Hot Shoe EZYBOX Softbox Kit (24″x24″) (B&H)

With a multi-shooter setup like a workshop, the RadioPopper PX units turned out to be the most reliable in use.

Back to the image at the top. I’ve been playing around with the new Lightroom presets from Totally Rad, called Amped!

I wanted a cross-processed look that would help give the photo a more edgy feel. I like these presets since they give me a good starting point for a specific look, and then I can change it however I feel. You can use the discount code: MOMSDAY to get $50 off any product more than $99. This discount is valid until May 16, 2012

If you find these articles interesting and of value, then you can help by using
these affiliate links to order equipment & other goodies.   Thank you!

Stay informed of new articles via the monthly newsletter.
Also join us on the Tangents forum for further discussions.

taking photos in harsh sunlight

Taking photographs of people in harsh sunlight will always be one of the more daunting lighting situations we can find ourselves in. Without additional lighting, or the use of scrims, we have a few basic ways of dealing with the harsh sun:
- pose our subject into the light,
- pose our subject with their back to the sun, or
- just suck it up and accept that our photos will look bad.

Well, that last option isn’t really the way to go if we have any pride in our work as photographers. Which leaves us with the two other options …

We had Aleona again as our model during a recent individual photography workshop in New York. During one of the scenarios we covered, we had Aleona in some seriously bright sunlight. Since I like her too much to have her sear her retinas, looking towards the sunlight, she wore sunglasses.

With these two photos, you can see how the lighting pattern on her face changes, simply by having her move her head towards the sun. Now add a dramatic gesture or pose, and we have an image like the one at the top here. Even better if we use the shadow as part of the composition.

It’s as simple as that – pose your subject “into” the light, and watch how the lighting pattern changes – especially, how the shadow of their nose falls.

further articles:
- photography using the available light  (Kristy & Tom)
- shooting wedding portraits in bright sunlight
- photographing in hard sunlight, with or without flash  (flower girls)
- photographing in bright sunlight – find the shade! (Amy, maternity)

Still not using any additional lighting, the other way to deal with the harsh sun, is to simply turn your subject away from the sun. In this case we expose correctly for the shady side of our subject, and just allow the background to blow out. The sunlit parts of our subject will also blow out. We will lose detail, but depending on how high the sun is above us, the areas that are blowing out, will hopefully just be rim lighting that enhances our subject. Even if there are larger areas blowing out, it’s still better than having our subject’s face partially lit by sun, and partially in shadow.

Going about it this way, gives pleasant even light on the our subject’s face.

This photo isn’t much more than a test shot, to show a shortcut that I use to get to close enough to the correct exposure settings.
The shortcut is that I set my camera to 1/250 @ f/4 @ 100 ISO, and this is close enough a lot of times.

Using a Canon 5D Mark II with the  Canon 70-200mm f2.8L IS II  (B&H),
this photograph of Aleona was shot at:
1/200 @ f/4 @ 100 ISO

Let me explain how I got there:
Remember the Sunny 16 Rule … when you photograph something in bright sunlight, then your exposure settings are:
the shutter speed is the inverse of your ISO, for an f/16 aperture

For example, if you are shooting with a 100 ISO setting in bright sunlight, then the shutter speed is 1/100 for an aperture of f/16 … or 1/200 at f/16 for 200 ISO.  Simple, round numbers.

I memorize these two combinations of settings:

1.  Instead of setting 1/100 for 100 ISO at f/16, I usually go to 1/200 or 1/250 @ f11 @ 100 ISO … the higher shutter speed helps with subject movement and camera shake … and also happens to be maximum flash sync speed for most cameras. Great for when we do want to use flash.

2. Alternately, to get a shallowed depth of field, I just take my camera to these equivalent settings:
1/2000 @ f/4 @ 100 ISO

In my experience, if you’re shooting in bright sunlight, then the shaded side is around 3 stops under the sunlit area. This of course, is a very rough guide. But these settings: 1/250 @ f/4 @ 100 ISO, surprisingly , will bring me close enough to correct exposure that I can nail the exposure with just one test shot to see how close I am.

The benefit of working like this, is that if I step out of a building into sunlight, then I have camera settings at hand that save me a lot of dial-twiddling:
for the brightly sun-lit areas:
1/250 @ f/11 @ 100 ISO, or
1/2000 @ f/4 @ 100 ISO

for the shaded area of my subject, I am usually close enough with:
1/250 @ f/4 @ 100 ISO
(which is 3 stops away from 1/2000 @ f/4 @ 100 ISO)

These settings give me a pretty good starting place.

While you could argue that you might just go to Aperture Priority or Program mode for the sunlight areas, with an extremely backlit photo like the one shown here as an example, shooting in Manual Exposure Mode is usually the easiest.

All of this a long explanation for a simple technique. But with these simple guidelines, we’re hopefully better able to cope when shooting in harsh sun.

If we decided to use flash to help us out, then we’d use this simple algorithm to get to our basic settings:

1. set your camera to maximum flash sync speed,
2. go to your lowest ISO,
3. find the aperture at which you’re not overexposing the brightest part of your subject.  Now add aperture value’s worth of flash to your subject.

further articles on using flash in bright sunlight:
- overpowering hard sunlight with flash  (model – Johannie)
- photographing in hard sunlight, with or without flash  (flower girls)
- overpowering the sun with flash  (models – Sarah & Mark)
- using direct off-camera flash  (model – Lea)
- shooting wedding portraits in bright sunlight

If you find these articles interesting and of value, then you can help by using
these affiliate links to order equipment & other goodies.   Thank you!

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Also join us on the Tangents forum for further discussions.

Fashion photography lighting and styling

A shout-out for my good friend Chuck Arlund – one of the most innovative photographers that I know of when it comes to lighting. His styling with Fashion photography is also outstanding.

Chuck is presenting a 3-day long photo retreat planned for Aug 6-8 at the Lake of The Ozarks in Missouri. Details on Chuck Arlund’s blog. (The code: BEFEARLESS gets you $300 off.)

Now you may well wonder about the techie details for these images ….

click through the images, and you’ll see the accompanying lighting diagram. Chuck regularly posts these on his blog. Check them out.

If you find these articles interesting and of value, then you can help by using
these affiliate links to order equipment & other goodies.   Thank you!

Stay informed of new articles via the monthly newsletter.
Also join us on the Tangents forum for further discussions.

review: Canon Speedlite 600EX-RT

Summary: Right off the bat, let me say it – this speedlite, the Canon 600EX-RT (B&H), is going to change the industry. Nothing is going to be the same again.

A speedlite that has radio transmitters built in, has been anticipated for quite some time now. It just makes sense.  So it was just a matter of time before one of the big camera manufacturers did this … and Canon is the first. And they didn’t drop the ball on the rest of the speedlite’s features, or with the functionality of this piece of gear. It’s easy to use, with an obvious menu – even for a complex flashgun like this.

Before the Canon 600EX-RT, we had various options how we could trigger our Canon Speedlites, but right now our option is clear – it’s the the Canon 600EX-RT  (B&H)

About the photo at the top …

I attended another of the shoot-outs arranged by the Hudson Valley Click group. (I’ve used images from their past shoot-outs in various articles here.) This weekend the theme was a Retro-Futuristic CyberPunk, and I had the pleasure of photographing Karyn. And as you can see, her outfit was in fact full-body paint, courtesy by Kelly Torres of NY Body Art.

We were shooting at a disused foundry, which turned out to be a great setting for the theme. I chose to isolate Karyn with a longer focal length, in the one open factory area. There was enough distance to have the background completely melt away.

camera settings:  1/40 @ f/3.5 @ 1600 ISO
Canon 5D Mark III (B&H);  Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II (B&H)

The majority of the light on Karyn was from the late afternoon light streaming through the windows. I purposely posed her into the light … and then used a  Canon 600EX-RT (B&H) for that rim-light around her and to create a subtle hot-spot behind her. This really helped etch her outline against the out-of-focus background. With the dust in the area, it gave that slight halo effect around her body.

Here’s the pull-back shot where you can see the windows, and where the speedlite was positioned on a breeze-block.

The speedlite was controlled by an on-camera 600EX-RT as the Master.  I had the Master flash’s output disabled so it doesn’t add any light. I just wanted to fire the flash in the distance behind her.

This is the kind of set-up where just using the built-in optical wireless system of a flash like the Canon 580EX II, would’ve been a limitation. It might be just out sight there. Which meant, I would’ve had to use radio transmitters of some kind. This always implies more cables, connectors, cradles, batteries, settings. It’s complicated. With just two Canon 600EX-RT speedlites (B&H), I have the same kind of control … but it is much easier to set up and control.

I didn’t have an ST-E3-RT Speedlite Transmitter (B&H) yet to try out, so I used the on-camera speedlite as Master. I’m a little ambivalent about the separate Speedlite controllers like the Canon ST-E2 or Nikon SU-800. It just seems like you’re half-way to buying a speedlite anyway. Besides, you could always use another back-up speedlite.

I used the speedlites in a basic way here, just so I could enhance the available light.

Related articles on using flash and ambient light:  flash photography concepts

an overview of Nikon and Canon speedlites

When I moved from the Nikon system to the Canon system several years ago – Nikon D2x to Canon 1D Mark IIN – the one thing that truly revolutionized my photography, was that the Canon 580EX Speedlite could rotate 180 degrees to either side. The Nikon SB-800 was limited to 90 degrees in the one direction. That extra90 degrees had a huge impact. I could now be specific about the direction of my light when I used on-camera bounce flash. As I said .. this was huge!

Then Nikon updated the SB-800 to the phenomenal Nikon SB-900 which brought in a lot of extra features, but most importantly, allowed the flash-head to rotate 180 degrees to either side.

Then Canon updated their flash to the Canon 580EX II, and honestly, it felt like a step backwards. The 580EX was so easy to switch from Master to Slave, and back to normal. With the 580EX II though, it felt like I had to relearn how to do this if I didn’t use the flash like this for a few weeks. It was obscure.

Equally obscure was the menu system of the 580EX II. Well, the 580EX was also obscure with the various custom functions which you needed the manual or a cheat sheet to know what they affected. The SB-900 on the other hand, was dead easy to set up with beautifully clear and obvious menu system.

So with the Nikon SB-900 and Nikon SB-910 Speedlight (B&H), it really felt like Nikon was steps ahead of Canon in terms of the ease of use of their speedlights. Definitely in how Nikon allows you to control the individual Slave flashes in discrete levels, made more sense.

But the one area where both systems were hampered, is that their built-in optical wireless systems were limited by line-of-sight constraints. Bright sunlight also affected how well they worked. So you had to resort to various wireless radio triggers to get past these constraints.  Until this bold step by Canon!

Better yet, the Canon 600EX-RT speedlites (B&H) has an obvious menu system with obvious controls. This is important!

Canon Speedlite 600EX-RT features

1. Ease of use.
As mentioned earlier, the previous Canon speedlites where a pain when you had to change custom settings, and had to refer to the manual or cheat sheets. The Canon 600EX-RT changes all that with a clear menu systems, and clearly marked controls. Surprisingly, for such a complex machine, the speedlight is easy to understand if you have some knowledge of the previous Canon speedlights.  I was able to set the two speedlites to Master / Slave modes, and be sure that they were linked, without reading the manual. I like that. Basic functions need to be obvious.

2. backwards compatibility
Another wonderful thing about the way the Canon 600EX-RT works, is that you can use it with cameras prior to the Canon 5D Mark III.  It works just as well with the Canon 5D Mark II, and the other Canon SLRs.<

Also good is that the Canon 600EX-RT works with the older optical wireless controlled speedlites like the 580EX / 580EX II. However, you can’t have it work with both the radio and optical modes simultaneously.

3. High-Speed Sync
On p.51 of the manual it states that for cameras prior to 2011 then the max flash sync speed is one increment lower.  I assume this means that for cameras like the Canon 5D Mark II , the max flash sync speed with the 600EX-RT is now 1/100. In fact, a (!) warning signal appears on the speedlite’s display at any shutter speed higher than that. The manual also states that HSS isn’t possible.

Well, I can confirm that HSS is indeed possible. And from a few tests I have done, it seems like the output takes a small knock at 1/200 and HSS .. perhaps 1/3rd of a stop by the looks of it. At 1/250th, there is a distinct drop in flash output. This is consistent with how speedlites work in HSS mode. So I’m not sure if I am missing something here, but I would have to disagree with the manual on this. HSS is indeed possible with the 5D Mark II, and quite possibly then with other previous models as well.

4. Group mode (Gr)
With this mode, you can control up to 5 groups of flashes, and each group can be set independently to E-TTL or manual. This is only possible with newer cameras, such as the 5D Mark III and 1D-X.  I haven’t tested this mode yet, but will try it out and update via future posts.

5. color filter / gel holder
Similar to the Nikon SB-900 / Nikon SB-910 the Canon 600EX-RT offers a holder for a filter that corrects for Tungsten light. These are keyed to the camera’s AWB settings to adjust the WB of the camera if it detects a gel on the speedlight.

6. flash firing restriction due to over-heating
When shooting in bursts, the flash may overheat. The 600EX-RT limits the tempo with which the flash can be fired, is slowed down to help prevent the flash head from damage from over-heating.

As I mentioned earlier, I used the speedlites in quite a simplistic way here just to enhance the available light. But as an indication of how well the speedlites work and how easy they are to set up, I am quite impressed already. The options and capabilities are endless. This is going to be an interesting piece of gear to explore, and I’ll continue to add more articles relating to it.

My final verdict might be quite a bold statement, but for me, this is an automatic upgrade from the Canon 580EX II. There are so many improvements in the handling of the flash, that it is much easier to use and set up. And then, the cherry on top of it all is the radio control of the slaved units.

You can order the Canon 600EX-RT speedlite from this B&H affiliate link.

If you find these articles interesting and of value, then you can help by using
these affiliate links to order equipment & other goodies.   Thank you!

Stay informed of new articles via the monthly newsletter.
Also join us on the Tangents forum for further discussions.

exploring the spinlight – a new video

A new video on how to use the Spinlight, has been put online by the maker of the Spinlight. (You can view the higher-resolution clip here.) To order the SpinLight 360, here is the discount code for readers of the Tangents blog.

best photography tips

There are numerous tips and ideas in photography that helped me improve as a photographer over the years. This came via magazines and books and other photographers. Many sources.

One of the best tips that helped me develop a style over time – when using a zoom lens, zoom to the longest focal length, and then frame your shot by walking forward or back, to where you have the composition that you want.

Doing so will result in the most compression in the image, helping to isolate my subject against an out-of-focus background. (Of course, using a long lens with a wide aperture makes the difference here.) I touched on this topic with a recent article: composition for full-length portraits – step back!

I would like to hear from other readers of the Tangents blog, what their best or favorite photography tips are.

And we’ll make it a contest for the best entry.
The contest has now closed, and a winner has been announced – check my comment #190

So to keep this interesting, here’s incentive – the best entry will win a LumoPro LP160 flash, courtesy of Midwest Photo Exchange.

The Lumopro LP160 is a manual only flash, and is ideal for photographers who want a low-cost flash that has solid spec. If you like working with a light-stick – a speedlite on a light stand or monopod – then this flashgun will be well-suited to your needs. Check the Midwest Photo Exchange site for specs and details.

The contest has now closed,
but here are the rules for the contest:

1. Post your best photography tip that has made a difference to how you shoot and how your photos look. Any topic.
2. The best entry, as chosen on Monday, April 30th, wins the speedlite. Along with the advice from a few friends, I’ll pick the best entry then.
3. I have final say.
4. No whining allowed.

Entry #50, by Jim Schofield was picked as the winner.

I discuss the entries in my comment #190

If you find these articles interesting and of value, then you can help by using
these affiliate links to order equipment & other goodies.   Thank you!

Stay informed of new articles via the monthly newsletter.
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Nikon D4 / Nikon D800 time-lapse photography – review

The highly anticipated Nikon D4 (B&H) and Nikon D800 (B&H) are loaded with features, and both cameras offer exceptional image quality. Hidden in the list of camera specs, is an item which is of specialized interest – Time-Lapse Photography. So if a photographer doesn’t have a specific interest in this, they are most likely just going to gloss over this – but this is quite a powerful feature.

With Time-Lapse photography, as with video, it just looks much more interesting if the camera moves as well. With movies too, the cinematography and how the camera moves, make all the difference. Last year some time, I stumbled on the Time-Lapse photography by MindRelic. The movement of the camera as the city scenes unfolded, blew my mind. This was done via a motorized dolly – specifically, the Dynamic Perception Stage Zero dolly. So of course, with no prior interest in Time-Lapse photography, I immediately bought a Stage Zero dolly. It all just looked that cool.

But then the winter approached and it was just too cold to venture outside at night to try out Time-Lapse photography. So the dolly lay dormant, still boxed, in my office. Until my Nikon D4 cameras arrived a few days ago!

time-lapse photography with the Nikon D4 / D800

If there is any motion with time-lapse photography, the photographer previously had to figure out the number of frames, and exposure intervals, to calculate the duration of the final clip. The Nikon D4 and D800 does this for you.

Even better – previously, with time-lapse photography, the photographer had to try and visualize how the movement of the camera, from the starting point to end point, would finally appear when the images are compiled as a movie clip. I can just imagine how frustrating it must have been to spend time setting something up, only to realize later on when compiling the clip, that the duration is too fast or too slow, or there was some kind of hiccup.

This is where the Nikon D4 and Nikon D800 shine – they compile the time-lapse sequences into a .mov file for you, in camera!

You shoot the sequence of images from start to end, and then hit playback on the camera, and the movie plays back for you. Right there!  So if there are any changes you’d like to make in the sequence, and how the camera moves during the time-lapse sequence, you can adjust it right there and then. Beautifully elegant. This has to be very attractive to any photographer interested in time-lapse photography.

Setting it up is very easy. So easy that I was able to shoot the time-lapse sequences without referring to the manual.

The time-lapse movie file is generated at the settings that you have for the camera’s video settings. In retrospect, I should’ve shot this at 24fps. Perhaps a minor difference.

For quick access, I have this enabled in My Menu of the camera:

And in turn, to quickly access My Menu, I have the DoF preview button set to be the quick access to My Menu instead.

about the New York time-lapse sequence

Erik Colonese and I went in to New York late last night to shoot time-lapse sequences to compile into a longer movie clip. A first attempt at this! In fact, a first attempt at time-lapse photography, aside from a test sequence in my garden to see how the Dynamic Perception dolly works.

We rained out at some point, and the traffic in Manhattan on a Saturday night is dreadfully slow. So between the rain and traffic hold-ups, we managed to shoot 7 sequences which looked good. The opening sequence there was our 2nd try on that 1st set-up. And then the rain came down and we scrambled for cover. When we played it back … wow! High-fives! I was stunned at how cinematic it looked.

I can see a few things I’d do differently now – two of the sequences need to be slower, for example. But as it is, I am very proud of this first attempt.

Here is Erik setting up the MX2 Motion Controller on the dolly. This sets the duration and speed with which the dolly would travel. We usually had the dolly up on two tripods. A few times we had the dolly at an angle with one tripod, and the one end of the dolly resting on the ground.  For two of the sequences, we wanted the camera at this low an angle, and took the dolly off the tripods.
The mysterious girl in the 2nd sequence, is Elmira, who I have used as a model a few times recently.  She was lit by an iPhone, which I purposely moved around a bit during the time the time-lapse intervals. This helped to give it that shimmering look.

Since the Nikon D4 (and Nikon D800) produce the .mov files in-camera already, compiling the video clip is a very simple matter, using iMovie.

Equipment used to shoot the timelapse clip shown above:
Nikon D4  (B&H);  Nikon 24-70mm f2.8 AF-S  (B&H)
Manfrotto tripods & quick releases  (B&H)
Dynamic Perception Stage Zero dolly

Soundtrack courtesy of TripleScoopMusic

everything you want to know about time-lapse photography:

TimeScapes forum – the ultimate FAQ on time-lapse photography 

Time Lapse Tutorial – Timothy Allen 

You can order the Nikon D4 and Nikon D800 and other goodies from B&H, via these affiliate links:

Nikon D4

Nikon D800

If you find these articles interesting and of value, then you can help by using
these affiliate links to order equipment & other goodies.   Thank you!

Stay informed of new articles via the monthly newsletter.
Also join us on the Tangents forum for further discussions.