The use of extra lights, often flash units, in order to make up for a lack of light or to gain more creative control over the image.
12
votes
3answers
568 views
How to light spontaneous portraits?
I currently am in Singapore for an exchange year. The architecture here is impressive, the lights at night are wonderful, but what I find to be the most interesting are the people. You can find people ...
12
votes
1answer
5k views
What are standard lighting setups for 2-3 people?
What are some standard lighting setups for two or three people in a group? I just can't think of non-complicated setups that would apply some previously discussed (short, broad, butterfly, split, ...
12
votes
5answers
2k views
How to take photos of large groups (over 100 people)?
I recently had been called to take a photo of a 100+ group. The photos were taken inside with some bright lighting. Subjects were sitting in 4 rows of a choir seats. There were fluorescent and flood ...
12
votes
1answer
923 views
What is color temperature and how does it affect my photography?
I have seen color temperature mentioned with regard to white balance, mixing different sources of light, etc., but I haven't come across a clear explanation of what it means to talk about the ...
12
votes
2answers
5k views
How can I get a black background in daylight using flash sync speed with no extra gear?
I have seen sports photography where the background is completely wiped out (black) during daylight. I'm trying to achieve a similar (pure black background) effect with no extra gear, just a DSLR ...
12
votes
2answers
1k views
How can I keep skin color from coming out too red in prints?
I've noticed lately that subjects with darker skin, especially brown hues, tend to come out with lots of red in prints.
When shooting against red or brown backgrounds, this effect is significantly ...
11
votes
9answers
3k views
How do I take a portrait at night with detail in the background instead of just blackness?
I was trying to make a photo of my girlfriend around 9 pm with a D7000, Sigma 24-70 2.8, and SB-900. She was in the center of the frame, taking up about 20% of the frame. About 40% was taken up by ...
11
votes
7answers
5k views
How do I properly do shadowless product photos?
My friend asked me to create a photo like this. I noticed that its shadowless and my first question is whether it was setup to be shadowless, or was it made shadowless in post? How many lights are ...
11
votes
6answers
1k views
What is white or black “clipping”, and how does one avoid it?
I have been told that this photograph has "white clippings"?
What are they, and which light sources should be placed in what way to avoid that?
11
votes
1answer
851 views
What are the best practices for taking pictures of a canvas?
Please share your experience about:
Lighting
Objectives
Setup
Colorimetry
Photo-Editing
...
11
votes
5answers
15k views
How to take pictures in a dark room?
I'm a total newbie to photography. I have a Nikon D90 and at the moment I'm trying to learn how to actually use it.
I've noticed that whenever I shoot in a dark room with the on-camera pop up flash, ...
11
votes
6answers
811 views
How can I suspend something without seeing the wires?
I had an idea that will require suspending a small household object (a flashlight, in this case) off the ground. It weighs only a few pounds but will be part of the shot so I can't put it on top of ...
11
votes
3answers
988 views
How do I photograph coins with a glossy surface?
I am trying to photograph my coin sets. The coins are encased in a postcard-sized glossy paper that acts as mirror.
I need to position my camera exactly on top of the card coin set. Unfortunately, ...
11
votes
3answers
2k views
How do I eliminate green-screen bounce?
I've got a vehicle green-screen room. Generally speaking, it works great. However, on candy-apple red there is a noticeable problem in post production:
See the green outline on the trunk and hood ...
11
votes
4answers
635 views
How were these “Mysterious Dutch Light” photos made?
I stumbled on this photo on flickr. The complete "The mysterious Dutch light" set has a strange feeling about it. I'm not even sure if it is a photograph or painting.
So my questions, what is so ...
11
votes
2answers
452 views
How do you pose a turtle?
We're doing a photoshoot and there's a turtle that should be in the shot.
What is most flattering for a self-conscious half-shell?
11
votes
3answers
667 views
How was this dramatic lighting of an NBA game achieved?
This is a very cool effect, dramatic and not your usual basketball image: Photo by Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images. There are other examples like it in the linked gallery. My question is how ...
11
votes
3answers
701 views
Why do hotshoe flashes use fresnel lens, but studio strobes do not?
I notice that hotshoe flashes (e.g. Nikon SB-800) typically have a Fresnel lens system to focus the light, but studio strobes (e.g. Photogenic Powerlight 1250) do not. What's up with that?
11
votes
4answers
1k views
What lighting equipment should I get on a very tight budget?
My birthday is coming up. I have about $150 to spend on some lighting equipment for home studio. I currently have a Nikon D90 and a decent Manfrotto tripod.
For my budget, what are my choices? I'm ...
11
votes
2answers
477 views
What are the lighting characteristics of a beauty dish?
How does light from a beauty dish behave, and when and why would you use one?
10
votes
4answers
2k views
What does a black reflector do?
I'm familiar with using white / silver / gold reflectors to add fill light to a photo. When would you use a black "reflector"?
10
votes
6answers
930 views
Why is my picture muddy looking?
I've noticed a lot of my pictures look muddy. They don't have very high contrast. I know I can post process some pictures, but what is the secret to having nice contrast in a picture?
10
votes
2answers
405 views
What causes light fringes around objects in images?
I took the image above yesterday in the afternoon somewhere outside. If you look closely, there are slight fringes of light all around the subject forming a thin kind of boundary which I find very ...
10
votes
3answers
827 views
How does grid depth determine beam angle?
I just got a 28" Westcott Apollo softbox. They don't sell a grid/egg crate for it, so I'd like to create my own, similar to this.
My understanding is that the deeper the grid, the narrower the angle ...
10
votes
3answers
561 views
Does the zoom head position of a flash matter when shooting through an umbrella?
It seems like a hotshoe flash's zoom head position might factor in to the lighting pattern when shooting through an umbrella. In the wide beam position, I expect more even light that one is ...
10
votes
4answers
182 views
Having difficulty lighting various reflective product packaging- use dulling spray?
Beginning photographer, first post- I'm trying to merchandize and shoot a product composition with a lot of beef jerky packages. The crinkly reflective packaging is proving really difficult to light. ...
10
votes
2answers
1k views
What lighting equipment do I need for a high contrast portrait photo?
I am an amateur photographer, and I have little to no experience in shooting studio photos. There is one subject in particular that interests me more than others in that area - high contrast portrait ...
10
votes
3answers
889 views
How should I build a portable light box for shooting beer bottles?
I am working on a beer related website, and I would like to build a portable light box that I can take to a beer shop and photograph as many individual beer bottles as possible. What is the best way ...
10
votes
2answers
126 views
How do I know the lightbulb I am buying is UV-filtered?
Thanks to Rob Hoare's advice on cobbling together my own "overhead scanner", I would like to purchase extra lighting that I can use to illuminate documents as I photograph them. I would like to make ...
10
votes
2answers
284 views
How to photograph a bathroom for a commercial client
I have been asked to do a commercial shoot which will involve shooting interiors with a lot of tiled surfaces (bathrooms, receptions, leisure centres).
I will be on my own without the aid of an ...
10
votes
4answers
404 views
How can I set up lighting for fashion shots in a narrow hallway?
I do most of my fashion shots at home and due to lack of space I'm forced to do them in a narrow white corridor.
I only have a single light for now and I'm trying to get pictures where there are no ...
9
votes
6answers
2k views
What is the best approch to photographing a mirror or other highly reflective surface?
I have been asked by a client to take some product photographs of some vintage mirrors that they would like to sell and I am struggling with getting good clear shots of the mirrors. As such, what is ...
9
votes
4answers
704 views
How to avoid tired eyes in a portrait?
I noticed some portraits I took had heavy shadows under eyes:
It turned out the model had experienced some sleep deprivation, though the eyes didn't look that bad in real life. I suspect lighting ...
9
votes
5answers
8k views
How to avoid reflection when taking a picture of a ceramic object with a shiny glaze?
How can I avoid the reflection when I take a picture of a shiny object in bright light?
9
votes
4answers
515 views
Tips & advice for photographing store/shop interiors
In my area, rural Ireland, there are still a few old style shops(stores). These places usually feature long wooden counters, glass fronted cabinets, mechanical tills! and floor to ceiling shelves. The ...
9
votes
3answers
3k views
How can I improve my photographs taken on overcast or cloudy days?
I'm interested in filters, flash & lighting options, composition, and post processing.
Is it possible to get really vibrant colors or should I give up on that and focus on dreary, muted, or black ...
9
votes
3answers
7k views
What is flat light and how to counter that?
I have often heard people saying that the light in the picture X is appearing "flat". I want to understand what exactly does that mean, and what are the possible ways to counter that?
9
votes
1answer
363 views
What are the difference between using a pack and head system versus monolights?
Among mains-powered lighting systems, you can either get a kit with a central power pack, and attached heads, or monolights, each with its own power supply.
What are the advantages and disadvantages ...
9
votes
4answers
3k views
What software can I use for 3D lighting simulation?
I've got a shot in mind that's going to require precise lighting (sources & angles).
I'd like to do a lighting simulation. I want place objects & light sources in some sort of 3D virtual ...
9
votes
1answer
512 views
Learning Fundamental Lighting Concepts?
What are the best resources you have come across (preferably online, but books too) that could help new photographers come to a better understanding of fundamental lighting concepts?
I’m especially ...
9
votes
2answers
494 views
How should I light and shoot a car interior?
I have been asked to photograph some cars both externally and internally for promotional use in a website and print.
I want these images to look high-end, so getting the lighting and general setup ...
9
votes
2answers
527 views
Photographing darker-skinned people
[In the spirit of this question on photographing overweight people, and photographing people with glasses.]
What are some tips, tricks and things to look out for when photographing dark-skinned ...
9
votes
1answer
404 views
How much light is typically lost through an umbrella?
In terms of f-stops, how much light is typically lost when shooting through an umbrella?
8
votes
5answers
834 views
How to get this colorful look in a landscape photo?
I love the colors in this photostream on Flickr, especially this photo and this one. How can I get colors like this in my photos? Is this done with post processing? Good luck? The lighting looks like ...
8
votes
2answers
368 views
How can I recreate this glowing light effect?
How to have a glowing light ray effect outside some object like in this photo
Edit
Using photoshop to get this effect ?
8
votes
2answers
201 views
Does this RGB-patterned reflector have benefits for digital photography?
B2Pro has announced a parabolic umbrella reflector for photographic lighting. The surface of the umbrella is printed with a hexagonal array of red, green, and blue spots:
The manufacturer makes the ...
8
votes
5answers
721 views
How can I prevent light spill from an umbrella?
I've been reading Strobist lately and love the moody half-lit-half-dark effect in a lot of these types of photos. I'm a beginner and have a limited equipment budget, so I got a 45" ...
8
votes
3answers
3k views
What are the effects of umbrella size?
I keep seeing shoot thru an reflecting umbrellas in sizes around 33", 36", 42" and even larger. Many of the kits (stand, clamp, umbrella) I see around have the smaller size umbrellas. Strobist.com ...
8
votes
1answer
354 views
How was the Blade Runner replicant eye reflection effect done?
I'm trying to recreate the Blade Runner eye reflection effect found in these examples:
The closest I've seen is with a flash where the light bounces off in the eye and causes a bright red or ...
8
votes
1answer
262 views
