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- Pat MacInnes
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So although I went to play with some gear, my main aim this year was to take in some seminars (particularly lighting ones) and effectively get some free tuition.
The show didn't disappoint but what did everyone else learn? For me, these were the keys things:
* I have underestimated the importance of a lightmeter, or at least a dedicated light reading, when using flash out in the field for too long. I used them all the time when shooting film but I've gotten lazy I think.As I'm growing more confident in bringing OCF into my images (and making them more important to the whole exposure) I know I should get away from this 'expose for the ambient' approach I've been using exclusively because, in reality, all I've been doing is using a large amount of fill flash instead of using flash as something more. Nick Webster, one of the Bowens guest speakers, hit that home to me when he said that even if the ambient exposure is bad (if you've selected the wrong shutter speed), if you've metered for the flash then you still have a shot and when working under tight time constraints, that can get you out of a hole.
* The effect of beauty dishes, especially when combined with hard light and/or fill to create drama and give a sense if space, dimension and 'life' for want of a better word. Whether I can re-create what I've seen today using speedlights I don't know, but I'm going to try if only to firm up the niggling thought that a bigger lighting rig could benefit me.
* Think about fall-off and how you can use it to your advantage to make the transition into shadows that little bit softer. Quick drop-off when the light source is close to the subject is ace, but it's not always the only way to shoot.
* Grids are a key component in directional lighting when you want to reduce flare (when lights are almost facing the lens) and concentrate light in one direction in a simple fashion without the use of gobos and flags. I'm definitely in need of some for my speedlights, if only to see if I can get a similar effect from a small, harder light source. Think a multi-pack of straws might be bought tomorrow to make a DIY version....
* One light can be as good as several. Just use shadow to create depth and use a single light source to focus the viewer's attention on the subject without any PP trickery. Shadows don't always have to be filled.
* Colour temperature can play a big part in the image you want to create and how it's perceived by the viewer. I tend to use bare, ungelled flash a lit, quite liking that difference between daylight and the flash colour temp. However, using gels and thinking about WB further down the line when it comes to processing can help you create an image that you wouldn't neccessarily have seen when looking through the lens.
Probably more than anything though, I'm inspired. Whether it's seeing things being done, or just talking to other photographers, for the first time in months I've come home and got the camera out to try some portraits of my little boy, albeit unsuccessfully because he was too full of beans and wouldn't stay still!!!.
There are probably a few more things I'll think of but in terms of doing what I wanted it to, the tuition on offer (I only saw a fraction of it) was worth the parking fee alone. Plus, it took my mind off my wallet and what I could buy if I had the funds
The show didn't disappoint but what did everyone else learn? For me, these were the keys things:
* I have underestimated the importance of a lightmeter, or at least a dedicated light reading, when using flash out in the field for too long. I used them all the time when shooting film but I've gotten lazy I think.As I'm growing more confident in bringing OCF into my images (and making them more important to the whole exposure) I know I should get away from this 'expose for the ambient' approach I've been using exclusively because, in reality, all I've been doing is using a large amount of fill flash instead of using flash as something more. Nick Webster, one of the Bowens guest speakers, hit that home to me when he said that even if the ambient exposure is bad (if you've selected the wrong shutter speed), if you've metered for the flash then you still have a shot and when working under tight time constraints, that can get you out of a hole.
* The effect of beauty dishes, especially when combined with hard light and/or fill to create drama and give a sense if space, dimension and 'life' for want of a better word. Whether I can re-create what I've seen today using speedlights I don't know, but I'm going to try if only to firm up the niggling thought that a bigger lighting rig could benefit me.
* Think about fall-off and how you can use it to your advantage to make the transition into shadows that little bit softer. Quick drop-off when the light source is close to the subject is ace, but it's not always the only way to shoot.
* Grids are a key component in directional lighting when you want to reduce flare (when lights are almost facing the lens) and concentrate light in one direction in a simple fashion without the use of gobos and flags. I'm definitely in need of some for my speedlights, if only to see if I can get a similar effect from a small, harder light source. Think a multi-pack of straws might be bought tomorrow to make a DIY version....
* One light can be as good as several. Just use shadow to create depth and use a single light source to focus the viewer's attention on the subject without any PP trickery. Shadows don't always have to be filled.
* Colour temperature can play a big part in the image you want to create and how it's perceived by the viewer. I tend to use bare, ungelled flash a lit, quite liking that difference between daylight and the flash colour temp. However, using gels and thinking about WB further down the line when it comes to processing can help you create an image that you wouldn't neccessarily have seen when looking through the lens.
Probably more than anything though, I'm inspired. Whether it's seeing things being done, or just talking to other photographers, for the first time in months I've come home and got the camera out to try some portraits of my little boy, albeit unsuccessfully because he was too full of beans and wouldn't stay still!!!.
There are probably a few more things I'll think of but in terms of doing what I wanted it to, the tuition on offer (I only saw a fraction of it) was worth the parking fee alone. Plus, it took my mind off my wallet and what I could buy if I had the funds
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