Happy New Year to you! I hope that you had a safe and Happy New Year and that you set some good, achievable resolutions for 2012.

This is the first post of 2012 discussing special effect lighting with flash units. I briefly discuss special effect lighting and demonstrate how I used multiple flash units and gels to create a special effect photo for a client.

Getting creative background lighting does not require expensive lighting tools. Read my latest blog on lighting a corporate portrait using two flash units, some Cinefoil, and colored gels.

Using flash outdoors can be tricky, especially if you want to acheive a shallow depth of field by opening your aperture all the way. Learn what High-Speed Flash Sync is and how to use it to acheive a nice balance between fill-flash and shallow depth of field.

Getting back to the basics. This new posting is all about using a single Speedlight to capture a location portrait during the day, outdoors, and using your flash for fill-flash. I also explain a little about using a reflective bounce to further fill in the shadow areas of your subject.

Don’t forget to take my quick poll. I’m looking to get my readers/followers input on the type of content they want to see more of on the site. The poll is on the left side of the website, toward the middle.

Thank you!

Alyn Stafford

Yes, I know the title says it’s a portrait of a magic man, but I couldn’t find a real magician, so I had to use my faithful assistant (portrait image below, right). But doesn’t he look like a magician? No really, he’s wearing black like a magician and that serious, menacing look on his face. [...]

OK, so, by now,  you may have heard the term grid spot? No, not grid square, which is an area on a map, but grid spots. If you don’t know what they are, no worries. I’ll tell you all about these light modifiers below. Once reserved for studio strobes, grid spots have found their way [...]

Today I was asked by a friend via email, what exactly a flashgun and camera hot shoe was. I had to pause a moment because this individual actually works in the photography industry. I never asked them why they did not know the answer to that question, and mainly because I didn’t want to embarrass [...]

Get your bounce on! Here’s an article on the different surfaces of reflective bounces for portraits.

You don’t need an expensive studio or lots of equipment to create stunning portraits. This tutorial on flash photography explains how I created a portrait using on Nikon Speedlight in my dining room in a matter of minutes.

It’s easy to get creative using compact flash units, especially if you have several of them at your disposal. Let’s take a look at how I created this quick “on-stage” shot right in my living room. For starters, I’m using four Nikon Speedlights; two SB800′s and two SB-26′s. Side note, this can be done with [...]

I’m pretty much a die hard when it comes to adapting to change. I don’t typically run out and by the latest and greatest photographic equipment when it’s new. Once I get use to something, I tend to stick with it (as long as it works) and that’s what I did with my Nikon SB800′s. [...]

For this particular lighting lesson, I wanted to demonstrate how you could use two Speedlight flash units to achieve creative product lighting results. You don’t need big, expensive studio lighting to achieve big studio results. Using Speedlight flash units allows you flexibility and the ability to travel light, especially if you are working on location [...]

This blog article is centered around using one and two flash units for an on-location business portrait session. I particularly wanted to demonstrate that by using a two-flash set-up, you can create depth in your portrait.     One Flash (Off-Camera) Lighting Set-Up For starters, I’m using two Nikon SB-800 flash units and two PocketWizard [...]

I’ve just added new training classes to my arsenal of service. The current classes being developed and offered include Adobe Lightroom for beginners and intermediate users, Photoshop CS4 basics as well as photo and portrait retouching, and location lighting with wireless flash units. Courses will begin in the 4th quarter of 2011 (October/November). They could [...]