Category Archives: ambient light

April 17, 2012
3:50 pm
by: The Napa Photographer

Shoot on Cloudy Days to Add a Little Drama to Ordinary Portraits

There are a lot of photographers that put their cameras away when the clouds roll in, but for others, that’s when the fun’s just getting started. In today’s post I will provide some tips and tricks that will help you … Continue reading →

Posted in ambient light, exposure, off-camera-flash, photoshop, portrait photography

March 12, 2012
6:37 pm
by: The Napa Photographer

How (and why) to use your Camera in Manual Mode.

Your camera thinks it’s smarter than you. As we speak at this very moment, it’s smirking in your bag, silently mocking you. It doesn’t have to be this way, it’s pretty easy to gain the upper hand and really take … Continue reading →

Posted in ambient light, exposure, off-camera-flash

March 8, 2012
11:08 am
by: The Napa Photographer

High Speed Sync Part IV – The Reckoning

So far, we’ve discussed three of the five ways to control ambient light when using flash. Today I will complete the list and provide my Pro’s and Con’s analysis of each. The list so far: Fast Shutter Speed + High … Continue reading →

Posted in ambient light, exposure, gear, High Speed Sync, off-camera-flash, pocket wizard, portrait photography

March 6, 2012
12:42 pm
by: The Napa Photographer

High Speed Sync (continued)

High Speed Sync Part III In my last post, I hinted that there are five ways to kill the ambient light. So far we’ve covered two of the five ways: High Speed Sync – Using your shutter speed to dial … Continue reading →

Posted in ambient light, exposure, gear, High Speed Sync, off-camera-flash, pocket wizard

March 4, 2012
12:28 pm
by: The Napa Photographer

High Speed Sync

High Speed Sync Part II This is a follow up to my post from a couple days ago, in it I will expand on the concept of High Speed Sync, why it’s used, and some ways to get by without … Continue reading →

Posted in ambient light, exposure, High Speed Sync, off-camera-flash

February 24, 2012
6:13 am
by: The Napa Photographer

Using the sun as a rim/accent light.

One of the best things about doing portrait photography outdoors is that you can incorporate sunlight into your lighting setup. For example, in the following shot you can see that I’m using the sun as an accent light: I just … Continue reading →

Posted in ambient light, off-camera-flash, portrait photography