Mad about colour ~ Speedlight Mastery pictures and techniques

April 1st, 2010

On camera flash ~ that was it! A purple painted wall and the most simple lighting technique I know. Speedlights are a wonderful tool waiting to be explored. All the buttons and features may seem a little daunting at first but once unraveled they can be put to great effect.

The books and manuals that accompany a Speedlight in the box are full of the most dull pictures imaginable. I’ve seen a person sitting at a desk with a potted plant behind them lit with the bounce card feature, or a car driving off with light trails in the picture. So what is all that about? I’ve yet to find a good use for rear curtain sync. Here are a few of my Speedlight pictures from my sixth day of the Speedlight Mastery workshops.

Barely five minutes in to the workshop and I was explaining the effect of camera position with flash on camera pictures. This shot was taken with identical set up as the first picture except we moved the camera and selected a longer focal length lens. Marie was full of life as you can see.

Once we had got to my den it was time to mix ambient light with flash. To throw a colour temperature setting into the mix and to gel up a single Speedlight.

Once we had got to my den it was time to, mix ambient light with flash, throw a colour temperature setting into the mix and to gel up a single Speedlight.

Throughout a workshop I teach a variety of techniques at quite an advanced level. I shoot similar shots to those taken on previous workshops but I do shoot a few new ones too and these are them.

Natural light alone was used for this portrait of the gorgeous Marie.

We shot the reflection shot on my latest Speedlight Mastery DVD and added a bit of Honl colour too.

No two shots are ever the same at this location and here's another.

No two shots are ever the same at this location so here's another.

I borrowed an 85mm f/1.2 lens for this natural light shot while my delegates shot the flash image I had set up earlier. It's a wonderful piece of glass but so critical with the focus. I had a success rate of about one in three shots

I had tried to shoot this frame the day before but the heavens opened just as it was starting to get good. This time though I nailed it. Two Speedlights on stands and a break in the weather was what we needed.

So much time was spent on the 'K' setting for white balance we were dialling in values from 3200k - 10,000k at different stages. It's important to get the look in camera so you can asses the correct exposure for the colour mix.

So much time was spent on the 'K' setting for white balance we were dialing in values from 3200k - 10,000k at different stages. It's important to get the look in camera so you can asses the correct exposure for the colour mix. This was my last frame of the day. We then ended up in the Severnshed Bar for a drink and debrief.

Join me on a Speedlight Mastery Workshop next month or come to Amsterdam in May for a ‘Passion on the Streets’ workshop. We really do have fun and I’ll do all I can to ensure you get the most from the day whatever your skill level.

Please feel free to comment on these pictures. Cheers, Damien.

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13 Comments Add your own

1. Chris | April 2nd, 2010 at 12:02 pm

Hi Damien,

What a great day out and Marie was absolutely stunning. The day just flew by and I am now going to put what I learnt into practice (if I can remember all the settings!).

Highly recommended and what a great teacher. The 85mm lens was awesome!
2. Will Pateman Photography | April 2nd, 2010 at 2:11 pm

Great shots with and without flash..that model is so full of life
3. Glyn Dewis | April 2nd, 2010 at 5:11 pm

Hi Damien,

Great series of shots produced with real simple techniques; thanks for sharing.

With regards the rear curtain sync, Joe McNally gives a great example of it’s use in a recent Nikon DVD: ‘A hands on guide to creative lighting’ where he is photographing a ballet dancer leaping as she strides into the frame toward a speedlight. The rear curtain sync gives a beautiful motion blur to the rear of the dancer as she leaps, really emphasising the movement.

Great post,
All the best to you,
Glyn
4. Morgana | April 3rd, 2010 at 7:05 am

Come to Australia and run your workshops here – thy sound awesome!
5. Tara Taylor | April 3rd, 2010 at 8:32 am

Great shots, lovely model. I just adore that purple background!!
6. damien | April 3rd, 2010 at 9:38 am

Hi Morgana,

I did Urban Portrait workshops on the streets of Sydney, Perth, Brisbane and Melbourne the year before last. I may be back to Adelaide and I might be shooting in Perth again as a guest of Jorgensen albums, my sponsors for my South East Asian tour scheduled for later this year.

Damien.
7. damien | April 3rd, 2010 at 10:25 am

Hi Glyn,

Thanks for the news of a use for rear curtain sync. It’s a shame that none of the camera manufacturers can employ a photographer as creative as Joe to shoot the product manuals. I’ve never had a reason to use rear curtain sync. With the Pocket Wizards rear curtain sync is automatically set at all shutter speeds below 1/100th as standard. You can change this setting like all the others if you wish.

Regards, Damien
8. damien | April 3rd, 2010 at 10:28 am

Thanks Tara, There is about 200m of plywood paneling around building sites in Bristol painted in the same purple. They obviously bought a job lot of the paint. I love it too. Damien.
9. Glyn Dewis | April 3rd, 2010 at 4:06 pm

Totally agree with you regards the manuals Damien. Would be nice to see examples of what can be done rather than dull pictures that normally accompany them.

Interesting what you say about the rear curtain sync when using the PW’s. Must admit I’m really looking forward to giving the Nikon ones a go when they get released.

Cheers,
Glyn
10. damien | April 6th, 2010 at 11:28 pm

Hi Glyn,

You might not need to wait too long now for the Nikon PWs. Could be late summer but the Nikon system is very complicated so the firmware will be a challenge to code. Cheers, Damien.
11. Glyn Dewis | April 6th, 2010 at 11:31 pm

Damien, thanks for that; had a feeling you’d be ‘in the know’…lol

Cheers,
Glyn
12. Leo | May 7th, 2010 at 11:38 am

Hi Damien!

My fav is actually the natural lit one with the 85mm 1.2 at the bar (6th from the top). I like the flare, the lines, looks like she is just waiting for somebody and the outfit colours match the decor of the bar.
13. damien | May 7th, 2010 at 11:55 pm

Thanks Leo.