Here are posts dedicated to using the advanced features of Nikon Speedlights, Canon Speedlites and big flash too.
3 comments September 1st, 2010 11:07pm damien
1. Minimalist natural light and a strong pose creates a striking image.
All the shots from Mondays workshop have been processed by Luke in black and white. My shots were taken using prime lenses and we shot in extreme exposure situations to challenge and educate us all. (more…)
17 comments August 20th, 2010 07:18pm damien
These are 60 pictures from our second vintage shoot at Bury. It rained throughout the day and was uncharacteristically dark for August. Chris and I worked extra hard to make our own sun and I hope you enjoy the fruits of our labours. 30 pictures each. Mine are first 
dl1. No vintage set is complete without a monochrome beauty shot. 100mm lens at f/2.8
21 comments August 19th, 2010 11:47pm damien
How far will you take in camera exposure? This is 'as shot' and those who know me understand why I never use a histogram or the highlight warning system in my camera. The screen on the 5D mk 2 is so good, fine exposure tweaks can be made using the picture alone.
This set of pictures was quite special to shoot. The weather was kind, Chloe Jasmine Whichello was in good spirits and some of our favourite photographers were with us as delegates. The day started at the worlds most expensive pebble… (more…)
14 comments July 10th, 2010 12:41am damien
This weeks shooting workshop took Chloe, some delegates, and I around Somerset on a quest for images par excellence. One delegate had flown from Venezuela to attend this workshop and my Fashion Fusion event next week, wow! No pressure then.
1. A silver umbrella and my Mobil kit on 1/4 power was all that was needed for this figure in the landscape study. You can see the path of illumination as it cuts through the summer corn.
8 comments June 19th, 2010 04:44pm damien
1. Every now and then an exposure needs cutting back to simplify the shot. I worked the camera three stops down to capture Natasha in the shell seat shown in the next frame.
Chris Hanley and I were in Barça, a funky venue in Manchester having coffee one day in May and we decided to run a workshop shoot there. I wanted to shoot alternative fashion away from the realms of portraiture and Chris set to work sourcing a clothing designer, make up artist an models. It was a one off event for 8 delegates and here are our pictures. The first 21 pictures were shot by me and the final 21 were taken by Chris. (more…)
30 comments June 18th, 2010 11:33pm damien
Every now and then a workshop happens where so many variables come together in an astonishing way to produce a learning experience that transcends the sum of its parts. This workshop was one such event. Chris Hanley and I had five delegates each and we swapped around every 45 mins or so. This ensured that everyone had the opportunity to shoot all the shots.
Here are 48 of my pictures from the workshop. They have been edited by Marko to our exacting standards and then we created the looks using the three actions in the Lovegrove Vintage Photoshop action set.
1. I lit Chloe with a single Speedlight from the right for that punchy look.
7 comments June 12th, 2010 11:44am damien
Here are a few ideas for creating striking portraits using one or two studio lights and minimal props. All the pictures in this article were shot during one Studio Lighting workshop at my studio in May.
My lighting workshop delegates often expect to dive in to complicated multi light set-ups right from the off when the simple techniques using just one light need refining first. Using just one light sounds easy – switch it on and shoot, and it is, if you are careful and know what you are doing. It is often the simple single light images we start with on a workshop day that bring out the creativity in all of us.
Shot 1. Canon 5D Mk2 with a 100m lens at f/2.8 This shot is completely lit from one Bowens Gemini flash unit rigged above and behind Chloe. It was fitted with a 7" reflector and a fine honeycomb grid. I’m really happy to let thing go in my shots. I’m never one to worry about a bit of detail loss in the highlights if the shot is great. In fact I positively go out of my way to blow out highlights in frames like this taken against my patch of yellow wall in my studio. It looks sunny and I like that.
My studio lighting concept is simple, I start
12 comments June 4th, 2010 12:12am damien
Here is a slideshow of a few pictures from the Speedlight Mastery workshop I ran earlier this week. I have set the pictures to some royalty free music using Fotomagico slideshow software. The music really isn’t a good choice so feel free to turn your speakers down. I’m hoping Chloe, our multi talented model can come up with something to replace it as she is a musician too, ooh and a writer Movie after the jump… (more…)
15 comments May 30th, 2010 11:58am damien
Here are a few pictures from a test shoot I did with Rosie Pitt last Wednesday. I set the pictures to some royalty free music using Fotomagico slideshow software. (more…)
56 comments May 23rd, 2010 08:36pm damien
Well here is a little something to get your heads around. I’m not sure on the physics or the tech behind this post but I do know the maximum published sync speed for non Speedlight flash kit is a measly 1/200th of a second with the Canon 5D and 5D mk2. Not any more! The techniques used in this post were hinted to me by Martin Hogeboom in a cafe in Amsterdam last week and I vowed to give it a go and see if the rumours are true. All the exif is intact so please learn from it as you wish. (more…)
11 comments May 20th, 2010 02:44pm damien
Day two in Amsterdam was warmer than day 1 for our models Bas and Samantha. The public holiday was over and the area was once again filled with bikes. All our shots were taken within the same 500m radius as day 1 so once again minimal walking was needed. Here is a mini selection of 23 of the pictures taken on workshop 2.
1.Here we all are - nearly. This picture was taken by a local resident from his apartment. He printed it off and and gave it to us in the street. Just one of those random moments that happen on a street shoot. You can see a couple of Speedlights rigged on stands in readiness for a few pictures of Samantha.
10 comments May 19th, 2010 09:04pm damien
Wow! what can I say? Nick and I were fortunate enough to meet up with the legendary Martin Hogeboom in Amsterdam for a 2 hour creative shoot. Graziella our model met us at the American Hotel and we went for a walk, talk & shoot. Nick had done the recce and scouted out some fantastic locations so in just a couple of minutes we were putting our systems to the limit. We walked about 1km in total and finished the session in time for a bit of lunch together. Here are some of my shots from the shoot.
1. My first picture of this set was the last one I took. It is an infra red portrait taken using my converted 5D mk1. I shot it using my 21mm f2.8 Zeiss lens. If you click on the picture you can see it at 100% Lighting was from a barefaced Speedlight.
I learned some new tricks with Pocket Wizards way beyond the scope of my usual working using the (more…)
18 comments May 18th, 2010 09:34pm damien
1. We started in Cuba or so it seemed. One delegate spotted this shop window and we were off. This shot was given a warm treatment in camera by selecting an 8000 K setting for the white balance. It was overcast and threatening to rain all morning so I resorted to creating Speedlight sun for nearly every shot. All the Speedlights were triggered with a Pocket Wizard for the whole day although an ST-E2 would have done the trick. We just happened to have more PW triggers with us than infra red triggers. I chose to keep the lighting ratio calm, although I encouraged the delegates to go as punchy as they wished by changing their aperture to taste.
Day one in Amsterdam was a cold shoot for our models Bas and Samantha. There was also a one day public holiday so the dynamic of the area we were shooting in was very different to my recce the day before. All our shots were taken within a 500m radius so there was no major walking required. Here is a mini selection of 23 of the pictures taken on workshop 1. (more…)
20 comments May 7th, 2010 09:16pm damien
Here is a set of images from Thursdays studio lighting workshop. All my pictures on the day were shot with my Canon 100mm f/2.8 L IS macro lens on a 5D mk2 camera. The lens is surprisingly light to hold, pin sharp, and has a rock steady viewfinder image thanks to the amazing 4 stop image stabilisation. Chloe Jasmine from Gingersnap was our model. The fabulous hair styles and make up were provided by our make up artist of choice at the Lovegrove studio, Vicky Waghorn.
Timeless beauty, lit with hard light (2x Bowens Gemini ProR 750s with 7" reflectors and tight grids) to create rick dark shadows, and clearly defined cheekbones. The low viewpoint and over the shoulder look create an opportunity for an intense moment. You can see into Chloe's soul in this frame and I love that in a portrait.
The workshop started with a simple demonstration of the property of shadows and went on to creating vintage portraits with (more…)
15 comments May 7th, 2010 01:03am damien
Wow, what a wonderful day of shooting, learning and fun we had on Wednesday. The Nikon flash system was opened up and pushed to it’s limit at times and it responded with a faultless performance. Here are a dozen of my shots from the workshop.
Four SB-900 Speedlights set at full power in manual mode popped this shot into life.
10 comments April 26th, 2010 07:14pm damien
1 - The Pebble of Manchester and Lisa Marie are lit with a splash of flash from an SB-900 on a stand. I triggered the flash in full sun at a distance of 30m with the pop up flash in my Nikon D700. At no point throughout the day did we have triggering problems with Nikon's fantastic infra red system.
9 comments April 25th, 2010 10:22pm damien
Last week I ran two days of Speedlight Mastery workshops in Manchester, one for Canon shooters and one for Nikonions. I’ve split the pictures in my posts to avoid repetition. Even though we shot the same routes with Lisa Marie as our model I set up and created quite a few different images to keep me on my toes. I stuck to my shooting style despite working in full sun for two days. So here are the shots from my Canon day:
1 - I used Orbis to shoot this simple frame. Canon 5D mk2, Speedlight 580 mk2 in an Orbis ringflash adapter triggered with a Pocket Wizard Flex and Mini pair. 1/200th second at 200 ISO @ f/8. Glazed tiles on the side of a pub made a perfect background for an Orbis shot.
22 comments April 24th, 2010 05:42pm damien
D1 - I love the surreal nature of cross keyed Speedlights. The Hilton bar that I shot this frame in is aptly called Cloud 23. Two Speedlights on stands were triggered using infra red. I rigged Canon and Nikon Speedlights alongside each other on the same stands. ISO 200, 1/200th second at f/16
Here are the long awaited set of pictures from last weeks Cherish The Dress workshop at the fabulous Hilton Hotel in Manchester. Chris Hanley and I delivered a full on workshop with our team of assistants to the ten delegates. We split into two groups for the sessions. We regularly swap tutors and models to ensure that each group gets to shoot all the pictures. Chris and I share 36 of our pictures from the day starting with my set of 18… (more…)
15 comments April 15th, 2010 12:18am damien
What did I say to shock Henri here? Answers on a postcard. Punchy lighting was created with the minimum of fuss and a sheet of Lovegrove gel. The background was my grey studio wall.
29 comments April 9th, 2010 10:24pm damien
The sun was my key light and a Speedlight was my sun. The Spedlight was on a stand behind Katy kicking forward off the billboard. I set a white balance of 10,000K for good measure.
I usually post six or so shots from a workshop but yesterdays event took a different route leaving me eighteen shots to discuss and share with you. (more…)
13 comments April 1st, 2010 07:39pm damien
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. (more…)
4 comments March 31st, 2010 09:19pm damien
A whole lotta love. ISO 400, 1/200th second at f/4. Lit with a pair of Canon 580EX2 Speedlights, one in an Lastolite Ezybox and the other with a Honl Speed strap and a home made full blue gel. I wanted to create a night time street scene look in my secret Bristol location.
Here are a few pictures from one of my latest Speedlight Mastery workshops together with the techniques I’ve used. (more…)
12 comments March 28th, 2010 05:06pm damien
Here is a guide to the care and maintenance of SLA or sealed lead acid batteries often used in photographic lighting kit. (more…)
24 comments March 25th, 2010 07:17pm damien
A bar shutter, a bride and Orbis - Perfect! I gave myself just a couple of minutes of the day to demonstrate the Orbis ring flash accessory and I plucked this shot out of nothing. I'm so impressed with Orbis I bought the company. (not really).
I’ve put all 90 or so selected pictures taken by Julie and I on their own web pages created by Adobe Lightroom’s web module so that I can share the valuable Exif data with you. The link is here: (more…)
6 comments March 24th, 2010 10:05pm damien
The Nikon creative lighting system is able to create the wow factor in the right hands. Three Speedlights, a few ideas, a bit of a rig and fine tuning make this shot work. The difference between success and failure involves light setting, testing and adjusting. The Stothert and Pitt steam crane on the Bristol docks makes a fabulous background.
The Nikon creative lighting system is a mighty powerful tool. These shots were taken easily using the SU-800 infra red trigger or the pop up flash of my Nikon D700.
(more…)
24 comments March 23rd, 2010 09:29pm damien
Shooting Chloe in sunny Bristol was a delight for my second ever Canon Speedlight Mastery workshop. This shot was lit with sunlight as a key and a pair of 580EX2s as backlights. The next shot shows the complete set up.
22 comments March 20th, 2010 06:09pm damien
This portrait was lit with a Speedlight in an Orbis ring flash adapter. I used the PW system to expose using TTL. Orbis is the ring flash adapter that is not camera model specific. It is great for Canon, Nikon, Sony and Pentax too.
I had to modify the Orbis by adding a Velcro lock for my Speedlights to avoid them accidentally dropping out of the bottom. Over the next few weeks (more…)
9 comments March 18th, 2010 08:01pm damien
It is time to flex the muscles of the Nikon Creative Lighting system and go beyond the basics. With this in mind Tuesdays delegate was up for the challenge and between us we really started to rock the boat. A few familiar locations plus my new shoot zone.
A quick shift of Kelvin and a full Honl CTO gel in my Easybox Hotshoe was just the trick to make the most of this location.
19 comments March 17th, 2010 09:34pm damien
This a bit of random to start my shooting season blog posts. It's the only shot in this set not lit with a Speedlight.
Here is a small selection of the shots taken on Tuesdays Speedlight Mastery workshop for Canon shooters.
16 comments February 10th, 2010 09:47pm damien
Tango the dog finally gets to share the stage with Sarah. This shot was lit using a Broncolor ring flash plugged into my trusty Mobil A2R kit. Wall colour was provided by Dulux.
Wow what a day! We shot simple set ups, and created repeatable dynamic images. We studied shadows, the qualities of light and had fun on the way. (more…)
25 comments January 4th, 2010 12:21am damien
I’ve been on a fabulous creative trip in 2009 teaching photography and researching my latest DVD/ Blu-Ray, Speedlight Mastery. The journey has taken me to six cities in Germany, the Meatpacking district of New York, Sienna in Tuscany, Castlefield in Manchester and my beloved Bristol Waterfront. On the way I have shared creative moments and precious times with talented photographers from around the world.
Below are my favourite 50 pictures of 2009. It is a strange notion to choose pictures over a time span. I thought about sharing the following sets: My 50 career best pictures, or my 50 favourite pictures of the last decade, or perhaps 50 favourite pictures of the past year, or 50 best shots of the past month. I went for the past year option.
I wonder how many of my pictures I would have selected for all four sets? It’s worth thinking about this. Ask yourself, Is your photography going in the right direction. This is totally subjective and only your opinion counts. Another list category I thought about was the 10 photographs that charted my photographic career. This would be more of a narrative that discussed each images significance rather than the image itself. A lot of the shots I’d choose in the key career shots set would not make any of the ‘best’ sets listed above. It’s got me thinking so I’ll write about the career milestone shots in the coming months but for now here are my 50 favourite pictures of 2009:
The season started with my big flash in the country workshops. And this frame was one that shone out of the overcast day in the dark woods. Lit with two barefaced Broncolor Mobil heads powered from the same A2R pack.
56 comments December 31st, 2009 04:17pm damien
Here is my technique for creating striking studio portraits using a grey background and the Lovegrove Studio Collection of gels. Grid collections like the one above make fantastic large acrylic products or canvas prints for the home. They are easy to shoot, command high prices, and they look great in a studio shop window too. Here’s how I shot the one above. (more…)
29 comments December 31st, 2009 04:16pm damien
Here is the full colour chart showing picture samples taken with each of the 38 gels in the Lovegrove Studio Collection at various levels of illumination. The gels are listed in numerical order. The 38 gels each measure 12″x 12″ (305mm x 305mm). For the technical details of how these shots were taken please see my other post here. These shots are ’straight from camera’ I used a Nikon D700 with a 70-200mm f/2.8 lens set at f/11 and I used the ‘flash’ white balance preset. All the shots were batch cropped to 10×8 proportions in Adobe Lightroom before being exported.
What’s your favourite colour? Let me know in the comments box below.
LC01
63 comments December 22nd, 2009 10:34pm damien
In this 2.5 hour production I shoot 23 set ups using single or multiple Speedlights. The simplest set up uses just one Speedlight on camera and the most complicated used 3 Speedlights off camera, a Lastolite Ezybox and a reflector. I’ve tried to show every nuance of the rig and shoot. I’ve avoided detailing some of the button pushing info that is flash model specific for brevity reasons knowing that this information is in the manual that came with the flash.
Some set ups are explained in more detail and others that repeat the same action are shot at my normal shooting pace to avoid too much repetition.
I am on hand to answer your questions here. I’ll reference and link to more resources as required or requested. So if you have (more…)
30 comments December 9th, 2009 07:59pm damien
This simple shot against a white section of my studio was simply lit with 2 hard lights (Bowens heads with 7" reflectors and grids). The low angle viewpoint was inspired by the classic Holywood portraits.
It was my first ever studio lighting workshop at my own studio and I absolutely loved the process of starting to unlock the bijou spaces potential. At just 6.5m x 4.6m the Lovegrove studio is very compact. The high vaulted ceiling adds to the space and lets me get the lighting rig up and out of the shots. Here are 20 of my shots from the day. (more…)
23 comments November 21st, 2009 11:15pm damien
UPDATE: Full version 500 of the firmware is now available for all PW TTL units. Download via your Pocket Wizard utility application.
There is an updated firmware available for the Pocket Wizard Mini TT1 and Flex TT5 available for download here. It is Beta firmware but don’t let that put you off because the previous official version was a work in progress. The good news is that additional functionality has been added to the Mini and Flex as well as 7D compatibility. A few bugs have being fixed too especially those that affect 5Dmk2 user.
14 comments November 21st, 2009 01:36pm damien
Coping with changeable light, dark gloomy conditions or even low angle winter sunlight is what this workshop was all about. I lit this shot with a single Speedlight.
After last years launch of our Lighting Winter Weddings and Big Day DVDs we’ve been inundated with requests for more wedding shooting training. So Julie and I decided to put on some dates at the start of this winter season. Here are a selection of the pictures from the first two workshops that happened earlier in the week.
10 comments November 8th, 2009 02:43pm damien
I’ve had many questions from Nikon users waiting for the new Pocket Wizard TT1 and TT5 units and here is my response to the most common one. Should I buy an SU-800 or wait for the new Pocket Wizard TTL units to come out? (more…)
11 comments November 7th, 2009 12:35am damien
Here are a few of the pictures I took on yesterday’s workshop. I asked Marko to knock them into shape in Lightroom and Photoshop so that I can share some my key picture making thoughts with you.
We explored working with just one light to take simple striking portraits like this one shot against a mid grey paper background. One Broncolor Mobil head in a softbox provided the light.
5 comments November 6th, 2009 11:50am damien
Here is the second set of pictures taken by Chris Hanley last week during his workshops on the Lovegrove training event in Tuscany.
Chris used +3 stops of light for this dramatic shot.
6 comments November 4th, 2009 10:54pm damien
This first shot by Chris uses natural window light bounced back using a large Lastolite reflector.
Here are the first set of Chris Hanley’s Cherish The Dress™ pictures taken on the recent Lovegrove workshops in Tuscany. Chris started his workshops with an introduction to the workings of the Cherish brand that makes the dress the star and not the victim. The aim of a Cherish shoot is to provide an album full of “WOW” images.
18 comments November 3rd, 2009 05:32pm damien
Here is a small selection of my colour pictures from Siena. It has been hard for me to choose which ones to show you. The people of Siena were so accommodating, it was refreshing to have such cooperation on their streets. However, scooters really can get everywhere and they did.
A slash of flash set this first colour frame alight. Even the painted pigeon above the door on the facade has a drop shadow going in the right direction. Canon 5D mk2, ISO 200, 1/200th at f/5.6
18 comments November 2nd, 2009 06:21pm damien
Here is a selection of my monochrome pictures from the recent Passion On The Streets™ workshop in Siena, Tuscany. I’m more usually known for my colour work but I wanted to start the delegates off by thinking monochrome. There’s no better way to do this than to switch picture styles on the camera to monochrome. If you are shooting RAW this will only affect the screen on the back of the camera as Lightroom will soon make it’s own colour preview of the shot when you are back at the studio.
An iconic shot with the scooter in the foreground sets the scene. Lighting was from an upstage Speedlight triggered by infra red TTL. Canon 5Dmk2 ISO 400, 1/200th at f/3.5
21 comments November 1st, 2009 08:02pm damien
After a period of 5 years of not doing an annual ballet photo promotion in the run up to Christmas I decided this year that I’d make a fresh start and redesign the promotion from scratch. I refitted my studio and did a test shoot with my daughter Francesca. The promo artwork was designed by Luke using these test pictures and 500 fliers were printed last week while I was in Tuscany.
This picture of Francesca was taken with in camera diffusion and a simple studio lighting set up.
With a promotion like this you need to ensure absolute accuracy and attention to detail. The position of the feet and hands, body posture and pose are all important as most ballet mums used to do ballet themselves and they can spot a sickle-foot instantly. (more…)
9 comments October 18th, 2009 02:21pm damien
Canon 5D mk2, Lit with a Broncolor Mobil head fitted with a single 42cm beauty dish with a diffuser cover.
29 comments October 18th, 2009 12:51pm damien
Here is my guide to selecting and using Speedlights. I’ve pulled together this mini feature article to help get the basics covered ahead of the release of my new DVD on mastering Speedlight portraits. All the pictures in this article were taken during the making of my forthcoming DVD on how to master the Speedlight.
Canon 5D mk2 1/2000th second f/4 ISO 200 Lit with 3 Speedlites on stands triggered by the Pocket Wizard TTL system. The key light was a 580 EX11 in a Lastolite Eazybox on a stand rigged just out of the top of the shot.
15 comments September 27th, 2009 09:32pm damien
I love red dresses! Lisa Marie and Sean pictured here will be with me in Tuscany for my 'passion on the streets' workshops in Sienna in a few weeks time. They are absolute stars and the shoots promise to be remarkable.
Here are 21 more of my pictures from the Cherish The Dress shoot and then 22 of Chris’s pictures for equal measure. (more…)
10 comments September 27th, 2009 12:51am damien
My first Evolve group decided to get together for a reunion in middle England to have some fun and a creative shoot session. After a few drinks and a curry the night before it was to the canals of Birmingham that we went with our cameras and a willing model to hand.
A couple of Speedlights on stands made easy work of Cassie beside the Sea Life Centre.
16 comments September 19th, 2009 12:37am damien
The last shot of the day deserves first spot here. Two 580 EX11 Speedlights triggered by the ST-E2 provided the illumination from the front. The sun gave us a nice backlight and spectral highlight. The Speedlights were fitted with full CTO gels and the camera white balance was set to 3800K.
This was my last Urban Portrait workshop of it’s kind. In 2010 I will be using radio triggering for all my Speedlight shooting events. I will still be using the ST-E2 and the SU-800 next month in Sienna for my ‘Passion on the Streets’ workshop and for the final ‘Cherish the Dress’ workshops of the season. But after that it’s time to move on.
I was asked to demo the new Pocket Wizard TTL system and as we had an all Canon cast of delegates I duly obliged. The shallow depth of field is enough to show just how good this new flash triggering system is. ISO200, 1/3200th second at my beloved f/4. Same Honl gel rig as above on the key light and I used a Honl 1/2 CTB on the backlight.
1 comment September 11th, 2009 03:29pm damien
The Lite Tite from Arri is the perfect accessory for the job.
We are now official distributors of the LiteTite from Arri UK and below is my suggested rig for use with a Canon Speedlite on a Lovegrove Flash Bracket on an Arri 050KA lighting stand.
Click the jump to see how the flash head can be rigged inline with, and touching the umbrella shaft… (more…)
12 comments September 11th, 2009 12:07am damien
I like to come up with different shots on workshops and this treatment with light and Lightroom give a subtle twist to an old theme. 2 point lighting provided by a pair of 580EX11s with the ambient held back 3 stops was the shoot technique for this frame. 1/200th second 200 ISO and f/16.
4 comments September 9th, 2009 11:46pm damien
The colour temperature gradient
‘Colour temperature’ is the unit measure often used to describe the colour of light emitted by a light source. But what is meant by colour temperature? (more…)
10 comments September 9th, 2009 01:48pm damien
Here is a list of my most treasured set of photographic accessories. I have dozens of bits and bobs that come in and out of favour with me but these items are my current favourites. (more…)
3 comments September 9th, 2009 01:03pm damien
Getting creative with off camera flash is very rewarding when you are in control. I'll be showing just how to work with colour at this new creative workshop.
Here at last is the first of our creative days for users of Pocket Wizard TTL triggers for Speedlights. Learn how to harness the increased power of high speed flash sync and how to work without line of sight syncing in one of the most striking locations in the world. (more…)
24 comments August 31st, 2009 01:04am damien
As the nights are drawing in it's once again time to get used to having fun with long exposures. I lit the groom in this shot with a Luxman battery light. ISO 800, 1/8th second at f/8. I bought the battery light online from B&H in New York.
When the weather is bad, or it’s dark outside don’t let your creativity evaporate. Rise to the challenge and embrace a whole new set of opportunities. There really is no escape from the fact that if you are going to shoot weddings you need to have total command of your artificial light sources. Super sensitive cameras can help as the next 2 pictures show.
Click on the dancing picture to see the full size Canon 5Dmk11 picture taken at ISO6400 (19Mb) (more…)
30 comments August 17th, 2009 11:56pm damien
1/4000th second at f/8 and ISO200 on a Canon 5Dmk11. Lit with a pair of 580EX11 Speedlites on board Pocket Wizard Flex TT5 receivers.
12 comments August 17th, 2009 11:05pm damien
I took this shot at f/5.6 using my standard exposure system on the Canon 5D mk2. The light from the single key Speedlite was subtle and believable. It adds clarity and crispness to the shot and could be considered a sort of off camera fill flash. I've also given this shot a quick diffused glow in Photoshop in Markos absence. See the shots below for details and set up.
5 comments August 15th, 2009 09:39pm damien
Here are a few more pictures and techniques from last Monday’s creative shoot.
This simple frame borrows heavily on my key and kick principle. Two Speedlites on FlexTT5 units stand mounted and triggered by a Mini TT1. Straight from Lightroom.
I could have shot this frame with the ST-E2 as a trigger but why when I’ve got Pocket Wizards? (more…)
15 comments August 15th, 2009 03:02pm damien
Again, this is another of those equipment test posts that you can ignore if you are not in the market for Canon Flash equipment or Pocket Wizard TTL remote triggers. (more…)
12 comments August 15th, 2009 02:42pm damien
Don’t get too excited unless you are contemplating buying the new Pocket Wizard TTL system, because there is nothing more dull than studio based equipment testing. Having said that my results may well be significant if you are in the market for Speedlites or PWs. (more…)
8 comments August 14th, 2009 11:18pm damien
This is the second shot I took with the new Pocket Wizard TTL system. I used a 70-200mm lens on my 5Dmk2 camera. It is lit with just 2 Speedlites.
1/1000th second at f/4 using ISO 200 was an unusual exposure for me. I would normally be at (more…)
31 comments August 13th, 2009 11:28pm damien
Here is the first of my photographs taken using the new Pocket Wizard TTL radio system. It is one of 4 shots I took on Tuesday’s creative day that used the new PW system.
The telephone box shot is a simple non line of sight test for the new PW system. It's the kind of frame I shot at the BBC many years ago.
The rig and details… (more…)
13 comments August 12th, 2009 10:30pm damien
A splash of flash from a pair of Speedlites. The 430EX11 is the one in shot on the left. The 580EX11 is just out of shot on the right and is zoomed into 105mm. My Canon 5Dmk11 was in manual mode 1/200th at f/16 and ISO200.
On Monday, I gave a 1:1 shooting workshop and here are a few of the pictures I shot during the session and the lighting set up for each one. (more…)
32 comments August 10th, 2009 11:11pm damien
I know this is the dullest of pictures but it shows the 35 metres range of the FlexTT5 with my 580EX11 Speedlite. More exciting pictures will be shot tomorrow when I have my first full photoshoot with the Pocket Wizard kit. I'll be shooting fast moving objects in sunlight at 1/2000th second at f/5.6 
Hi all, We have received our first batch of the Pocket Wizard Mini TT1s and Flex TT5s for Canon. I have been testing a set (1x mini TT1 and 2x flexTT5) for about 4 hours now. I am pleased to say that they have passed all my tests so far and the units are now available here from our site. Here are my initial test findings with an exciting twist in the tail: (more…)
14 comments August 7th, 2009 11:10am damien
All the worries are over. We have been using and shooting with the new PW mini and flex units now for some time and they are brilliant and work well at up to 35M with all the Speedlights I can lay my hands on. We have not had one return from the hundreds of units we have now sold so the proof is in the pudding.
(Original post) I have been informed that the known issue with regards to the 580EX and the 580EX11 Speedlites is that a few discrete internal components namely a capacitor and transistors emit high levels of radio frequency or RF noise. It is not the same for all 580 Speedlites (more…)
13 comments August 6th, 2009 11:24am damien
Lit with 2 Speedlights. The blue in the blacks was added by Marko.
On a serious note there was a great deal of head scratching being done when I was arranging these shoots. I had to consider US employment law, public liability insurance cover, US tax, UK tax, and VAT. We decided to take the common sense approach to all these things. Details beyond the jump (more…)
4 comments August 5th, 2009 05:54pm damien
I’ve never been more inspired in one place than I was in New York. Melbourne came close but this area of the big apple is my favourite. Not for long though as it will soon be all posh and trendy. I struggled to select down to a dozen or so shots to show you so I thought sod it I’ll post the lot! In the end I chose 44 of the 100 or so keepers from the day. Here are the first 22 of them…
We started with the technically most difficult rig of 2 Speedlights on stands remotely triggered using either the pop up flash of the Nikon cameras or the ST-E2 for the Canon users. Ettl or Ittl was all we needed to make great shots like this. ISO 200, 1/200th second at f/11
Once we had established this system we had some fun with it. (more…)
7 comments August 5th, 2009 03:21pm damien
Here are a selection of the pictures from Day 1 of my Urban Portrait workshops in New York.
Taken on my Canon 5D mk2 and lit with just ambient light. I love this kind of dramatic pose when shooting actors, models or dancers.
The first frames of this set were all taken with the ambient light that prevailed at the scene. (more…)
5 comments August 4th, 2009 09:04pm damien
Wow! Just back from a week in the big apple and it was something else. A taster…
Boy did it rain! But that never stopped us creating pictures. I used a coloured gel on the flash units to add some life to this shot. Alex's feet were rather damp to say the least but we still had such a great time in the 28C degree warmth.
I had Alex climbing up the wall for this shot. Concrete blocks painted black and a splash of flash from 2 Speedlights as shown was all I used for this striking set up on the street. We were stopping the traffic and having great fun.
I’m not sure I could have coped with another day, it was so full on. While I was there (more…)
12 comments July 25th, 2009 11:32am damien
A black polished granite table provided the reflection in this shot of Lisa-Marie and Shawn and natural light did the rest. The difference that a few millimeters make in camera position is staggering when using reflections.
This week has been a tough one for me, It started on Sunday afternoon with… (more…)
14 comments July 21st, 2009 08:22am damien
If you want to use a non TTL radio remote set up to trigger your Speedlights or you want to know how to use them in manual mode, follow this guide. (more…)
13 comments July 17th, 2009 09:30am damien
Floating on air, lit with an SB800 and triggered by the pop up flash on a Nikon D700. Chloe is the Angel of The South.
A 1:1 shoot session can be tailored to your needs exactly. This session was Nikon based and involved location shooting with natural light and off camera flash plus a session in my studio using flash and daylight. Here are a few of the pictures. (more…)
13 comments July 14th, 2009 08:29pm damien
I own both of these flash guns and yet I’ve just spent a whole day analysing them in detail to determine the pros and cons of each for my latest Warehouse Express review. I’m not allowed to post the review here for copyright reasons but I will share some of my findings with you. (more…)
10 comments July 8th, 2009 09:58pm damien
We are right in the middle of the shooting season here in the UK and barely a day goes by without a few significant shots being taken of clients or on workshops. I can’t blog them all and I choose not to blog my client work here on ProPhotoNut unless I’ve had clearance to do so.
Julie and I are off to Santiago in Spain tomorrow to shoot a wedding at a wonderfully romantic castle this weekend. I have to pinch myself at times to ensure that fantasy and reality are defined.
I taught a few styles of studio lighting to workshop delegates and I indulged in some beautifully simple portable studio shooting with my Evolve2 group. Here are a few of this weeks shots together with a few shooting tips.
I lit this shot with my ancient Bowens Prolites. Light is light and they are still banging it out some 16 years after I bought them new. I used 2 3/4 back lights (500ws), a soft overhead key (1000ws), a gelled up background light (1000ws) and a 1995 Lastolite tri flector to complete the look. Intimate, intense, attention, and an unusually high viewpoint define the style. A pose that implies vulnerability gives the shot tension.
11 comments July 3rd, 2009 09:44pm damien
Every now and then I do a shoot where everything comes together in a way I like. I’ve decided to share a more complete set of pictures with you here from this set. I apologise if you have seen some of the poses or locations before but somehow every shoot is different. Stina our model gave us full commitment and it shows in the pictures.
This yellow dress of Stina's is my daughters favourite. I think it sets the blue alight. A pyramid composition is a firm favourite amongst photographic judges. The simplicity of this picture comes from a single close proximity Speedlight that has been zoomed into 105mm and tipped down just so.
4 comments July 3rd, 2009 08:45pm damien
Ratio class for key and kick. A simple shot like this lit with 2 Speedlights makes an ideal test bed for using ratios. I always set group A to the left of the shot and group B to the right of shot. That way it is easy to keep track of what's happening. In this shot the ratio on my ST-E2 was set to 2:1 towards A. This actually leaves A set to normal and cuts B to half power.
The wall in the shot above is at the Architecture Center on the Bristol waterfront. I really like the tagging here as it is an example of simplicity in design and graphic elegance. Unlike the scrawled initials often found left by vandals.
7 comments June 30th, 2009 11:54pm damien
In a sun locked UK shooting goes on but it is definately harder to work as controlling all that extra light becomes a challenge armed with just a couple of Speedlights. We find ourselves at the limits – f/22, 1/200th second (Canon) and ISO 200 (Nikon). Life on the limit often produces fabulous results. If it was easy everyone would do it;-)
Delegates lining up a shot on the limits. 4 shooters and 4 different shots. We all take it in turns to shoot from different angles and all is very civilised. This was a rare on camera flash moment.
Here is my take on the shot. The boots do it for me
8 comments June 29th, 2009 12:08am damien
I’ve been shooting so much lately that I’ve barely had time to write up my shoots on the blog. I’ll be posting up a selection of images from the four recent Bristol workshops throughout the week.
Dappled sunlight on a blue wall gave us a great start to the shoot. The sunlight was going through a young tree and a glass canopy.
25 comments June 28th, 2009 11:36pm damien
I used square on two point lighting for this shot for one of my clients. It was lit with the sun as a back light and I used a hand held off camera Speedlight as the key. The Bristol waterfront is a favourite area of mine for photographing clients and running workshops alike.
I often find myself looking at the world a bit differently (more…)
24 comments June 17th, 2009 04:56pm damien
Our second shooting workshop under Chris Hanley’s ‘Cherish’ banner went without a hitch. When putting together a ‘Cherish The Dress’ style album it is wise to shoot detail and passion pictures alongside the full length dress pictures. Here is a very small selection of the pictures Chris and I shot on the day. The first 9 or so are mine and the last 9 or so are Chris’s.
The setting is the fabulous Hilton bar on floor 23. The lighting is all Speedlight mastery using infrared remote TTL control.
5 comments June 17th, 2009 01:05pm damien
Wow! What a day of creativity and learning we all had. No matter how structured and planned I make a shoot day, somehow it seems that a random patch of light or a change of circumstances present me with remarkable picture making opportunities.
Shot one of the day started where 'Urban Portrait' workshops finish. I took this frame with 2 Speedlights in sunlight remotely triggered with an STE2. The ambient exposure was held back to add emphasis to Paula. The clothes are the star in fashion orientated portraits.
I love rivets. This location near Deansgate was fantastic. Every nook and cranny was a picture waiting to happen. The sun lit the rivets and was Paula's key light. I used a Speedlight to backlight Paula and another to light the background on the left.
8 comments June 9th, 2009 06:08pm damien
Wow, another day at the Bristol waterfront and another set of pictures. It is important for me to keep evolving the strategies and techniques I use and it is fair to say that the pictures I shoot at these workshops evolve too. Charlotte was a fantastic model for us to shoot and as you will see I loved that red coat.
Marko has given this first frame of the day a simple twist. Taking a well lit original and making a piece of art out of it takes just a few moments when you know how.
4 comments June 9th, 2009 02:31pm damien
My strategy to review a camera or lens puts my subjective observations at an equally important level as objective facts and figures. So when a Phase One camera and a couple of backs arrived I had a bit of product familiarity work to do. See how this camera got on in my fairly steady hands. (more…)
7 comments June 2nd, 2009 11:56pm damien
After the persistent rain of last Wednesday it was a different story at the same locations for this weeks big flash in the country workshop. I once again took the Phase One camera for a spin and here are the pictures.
Not a cloud in the sky gave us a new set of problems. We were shooting at the limits of the medium format system. ISO 100, f/22 and 1/125th second. Steve, my assistant for the day is seen here rigging my Broncolor strip lite softbox.
11 comments May 29th, 2009 05:34pm damien
Wednesday’s shoot was a washout. We were shooting in an overgrown quarry, a flower meadow, a high canopy woodland and a pebble beach. The driving rain was constant so we just got stuck in to a full featured shoot. Here are our pictures.
The rain lashed down but with a bit of resolve there were still great shots to be had. I lit this shot with one barefaced Broncolor Mobil head. Even with the overcast heavy cloud cover we needed the might of the Mobil to deliver this powerful image.
29 comments May 25th, 2009 10:14am damien
A lot of noise on the US forums about the mechanical strength and the RF range of these units has led me to publish a few of the links and info here (more…)
11 comments May 20th, 2009 09:50pm damien
In this article I explain my strategies, techniques and systems for using big flash and Speedlights on location. (more…)
21 comments May 18th, 2009 09:13am damien
Update: Over 100 of these brackets have been sold already and the feedback from users is fantastic.
It has been 6 months in the planning and testing but finally I can confirm the long awaited ‘Lovegrove Flash Bracket’ used to mount any Speedlight firmly in any position on a lighting stand is now available here
Take control of your Speedlight and mount it on a stand in any orientation with this nifty stand to flash bracket. Ideal for weding and portrait photographers alike. Click on the picture for more details.
8 comments May 13th, 2009 10:29pm damien
After Monday’s shoot how could I even get close? I’m sure the wind was stronger and the temperature had dropped a few degrees on Tuesday. Megan braved the cold and was as kind and patient with us as ever. (more…)
2 comments May 13th, 2009 11:11am damien
I thought I’d share this picture with you. I took it in a field of rapeseed that was in flower. I used flash in daylight on the Canon 10d camera that I’ve had converted for infrared use by ACS
IR photography is most often seen in black and white.
13 comments May 12th, 2009 10:57pm damien
Each shoot has it’s own chemistry and dynamic, and this one was no exception. The pictures I aim to produce to teach the intricate lighting techniques are suitably varied to keep the image making process fresh. Here are a collection of images from the day. (more…)
5 comments May 10th, 2009 11:21pm damien
Photographer Martin Hill is already hitting the high notes as he launches into the top flight of social photography. The last ten months have been a full on learning experience for Martin and his team and I am pleased to say they have come through Evolve with flying colours.
This fabulous shot taken in Somerset was lit with a Broncolor Mobil flash and secured Martin his first gold award from his first ever professional competition entry.
7 comments May 8th, 2009 03:05pm damien
I demonstrated how to shoot punchy pictures using just a grey paper background roll, portable Broncolor Mobil flash lighting kit and some coloured gels.
Here are a few of the many pictures I took during the fourth studio lighting workshop. We had a great day being creative, learning new basic and advanced lighting techniques. (more…)
11 comments May 8th, 2009 01:08pm damien
In order to correctly assess exposure when shooting on location, you need to start with a calibrated screen. This is a simple process but can often be overlooked. Here is my quick guide. (more…)
6 comments May 8th, 2009 09:22am damien
The Strictly Lovegrove project continues to gather pace. I’ve been scouting my local vicinity for venues and locations that can sustain the project throughout all the seasons. At the moment I reliant on unheated spaces and with minimal clothes on my clients it is restricting me to shooting on good weather days between May and September. Here are a few pictures from a shoot earlier this week.
A field of Rape and a blast of flash set the mood of the first picture of the day. I used two flash heads connected to my Broncolor Mobil power pack to provide visual impact.
4 comments May 6th, 2009 08:53pm damien
Wuthering heights at Clevedon on sea. A wind swept Charlotte coped well with tide coming in and being blown about. I lit this shot with a couple of Broncolor Mobil heads.
A positive mental attitude and four delegates with a determination to have fun were what was needed for a thoroughly great day of picture making. (more…)
19 comments April 30th, 2009 10:11pm damien
A classic Lovegrove shot started the shoot on Tuesday. Eleanor was back lit with hazy sunlight and I rigged a Speedlight vertically on a stand to provide the key. I shot this frame from below the eyeline with a 20mm lens on my Canon 5D mk2. Costa, our start of the day rendezvous point is on the left in the background. Bristol architecture makes a striking backdrop for an urban shoot.
Better weather and some Costa cappuccino gave us a great start to our shooting day on Tuesday. The variety of photographic opportunities available on the streets is fantastic. (more…)
13 comments April 30th, 2009 09:05pm damien
A wallop of Speedlight combined with a low angle viewpoint gives this frame it's character. The flash was running at full power, zoomed right in and it just about kept up with us. I changed the flash batteries just after this shot and they were burning hot as a result of the continuous firing and recycling. I use 7DayShop 2800 mAH NiMh cells at under £5 a pack and they perform well in arduous conditions. I shot all of Monday's pictures on my Canon 5D mk2.
Monday’s shoot started in a downpour. Costa coffee cafe was uncharacteristically closed, and 20 minutes before shooting our model was stuck in traffic. What else could life throw at us? (more…)
2 comments April 29th, 2009 12:48pm damien
Several months in the planning stages have finally come to fruition. We were originally offered the ‘Graphi Studio’ castle in northern Italy but delays in it’s refurbishment meant we had to look elsewhere. Luckily Julie and I have shot several weddings at Italian castles and villas in recent years so we decided to revisit one of the most enchanting of them all in the heart of Tuscany.
2 comments April 24th, 2009 08:38pm damien
This time of year the dappled light is just fantastic. The leaves are small and the patterns they create on walls and other surfaces make striking shots. (more…)
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 How to Turn ProNicolene said: "WOW! Thank you so much for this very valuable advice."
Photographing Your First WeddingAdrian said: "This post has been particularly useful." 2 Point Lighting - Techniques and Strategies RevealedNigel said: "Yet again another great article with lots of guidance and tips." Setting Your PriceMark said: "Once again you seem to show people the right way! I read your wedding book this summer and it had the details in there on your pricing structure – that was impressive stuff that really got me thinking." Grey is the new WhiteJohn said: "I know of no other photographer that would let up this info for free. You are an inspiration. Cheers!" |
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