One Light....finally!!!

jeffreaux2

Back in January I bought a second camera, and then a few weeks ago a light stand and a couple umbrellas. Unfortunately...other than using the camera to perform micro-adjustment focus calibration on all my lenses....I havent had a chance to use my new gear until tonight.

I am hoping to work a shoot through umbrella and single source lighting into my shoots.

Elaine...this shot was taken through a 45" Wescott opposite a sheet of foam core.:thumb

Scott...This shot was captured with that pesky 85mm F1.8 lens. It's pretty doggone sharp.:thumb

My youngest daughter...

1/200
F8
ISO200
ETTL Flash

Elaine

Woohoo!!! So glad you got to break in your new gear! Gorgeous shot! I love how close this is. The catchlights are lovely and the shadows are soft. Makes me want to try again!

jeffreaux2

Elaine wrote:

Woohoo!!! So glad you got to break in your new gear! Gorgeous shot! I love how close this is. The catchlights are lovely and the shadows are soft. Makes me want to try again!

Thanks Elaine,

It's cropped from a much looser original. I wasn't paying to much concern to framing and such. The confines of my living room made it a tight squeeze to get anything at all. I don't have fancy backgrounds and such for a true "studio" look...so it is what it is. Instead, I shot from a bit above and let the floor become the BG. I am looking forward to experimenting more with the set up. I should go ahead and purchase another light stand...and arm to hold the reflector....and I know I will want to use my second flash as a backlight...so will need a third stand as well. For now the brakes are on those purchases. I am probably going to have to buy another pair of 580s and radio triggers for an upcoming wedding. If this is the case, that will have to take priority over the stands and bracketry.


Here is the shot I cropped the original post from....



...and this one....which used a 580 bounced into the 60" umbrella with the convertable cover on it...as well as a sheet of foam core at camera right. Same settings as above...same lens as well.

heatherfeather

Ooooh purdy! I am loving the first one! Well actually they are all nice, but that first one + the extreme crop is amazin'! The light is just scrumptious and soft.

So are you going to get the new Radio Poppers? I am just about foaming at the mouth to get those... And I have the moolah and everything... I am just waiting to hear some favorable reviews since they are so new (like less than a month) Well, if you don't want to buy, you can always rent your second set of flashes for under a hundred... (from borrowlenses.com) Sure you don't get to keep them, but it sure lets you get by and then buy what you REALLY want. (I have done that tons of times for different weddings... and it works well.)

Elaine

Your floors look very similar to ours and I've used them many times as a backdrop. I just wish I'd thought of climbing high enough to use them for my recent shoot! Ah well, they probably wouldn't have coordinated well with her clothing. I love the orange tones working together in your son's girlfriend's shot. That bounce is nice and soft, too!

jeffreaux2

heatherfeather wrote:

Ooooh purdy! I am loving the first one! Well actually they are all nice, but that first one + the extreme crop is amazin'! The light is just scrumptious and soft.

So are you going to get the new Radio Poppers? I am just about foaming at the mouth to get those... And I have the moolah and everything... I am just waiting to hear some favorable reviews since they are so new (like less than a month) Well, if you don't want to buy, you can always rent your second set of flashes for under a hundred... (from borrowlenses.com) Sure you don't get to keep them, but it sure lets you get by and then buy what you REALLY want. (I have done that tons of times for different weddings... and it works well.)

Thanks HF...

My intentions are indeed to get Radio Poppers. I am pretty much ready to get them, but want to scout the venue first. The wedding is in December, but she is supposed to take me to have a look at the place. My understanding is that the vows will be exchanged in a gazeebo that is separated from a main structure and covered area where the guests will be seated...after dark. If my hunch is right, I will need to pre mount a couple flash units inside the gazeebo and arrange them to bounce off it's ceiling or else fit them with diffusers. They will then be out of sight, and at a pretty good distance....too much to consider the STE2. I am thinking about renting the flashes, but also thinking that I could buy the two 580 and 1 STE2 kit and then have spares all the way around. Still kicking it around....and of course if I see a pile of 150watt fixtures in that gazeebo I wont buy anything at all!:D

Lynne has been using the RPs and seems to like them. The new PX series looks much better and at least seems to be less DIY that the first version appeared. Im diving in.

Either way, I am looking forward to using the umbrellas on formals!

jeffreaux2

Elaine wrote:

Your floors look very similar to ours and I've used them many times as a backdrop. I just wish I'd thought of climbing high enough to use them for my recent shoot! Ah well, they probably wouldn't have coordinated well with her clothing. I love the orange tones working together in your son's girlfriend's shot. That bounce is nice and soft, too!

It was a squeeze...especially with the 60". Still just playing around really, but my thinking was that bounced into...rather than shot through....would give me less spill into the room and give me a nice wrap around since I was only using the single source. My intentions are to use them primarily as shoot through....but...at least in my mind....bouncing in this circumstance made sense to me.

The floors are laminate....I forget the name brand. We replaced the carpet in all but the master BR and kitchen and baths with it years ago. It is extremely durable....and looks great. I think the finish is red oak.

ChatKat

Umbrellas
Jeff, another fine set of images from you. I love the light from those umbrellas for location work like that. The only bad is that if it's windy you need lots of weight to not have them go flying off. I use the gallon jugs of water and a bungee cord through the handle.

Nikolai

Jeff,
congrats on the finally breaking in your gear!

I like the light and the angle on #2 much better.
#1 seems a bit too hot (forehead/cheecks) and the light source seems to be too close to her hace, which creates a very steep gradient (light falloff)

Ed911

Jeff,

I just noticed that you are in the market for radio poppers. Before you buy, you might want to take a look at what Pocket Wizard is offering Canon shooters right now...and Nikon shooters later this year...Control TL. Same functional TTL capability as RP's, but you don't have to mount them to your flashes as you do radio poppers.

With the new Pocket Wizard TTL controllers for camera flash, you can put the controller on you camera and mount a flash to it...when I saw the Radio Poppers demonstrated...I don't believe you could do that.

See it here. I'm opting for these over the radio poppers. See what you think. View the video here. I think you will like them...with what they call their slide and shoot technology. And, they are demonstrated on the Canon 50D.

Hope this helps.

http://www.pocketwizard.com/inspirations/technology/

jeffreaux2

Nikolai wrote:

Jeff,
congrats on the finally breaking in your gear!

I like the light and the angle on #2 much better.
#1 seems a bit too hot (forehead/cheecks) and the light source seems to be too close to her hace, which creates a very steep gradient (light falloff)

Thanks Nik,

There were two different set ups. 1 used a shoot through approach while 2 used a light bounced out of an umbrella(a much larger umbrella). The source was about the same distance in both...the only difference being the distance achieved by reversing the umbrella in the stand (a couple feet?). That alone shows in the two photos the drastic differences that can be obtained with subtle changes is lighting set up.

Thanks for commenting.

jeffreaux2

Ed911 wrote:

Jeff,

I just noticed that you are in the market for radio poppers. Before you buy, you might want to take a look at what Pocket Wizard is offering Canon shooters right now...and Nikon shooters later this year...Control TL. Same functional TTL capability as RP's, but you don't have to mount them to your flashes as you do radio poppers.

With the new Pocket Wizard TTL controllers for camera flash, you can put the controller on you camera and mount a flash to it...when I saw the Radio Poppers demonstrated...I don't believe you could do that.

See it here. I'm opting for these over the radio poppers. See what you think. View the video here. I think you will like them...with what they call their slide and shoot technology. And, they are demonstrated on the Canon 50D.

Hope this helps.

http://www.pocketwizard.com/inspirations/technology/

Ed that is great news. I appreciate you passing the info along. Ive just spent the past hour looking through all of PWs info and instruction manuals. The release date for Canon is today. Im excited about this as there is absolutely no DIY steps with the PW system. A much cleaner design that the RPs with no velcro or decals to place on the flash units....yet ETTL function including HSS is retained. Looks very promising eh?

jeffreaux2

ChatKat wrote:

Jeff, another fine set of images from you. I love the light from those umbrellas for location work like that. The only bad is that if it's windy you need lots of weight to not have them go flying off. I use the gallon jugs of water and a bungee cord through the handle.

Hey Kathy,

I appreciate that!

If you think of it, snap off a shot of those water bottles tied to the stand so I can see how you do it?....It a great idea.

divamum

jeffreaux2 wrote:

Hey Kathy,

I appreciate that!

If you think of it, snap off a shot of those water bottles tied to the stand so I can see how you do it?....It a great idea.

Ah, Jeff, beautiful as always. The EYES!! Good to see you back, too - hope life is starting to calm down a little so we get the benefit of seeing your lovely pictures again?

Bags of rice make good weight bags too - I've put some in double bagged grocery story plastic bags and hooked used them as sandbags....

ChatKat

Water Bottles
I don't have any need to do a water bottle set up at the moment, Jeff.

Gallon Bottle with the handle or an empty gallon milk jug. One bungee cord through the handle and then wrap the bungee a few times around the base of the lightstand. Fill with water.

Empty water bottles are weightless for location and usually you can find a hose or source of water at the destination. Rice, Kitty Litter (that's what I use in my sandbags) all have to be carried into your location.

Shima

I love that first one with the extreme crop, great way to show off your new gear and lighting. I was immediately drawn into her eyes, they really pop!

jeffreaux2

divamum wrote:

Ah, Jeff, beautiful as always. The EYES!! Good to see you back, too - hope life is starting to calm down a little so we get the benefit of seeing your lovely pictures again?

Bags of rice make good weight bags too - I've put some in double bagged grocery story plastic bags and hooked used them as sandbags....

Hey Diva!:D

Things will definately calm down. I have three weeks of vacation spread through this month and the first of April. I am planning to be pretty busy with the camera for some of that. Well...at least as busy as I want to be!

MOST of the time I have an extra person on my shoots. For teens and kids I REQUIRE to have a parent or other adult present. This is partly because of the "safe sanctuary" training that has been ingrained in me for nearly a decade of work with teens, partly because I can use them to help haul gear and aim reflectors, and partly because I have had ...at least on one occasion...a teen who wanted to cut the shoot off at 10 minutes to hang out with friends( for what I charge....having a parent there insures that I will have the time to give em what they paid for). In any event, I usually have someone there who could steady a stand in a pinch, but the various solutions for additional weight will definately come in handy. Any future stands that I buy will have as wide a base as I can find....as I also plan to use them for events, and want things as secure as is reasonable.

jeffreaux2

ChatKat wrote:

I don't have any need to do a water bottle set up at the moment, Jeff.

Gallon Bottle with the handle or an empty gallon milk jug. One bungee cord through the handle and then wrap the bungee a few times around the base of the lightstand. Fill with water.

Empty water bottles are weightless for location and usually you can find a hose or source of water at the destination. Rice, Kitty Litter (that's what I use in my sandbags) all have to be carried into your location.

Gotcha....

Thanks!

jeffreaux2

Shima wrote:

I love that first one with the extreme crop, great way to show off your new gear and lighting. I was immediately drawn into her eyes, they really pop!

She has great eyes....and I wish that she were more of a camera ham than she is(like my oldest girl).....but we all have our personalities....it just makes it that much more special when she does agree to photographs.

She will be a high school senior next year. I am already scheming up ideas for her senior portfolio....including a trip to Sanibel Island this summer for some beech shooting. I can't wait!!!:ivar

These had very little done to them in post. I tended the RAW files in LR. In photoshop I did some moinor skin fixes and a slight curves adjustment for the eyes. I didn't even sharpen them. Easy stuff!

heatherfeather

Ed911 wrote:

Jeff,

I just noticed that you are in the market for radio poppers. Before you buy, you might want to take a look at what Pocket Wizard is offering Canon shooters right now...and Nikon shooters later this year...Control TL. Same functional TTL capability as RP's, but you don't have to mount them to your flashes as you do radio poppers.

With the new Pocket Wizard TTL controllers for camera flash, you can put the controller on you camera and mount a flash to it...when I saw the Radio Poppers demonstrated...I don't believe you could do that.

See it here. I'm opting for these over the radio poppers. See what you think. View the video here. I think you will like them...with what they call their slide and shoot technology. And, they are demonstrated on the Canon 50D.

Hope this helps.

http://www.pocketwizard.com/inspirations/technology/

Hmmm... I looked for a while on the website but couldn't see if they transition to studio strobes as well as speedlights like the new poppers are doing... (Not that I have actually have any studio strobes, but it might be in the future. So I might as well get the right thing in the first place)

jeffreaux2

heatherfeather wrote:

Hmmm... I looked for a while on the website but couldn't see if they transition to studio strobes as well as speedlights like the new poppers are doing... (Not that I have actually have any studio strobes, but it might be in the future. So I might as well get the right thing in the first place)

There is a pc/synch type port on the tranciever.....heres the user manual....check page 17.

http://www.pocketwizard.com/products/images/TT5-C.pdf

Its a much better design than the RPs.

ladytx

Here are links for someone doing a test of the new PocketWizards and Radio Poppers. Might be helpful to someone.

http://tricoastphoto.com/blog/

http://www.texasphotoforum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=94609

Scott_Quier

I just loaned my 85 to a friend and all she has to say about is, "I reaaaallllllly like the 85mm." I guess that pretty much says it all. I've had this lens for a couple of years now and haven't really used it. Maybe I should just run an exercise - shoot with nothing but that lens for a day or two. Could open up all kinds of doors for me

As for the shots/lighting. FWIW I really like them. I would make a couple of adjustments though...

#1 - A little hot, but not bad. A little burn would solve that. I think I would have moved your light source a little further around to camera right. Then a reflector camera left to fill the shadows that would be generated. I like tight crops, but this one is off just a bit - maybe too tight?

#2 - The only light adjustment I would make here is a reflector camera right - that would top it off nicely! Shot needs to be cropped a bit - but you already knew that.

Mitchell

Jeff, that first shot is superb. I love the lighting and the crop.

Beautiful!!!

Agnieszka

Beautiful.

jeffreaux2

Scott_Quier wrote:

I just loaned my 85 to a friend and all she has to say about is, "I reaaaallllllly like the 85mm." I guess that pretty much says it all. I've had this lens for a couple of years now and haven't really used it. Maybe I should just run an exercise - shoot with nothing but that lens for a day or two. Could open up all kinds of doors for me

As for the shots/lighting. FWIW I really like them. I would make a couple of adjustments though...

#1 - A little hot, but not bad. A little burn would solve that. I think I would have moved your light source a little further around to camera right. Then a reflector camera left to fill the shadows that would be generated. I like tight crops, but this one is off just a bit - maybe too tight?

#2 - The only light adjustment I would make here is a reflector camera right - that would top it off nicely! Shot needs to be cropped a bit - but you already knew that.

The 85 is much better on the 50D than the 400D.......MFA and all musta paid dividends.

I don't own a REAL reflector, but was using a piece of foamcore opposite side of the light in both. It may have been too far away in #1....as my "assistant" seemed pre-destined to use it to blow Bre's hair rather than concentrate on bending the light.

I REALLY like the way the light wrapped around her in #2. The reflector maybe shoulda....coulda been closer to har......but I am pretty pleased with it as not only my first shot with an umbrella....but also as my first halfway serious photograph with the 50D.

Prior to buying the modifiers, I studied quite a few different lighting styles. I am highly impressed with what Zack Arias is puuting in the kool aid on his sites and would love to be able to attend his workshop. I like the one light approach....and its simplicity. Aside from that, I bought a lighting/portrait book by Monte Zucker. Though his set ups are much more complex than Zack's, his theory at least seems achievable with a one light approach. Im not a big fan of his posing, but there are nuggets to be found anywhere if we look hard enough. The basic approach is sound.....the lighting (and deep shadows) are scrumptious. Im looking forward to this!:D

Thanks for commenting.

jeffreaux2

Mitchell wrote:

Jeff, that first shot is superb. I love the lighting and the crop.

Beautiful!!!

Thanks Mitch....
How far away are you from Sanibel Island?

zoomer

These look very nice.
Looks like your new equipment is going to work out very well for you.

DavidS

Great shot as usual Jeff!!

lyttleviet

Agnieszka wrote:

Beautiful.

agreed.

chaswes5

Good work. One can do wonders with a few inexpensive umbrellas. I use mine with an SB600. The 50mm (nifty fifty) is hard to beat. Your models added greatly to your success.