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The Power of Light – Make Use of Small Flashes

If you haven’t embraced the abilities of small flashes yet, then you might be missing out on some of the most enabling aspects of today’s photographic world.  I “chucked” (no correlation to the venerable Mr. Pace) my studio strobes several years ago in favor of a portable, light-weight lighting solution.  Anything from macro photography such as jewelry, flowers or bugs to location shooting like weddings or family portraits to shooting in the studio, small flashes have found a niche.

Today’s flashes are more powerful and faster recycling than ever before, and can be accessorized with secondary power packs like the new Quantum Blade to further increase performance.  RF transmitter/receiver systems like Pocketwizard’s Plus II’s have supplied reliable triggering devices for years, and most recently the TT1 Mini and TT5 Flex from Pocketwizard have TTL (auto flash) capabilities which further increase the level of quick, precise control.  Light modifiers (e.g. umbrellas, soft boxes, snoots, grids, beauty dishes) are now built specifically for small flash usage.  The bottom line: its never been easier to shoot high quality flash photography.

Im certainly not saying there is no reason to own studio equipment, and some of the newer strobes are almost as small as Nikon’s and Canon’s Speedlights.  For example Elinchrom’s Quadra RX are powerhouse units and weigh in at a measly .25Kg or about a half a pound.  More to come on the Quadra system.  Studio strobes will generally put out much more power than small flashes which will allow you greater control of ambient light.   However, a strobe will not travel as easily, always have its own portable power system or be able to sync at faster shutter speeds than today’s small flashes.

In the next post i will talk in depth about how to control small flashes in different situations.

Stay tuned…




Photowalk – Success!

Voice activated lightstands

Things went rather well. The weather cooperated, so I didn’t need to use my rainsleeve. And even though I managed to convince everyone to park something like, nine miles from the shooting sites, everyone seemed pretty pleased with the outcome. Above, you’ll see our volunteer model Erin, framed by two voice activated light stands with Tony’s elbow poking in from the side.

Later on we’ll have footage to put on the Roberts Imaging channel on youtube, and as Derek and I filter through and spruce up our shots we’ll get them added to the Flickr feed for y’all to ogle and mock. Dawn’s got some pretty neat shots (and some hilarity) from the fish-eye she borrowed off Jeff.

We’ll be having another informal walk on Tuesday, August 18th about 5:45pm at the corner of Illinois and Washington (kinda by Champp’s, under the Artsgarden) and if the weather get’s nasty we’ll head inside. We’re working to arrange another model to come out and hang with us as that seems pretty popular. I know I get tired of shooting Derek.



Photowalk Rain or Shine

PF-THIN-88 Alllllllll right you impatient walkers, we’re getting up on this tomorrow evening. Unless there’s a monsoon downtown, we’re still meeting at the circle at 6PM. For those worried by light sprinkles, be not afraid -be equipped. Aquatech, Optech, and Hefty all have options to protect your gear.

To reiterate, we’ve got Jeff Penn of Nikon coming out carrying a bag of flash for us to pass around and highlight Nikon’s Creative Lighting system. The ineffable (not to be mistaken with infallible) Dawn is cajoling a model friend out, so we’ll not only be equipped for street portraiture, we’ll also have a subject -till about 7pm. After that, we might be left shooting (shudder) each other, or strangers.

MM. Strangers.

Quick recap: Memorial Circle, Tuesday August 11th, 6pm, Jeff Penn, CLS, Dawn’s hot friend till 7pm, pictures, rain, raingear, monkey-business.



Photowalk with Jeff Penn of Nikon Aug. 11th

photoextravaganzaBOLD

ZOMG! Photowalk!

Here we go, Photowalkers. We’ve missed you. We’re looking to stop missing you come Tuesday, August 11th at 6:00p. You’ll get to hob-nob with our very own Jeff Penn of Nikon, who’ll be bringing some gear we can pass around.

What do you need to bring? Well, your kit and a spare CF card and maybe a friend, a tolerant spouse, or a volunteer model. (For the lucky, I guess that’s be all one person. )

We’ll meet at The Circle at 6p and all take a walk up Meridian to one of the lovely parks north of The Circle and use up the scenery with Nikon’s Creative Lighting System.

Remember that these are welcome to everyone and any camera system or device. We like taking pictures, and we like it when you take pictures. Heck, my girlfriend brings a flip and shoots video.

See you there.

Drop me a line at nhenry at robertsimaging.com if you’ve questions or comments.



Canon Instant Rebates, Save, um, Instantly

Save $500 on the EF 200mm 2/2L IS USM

Save $500 on the EF 200mm f/2L IS USM

I just finished getting all the Canon Instant Savngs on lenses and flashes put into effect on the website. So, all you Canonistas out there can now trot over there and buy fancy-schmancy L glasses in stunning white (trimmed with black, a look that reminds me of… well, me) for now lower prices.

As with any savings program, the amount you save varies from a little to enough to buy a second body (well, just about. I mean, you can save $500 bucks on that 200mm over there.) And, the rebates seem to cover all the flashes (including macros) and a wide selection of lenses in most categories, kit and L quality alike. So, a bit of something for everyone itching to upgrade.

See the full list here.



Ray to the Bling-Bling Flash

So, Indianapolis. You do know that Roberts is the best for photo lighting equipment Indianapolis, yes? What with our Canon flashes and Nikon flashes and flashes by people who aren’t either of those?

And, now we’re also a distributor for that infamous accessory, the Ray Flash. Yes, the Ray Flash, which adapts to your flash and goes over your lens and converts for boring old DSLR into a new and exciting ring flash SLR, fully capable of doing fashion shoots with doughnut-shaped catchlights, just like [insert name of some young dude making a name with edgy, ringlight fashion work here].

Most of them are order-as-we go, so even if it says “Out of Stock” you just tell us that shall not stand and we’ll get you one in. Booyah.



Sony Innovation

So if you are new to higher end Cameras, or have old incompatible manual SLR camera equipment you might be ready to step up to your first DSLR system. If you are ready but confused by all the choices, you might just buy what your neighbor bought, most likely a Nikon or Canon Digital SLR Camera. They are great cameras that’s why they trade the #1 and #2 spot all the time. Still I might suggest that you look at Olympus and Sony Digital Cameras before you “Just keep up with the Jones’”.   Olympus and Sony  are doing some amazing innovative stuff to get your attention, maybe you should look their way. I’m going to focus (no pun intended) on Sony for now.

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The Ringlight Chronicles, vol I

So, ringlights have become pretty popular these days (along with 50mm primes, like the 50mm f1.4 G Nikon lenses). Which is understandable, times are rough and Profoto’s stellar ringflash weighs in at about 1500 bucks, without pack, putting it well beyond most weekend warriors. So, the prospect of using any Canon flashes or Nikon flashes one might already own to a simlar effect is, you gotta admit, pretty tempting.

So, finding myself bored last night and deciding between organizing the towel closet and doing something productive, I decided to give a go at making one of the DIY ringlights whose formulas can be found bouncing all over the photographic intertubes.

The results?

Olympus digital cameras don't deserve to be made this ugly

Functionallity: 1

Aesthetics: 0

In my quick test shots the thing does work as advertised, throwing a nice even ring of light which makes headshots shine as all harsh shadows are removed from faces leaving behind only soft, sumptuous modeling.

But, boy, it is friggin’ ugly. Some more black tape on the outside would help things, but only in the same way that giving Michael Jackson a new nose would help things.

But, it does work, so I’m already plotting a Mk II. I think maybe a couple Harbor Digital flash adapters and a nice wide throw reflector might make for a better start. We’ll see.



Metz 58 AF-1

Metz 58 AF-1Being an Olympus shooter, I can say that perhaps the biggest advantage to more common systems like Canon and Nikon is the availability of third-party accessories. So, when someone does make a good third party product available for my system, I’m inclined to pay attention.

This is the Metz 58 AF-1. You can get these in various flavors, including Canon flashes, Nikon flashes, and (as the opening of this article would suggest) Olympus/Panasonic. This flash is designed to replace the top-end models (when it was released these were the SB-800, 580EX II, and the FL-50 [Now the FL-50r]). It packs a true GN of 58, zoom head up to 105mm, a secondary reflector for fill flash, bounce, swivel, and wireless control. And, my favorite easily overlooked feature, lowlight AF assist using a projected red light (which is totally preferable to my camera’s “strobing” pop-up flash, a poor excuse at best for dedicated AF-assist beams).

I think I’ll pick one up for my bag. Why? Because I believe in buying good equipment, and that doesn’t always mean making sure the brand on my accessories matches that on my camera. But, maybe that’s just me.




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