So I knew this day would come soon enough, and in all honesty I should have just dived into it long ago. Flash photography is a beautiful nightmare of a thing to learn.
The images one can create using a flash are awesome (in my case I went with an off camera flash, since I already had light stands and modifiers I could use), not to mention the ability to sculpt light, create so much more depth, and add in a beautiful extra amount of (for lack of a better word) soul. Holy hell, why didn’t I try flash photography to begin with?
I initially realized that I could have had an easier time shooting Mina’s photos, had I already picked up and learned to use a flash. The day we went out to do the photo shoot, it was massively overcast, making everything look somewhat “flat”. Had I already picked up and learned to use a flash, I would’ve been able to create more “drama” to the background by darkening the highlights and shadows, while simultaneously making Mina pop off the background. Granted I think I still did a great job with Mina’s photo shoot, and I really do love a lot of the photos that came out of it. I only mention the event because I realized that her shoot would’ve gone a lot faster and most likely would’ve produced even more “soul” to the photos had I had a flash already is all.
Moving ahead to when I finally picked up a flash (a Westcott FJ400), and started learning how to use it. The photos below are in chronological order, from the very first photo I took, all the way to last nights final photos. They will be all different exposure levels, as all I did (editing wise) was put a preset on them and adjust the white balance. I wanted to show my progression throughout me learning how to use my flash.
For the most part setting it up, linking the flash to the module on top of my camera, and adjusting the power settings was pretty straight forward. A little help from the University of YouTube and reading the instruction manual, and I was pretty much off and running. Once I got use to how to expose my camera to compensate for the flash level, I started to play with different positioning of the flash, and then ended with finding different angles of composition.
If you notice (and lets be honest it’s hard not to) that 90% of these photos are of donuts, well that’s because I’m preparing for my food photography session with El Mariachi (which had to be postponed unfortunately), and also because I was told that using a flash for Food Photography can help out, A LOT.
I don’t think I’ll become a full time flash only photographer now, but like with most things it’s nice to have knowledge in a helpful trick when you need it.
I hope you are having fantastic days, and I’ll catch y’all later. If you’re on the fence about learning flash photography, don’t be scared. Pick one up and go out and flash things, lol.
Andrew Hoyle - Grimlock Media
