Saturday 2 March 2019

portrait - What are some interesting things to try with a basic flashgun?


I've just got a relatively cheap, basic flashgun (TTL only) and a TTL cord. What are some interesting/enlightening (pardon the pun) exercises to try in order to illustrate the benefits of off-camera flash and learn a little about zoom and angle? I'm thinking poses, light positions etc.



Answer




When I'm wanting to mess around with portrait lighting, I usually take a tripod or lightstand crank/slide it up to eye level and throw a tan towel over it. This helps me visualize how the light will react, exposure-wise and with the shadows. Putting a towel over it provides places for shadows to go, so that you get texture and such.


When I first did this, I would then systematically tilt the flash. Starting directly at the subject and rotating up towards the ceiling and behind me. Then off to the sides and up. It gave me an excellent mental picture of what the light was going to do if I point it a certain way.


It's an excellent exercise to repeat with your subject in a corner and with colored walls too.


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