Let there be light, and the light was good.

Ron.... It's So easy to get a good picture. Step into the camera room flip the master switch. and all at once you have a Fill, Main, Hair and background light fire up all at once. Grab a subject set your camera and your ready to rock and roll. Yes! good pictures flawless light what else could you ask for?

What else Could you ask for? What about Great, artistic images that kick butt, that's what. I was looking at my images the other day and it dawned on me my favorite images were not done with the normal light set up. So flip of the switch and start playing with alternate light sources, you will be amazed at what kind of light you will get out of just a few candles.

One day I was cleaning the backroom at the studio it's full of years of photographic equipment, I found that dreaded motion picture light bank my father used to blind us every Christmas when I was a kid. I threw the old relic away. after a few minutes my eyes caught and brand new package of fluorescent lights (the ones that look like soft serve ice-cream) that I bought to drive down energy cost at the studio. Then about four of those lights went off in my head. what if I combine the old relic laying in the garbage with the new technology that was tightly wrapped in some kind of Plastic container that makes it imposable to open with human hands alone. after a 30 minute struggle the lights were out of the package and into the old movie light bank. I used that setup for almost half of my next subjects photo session and I loved the results, I loved the shallow depth of field I had by shooting at F/2.8 and the soft light it produced.

That's just one method I used you can try other lights such as spot lights, flashlights, normal household incandescent lighting, the modeling light on your strobe and light modifiers. My last light experiment was with L.E.D. Lights that I put in the once junk movie light bank, it produces a much more natural light very close to daylight. The only drawback to this your subject will scream from the intensity of the brilliant little lights. So the moral of this story is this. step away from what's normal for you and start playing with light. you will soon see a different look to your images that you love.

Shoot on and be nice to you pet.
Ron