The power of the expression

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We probably all know that proper lighting and styling is essential for a successful photo, but for me personally it's the start. During the photoshoot I try to think about the proper posing of the body, the hands, the shadows, the background etc. In other words a lot of stuff going on. This also means that we often forget to think about expression.

Black and white or color or let’s do both

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Some things I never do We all have said something like this when it comes to our work. One of the things I hardly use myself is selective coloring, and yeah sometimes it looks great but somehow in my work it's always a matter of keeping all colors and even enhancing them, or convert it into black and white. But sometimes...

Light from different angles

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One rule most people will agree upon is that light from below is often not something we use in our photography, unless of course you want that freaky horror look, I actually always call this lighting "halloween lighting". But one light setup I also don't see a lot of people use, but which is one of my favorite ones, is the light from above.

WOW that shines like crazy

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Reflective material is a great way to spice up your photoshoot. You can use it as a set, backdrop or even wrap it around your model. but today we are using it in a set with some colors and hard light hitting it to get a beautiful glow in the material.

Cheap can be more fun than you think

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"my lens is cheap", "I have an old camera", "I only have one strobe" etc. In all honesty, of course gear is important but you can create awesome art/photos etc. with your phone nowadays. My moto over the year has been "if people look at the quality of the pixels the image is not strong enough" that doesn't mean you can just "wing" it and don't care about your gear, but it shouldn't be the main focus.

A new model and this is the first shoot

And believe it or not... it's getting harder and harder. But today I can introduce Ysanne, she will be helping us out with workshops and live streams. So you will see much more in the near future, but today the results from her test shoot.

Always build in a fail-safe even if you think you don’t need it

Shooting tethered might look very safe, but a lot can go wrong, today some of the best tips I can give to prevent you losing photos during the shoot.

Using a data projector for some really cool lighting effects

Projectors are great for presentations and movies But did you ever think about using a projector as your main lightsource? Think about all the options you have when you can literally paint all your lights, sharp or soft edges, all colors you like or maybe even a whole photo. When using a projector as your main lightsource you will never run out of ideas.

The Geekoto Lantern in action

The moment you see the Geekoto Lantern you know exactly what you're going to get. A beautiful soft light from the front of the softbox, but also a lot of light emitted from the sides. This makes the lantern the perfect softbox for new born, product and fashion photography when you need a lot of light but don't want the light too harsh and the edge transfers on the set. The lantern does exactly this.

Using the optical snoot for a great window effect

I love using the Lindsay Adler optical snoot from Westcott as my main lightsource as you have seen many times, but it's also great for the more subtle effects. Today in the blog I take you behind the scenes during a workshop where I use the optical snoot for a very subtle but great effect on our model/set.

Using old lenses is awesome

When we buy lenses we often try to get the latest technology, the best quality etc. But did you know there are loads of great lenses out there that you can buy for next to nothing that will give you awesome results?

A chair and a background an we are done, well almost

Building a small set is loads of fun And it doesn't has to be expensive. For our studio we are always looking for chairs, chandeliers, and in fact almost anything we thing we can use in a photoshoot, in the end we will probably open a thrift store 😀

A block can really help out in your studio

We can spend a lot of money on sets and props, but I always love it when it can be done really cheap. And one of the best investments you can do for your studio is.... a block.

Because old glass is so incredibly beautiful

There will always be something new, better and cooler. And lenses are no exception. But is it always necessary to upgrade your lens? Well sometimes yes, if a lens is a lot faster or has a longer/wider range that you need. But before you run to the store for the latest and greatest also thing about this alternative.

A model and a wedding dress

During the workshops I always build up the set. This way the attendees can see what every light does in the set and how they interact, and that makes it much easier to solve problems in the future. So let's take a look at some images from Claudia during one of the sets.

Using a projector for awesome and unique effects

You probably have use one during work, or maybe you have a great Home Theater system, projectors are used in many different situations. They are awesome for gaming, presentations and of course movies. But did you ever think about using it as a light source? The main different between a monitor/tv and a projector is that the projector projects light onto a screen and that creates the image, where a monitor/tv is a flat screen. So what if we replace the screen for our model.

Two light sources

Now when you hear a broad lightsource you might think it always means flat lighting, but that's not necessarily the case. When you move the lightsource to the side of the set you get a beautiful shadow site on the model and because of the open sides of the lantern it will also light the background. If you think the shadow side is a bit too dark you can easily place a reflector on that side because the lantern is a very broad lightsource so it "always" reflects back on a reflector on the other side.

Congratulations Annewiek 50 years

Today a special birthday episode of the blog. Annewiek is turning 50 today so let's congratulate her with this special day 😀

What a beauty, a yellow Ibanez RG505r

When we shoot a product or a business I always want to know what the product is, or what the company does, and most of all, which mood fits the product/company. People often underestimate how much difference photos can make, a company can get a totally different "vibe" by using different angles or lighting. So we have to make sure we know exactly what we shoot.

Lois vs the Gobo projector

Today in the blog the results from the digital classroom with Lois in which I used the Westcott Lindsay Adler optical spot for awesome shots