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Lighting & Equipment

Let's breeze through this is like the shortest segment I love it so technically um so uh equipment tips nipple tassels is all you need eyes getting it's just such a funny picture to have with, um keep it simple once again um I only use the bare minimum of what is necessary to create the mood I'm going for lean cares less intimidating it really is when you're working with real women it's a different thing with models you can kick out all day and like lips you have all your lights but like, if she's standing like the strokes pop and it's a little intimidating, so I try and lean it up as much as possible. Um, and if you're just starting out, I get asked a lot what I invest in I am the best camera body you can afford, plus one land I really love if everyone could start with a full frame sensor, you could afford it it's nice to start working with that dimension right away. Um prioritize your investment so here's where I'm really gonna don't spend a lot of money and equipment right off the b...

at you need stability, tio build your business, your money is better spent elsewhere, you get much more mileage like don't create an arsenal of equipment um before you've got paying clients that's my role until you make other people I mentor I won't allow them to invest in anything until they make some money. Um john are you miked up just when we d'oh q and a about lighting that would love to hear from you? Um rent the cure you want to try until you come by at ana sze yu can afford this is why I love one's throat ago they're freaking awesome they're all working professional photographers and for me it's a valuable resource because whenever I have a question and my friend john cornyn cello isn't around lens prote ago I don't know dude, this is what I'm trying to dio or I'm stuck here oh my god, I'm not in l a but I think it's awful what ideo and they are dorks over another needs they are in the best way they are so customer service oriented so they will totally hook you up and let you know what you think they think is best for you and then they ship it to you unlike those pelican cases and then you just slap the label back on when you're done and ships ships it right back so I really big on renting because you might not like a certain lens you might find you never use it and so you know when this is our expense like two thousand twelve hundred fifteen hundred um and you know if you're not regularly working look if you're not looking to three clients a week uh can't you just rent it for one week and you're good to go and spend your money um building your business okay master one toy before buying another I think that I could probably use just one camera and one lens for the rest of my life and never ever fully master it. Um but I love like kim weston uh is edward westerns grandson I'm sure you all know edward weston like iconic nude photographer um during ansel adams day and uh he's he's shooting with the same film camera has been shooting all his life and he shoots all natural light and like you know what he's been shooting for how many decades now I don't want to age him let's just say for five decades okay? So like there's no shame and you know, I think a lot of people like oh well I'm not a real photographer if I don't use lighting equipment not a real photographer only strobe and know how exactly how that works in the continuous whaler and all that stuff I'm not here to tell you like kim weston has no problem with it he's in a major photographer he shoots on ly natural light and do you think he wakes up no no I'm not a real photographer, not a professional heck no so I just want to give you guys all permission to say you know, I used to show up with you know my one camera one lends the fathers had better cameras then I did I wore that as a badge of honor and not a badge of shame I know there's some girl but I'm entered last year she's like hi I'm so embarrassed my camera's holding me back so ashamed of it it was a rebels like I started with the rebel I rocked that trouble for three years and made thousands and I take it as a bad let's see my mindsets different I didn't let it drown me in shame I kind of was like, hey that's pretty cool if I could do this with the rebel you asked me why I didn't upgrade sooner I don't know um okay so master one toy before buying another and question upgrades so I still shooting with the old five day and then I'm like, well, I am going to create of love maybe I should step it up a little bit so I just, um let's throw to go there like responsibly so they're like can we just should be the cameras they tried like that would be awesome, so I'm just now on the mark to uh so you know there's nothing wrong, you don't have to get the latest and greatest any questions on equipment so far awesome why it's not going so here's what's in my bag masks you the marks you know hello twenty four seventy two point and we'll talk a little bit how use these lenses a five one point to the fifty one point two two batteries in the charger thirty two gig and a few others and occasionally my fun cameras so that's it that's what's in my bag um lately the twenty four seventy doesn't even come out anymore that used to be my my favorite lens right now it's collecting dust I would say e I wouldn't leave it home but I rarely break that out sometimes ideo for only masters when I need that one shot uh remember the one of rave in on the bed that was kind of a master but I was able to shoot it with eighty five because I was able to back up so far in this beautiful big studio but you know we're not really gonna be able to do that on most location yeah we just want to make a comment from wake up juliet said I'm rocking the nikon d forty and I feel a lot better about it now that's so cool so and then a question with regard to when you worship from j mo when you were shooting with the rebel were there any issues with regards to the size that you could print no um there wasn't so lance for reaffirming um so do you guys want to ask me anything about twenty four, seventy, eighty five fifty any other lens desire? Just one I love when you are shooting the bedroom scene yesterday did you were you shooting on lee with the fifty or did you switch it out to the eighty five? I switched to the eighty five when you weren't looking jen okay? Because when you just mentioned it now I thought I thought she shot with the fifty okay, yeah, I twist it are you going to go over later on like what? What you specifically used each one for when you're like oh, I want this look, I'm gonna grab my eighty five yeah let's do it now. Okay, so, um the juicy close ups when her makeup was perfect right off the bat and when she maybe is a little nervous to pose I like to get those close ups with eighty five I also love like I said, if there's any light anywhere I love to create a little sexy book in the background with my eighty five I sometimes um if I have the room we'll shoot mediums with it. If I was most I think the most flattering leland's um as so it depends if I have the room for it all you know, open up a little bit and the fifty one two um I use probably the most often it's the most natural it's the most like r I see there's no compression her a longing distortion so I like I kind of tend to like that my style is natural right so like the fifty suits me um but you can't really it's not as flattering for close ups you don't want to get too close on that teo tend new portfolio haven't seen a lot ofthe images the fair very wide is a decision or it's just not your style and you try to keep them out no it's such a good question its I don't focus on it like I guess I'm like well I yeah I don't really do a lot of those big wide ones probably it's mostly dictated by space is I've been working in um you know, if I if I came here every day to where I'd be like wow I mean there's some nice things you can do wide here that are very dramatic um but mostly I'm shooting in like a really small space so I think it's been mostly dictated by that also little budget production so like I said, I'm going to keep my set simple ongoing frame and tight that's another thing I think that kind of dictating my style currently but once um yeah that's those are no longer factors it'll be interesting to see if I gravitate still it's for the coast ah that's a really good question um alina vodka and a couple others are wondering if uh with your rebel did you have any trouble with s o sensitivity comparing to the five day market one you were working? Oh heck yeah, things got a lot easier for me but I think if you start out with a handicap like the rebel you really get teo uh you hone your skills and I think it's awesome to start with a handy cat instead of you know, crutch is like the best camera ever you're not really learning that way so I'd like to start off all of people I mentor with a severe handicap but they have to work around um and yes, so the rebel and I remember on the shooting on automatic couple years so that was interesting. Yeah. So yeah, you really gotta work so hard to find really great natural light and you have to work extra hard to create something so amazing like a moment that's just going like, you know, make moms cry because you're shooting it with the rebel. So that was really good training for me. She mentioned eso just mean, we think is there it and I s so that you will not go above our are you afraid to push it up? Tio sixty four hundred if you're in a situation where you don't have a lot of light great is there well, stick around it's changed now because I was shooting with the old five day up until a week ago. So with the old fun d I really wasn't wanting to go above six forty if I did like two, eight hundred or one thousand um or, um one time I went up to sixteen hundred because I was shooting in a dark club had no light. So, um, I usually well, you know, there's a lot of really sophisticated in light room three. I like their noise reduction um, but I'll probably wind up changing that so black and white and maybe add a little green into it anyway, um if I have to go up that high now, this five de mar two is pretty awesome. Um, so we're pushing it on the shoot the other day with kenna and celeste. I think we went up to john. Where do we go? Way went up to sixteen hundred a couple of times, so I'm not afraid of it. I won't want to do a whole shoot like that, though. Yeah, yeah, but if it's a necessity awesome. So lenses are like shoes, so when people say, what do I, uh thanks left? What do I, um uh, what do I invest in to begin with? Um do I just get the eighty five cause that's your favorite? Well well, not really, because here's my analogy like, you know, the boots I was wearing the other day like they're gonna take you everywhere the twenty four seventies like a good pair boots you can dress it up, dress it down and go anywhere with him they're going to take you everywhere like eighty five or like these shoes, they sure look pretty, but where the heck am I going in this way? I'm not going to get a lot done so you won't want to eighty five you won't want these to be the only shoes in your closet and you don't want the eighty five to beating leland's in your bag. So does that make sense? And I guess like the fifty would be kind of like a comfortable, coachable kind of like nine west funk you go both ways on dh just one other thing about the lenses you don't need to get the one point teo the eighty five one point is freaking awesome. I have that one's I don't use because I have the one point teo but probably give it I should give it away some point, but I highly recommend it get the eighty five one points like a couple hundred bucks that lens rocks and the fifty one point four is also super sweet so you know just wanted to say that eight months last year and never took the fifty one four off camera really nice do you have anything else in your bag what on a rebel no yeah I have the fifty one foreign the hundred millimeter to eight macro that's all issue awesome except for sports I haven't seventy three hundred for sports right right ok yes kanna sorry don't go ahead winning photograph details to tell a story do you feel a macro is something you would like to have or is just a nice accessory but not relevant yeah that's exactly how I feel about it honestly I'm a girl and it's like I put my camera in my purse so I like to keep it lean I would have a battery grip on it I don't have a hood on it I keep it so light um and I'm still like at the end of the day wow I don't know how people shoot with that seventy two hundred um but so yeah I like to keep it as lena's possible even bringing three lenses very a lot so I I'm just it's just a story telling detail I'm not shooting award winning detail shots you know um like I said, if I'm going to shoot the hot of a hot faucet I'll need to bring a special lens for that it would be nice yeah I have john cornyn cello asthma my bag boy, I love him. Okay. Yeah. Another question is from let two seven, eight through one. Uh if shooting with a rebel as I am right now, would you recommend is it better to buy a lens first? Nicer, lenz first or a better camera body? What lens does she have right now? Doesn't. So she has a rebel. She well, it's just when she needs once. So she probably right? Yes, it is a crappy b. Yeah, I'd say get a good lens. Okay. Yeah. And that could be the fifty one point four. Offhand, how much is that lens, john? Three. Fifty, four hundred nine. I think she could do both. I think she could afford that lens and a better camera, but she can only afford one definitely. And get that lens. Thank you. Instead of the king. And remember, too, that the rebel is a crop sensor camera so that fifty one for is working, like in eighty five on your camera so she may want to go with a thirty five in a fifty instead of fifteen. I always forget that that's. Why? I'm like if you can get a full sensor camera. Yeah, totally. Okay, so lighting thanks, john. A few simple guidelines don't I love this shot? Um this is one where there was no way I was going to get catch light in her eyes was just a fleeting moment at the end of the shoot we're rushing out the door and I just was like oh, this is awesome so I had her purposely not look at me because I'm not seeing her face had a really turned her head to the side and for me this story is about two things when I'm talking about telling a story which we're talking about today that little heart shape of light between her legs the tension in her neck like damn that thought right um so a few simple guidelines in terms of light what type of light will contribute to the mood of the shot that's what I want you to think about when you're thinking about setting up lading what's gonna go with the mood of this what story am I telling here? What emotions am I going for? What is this set about um and the lightest thing in your frame should be the story you want to tell you a lot of people say the lettuce thing should be the eyes like these things should be the face well, not really if the stories about her but or hear that little heart between her legs make sure there's light and shadow okay, so like I said, I'm just a big fan of not filling every little shadow area cover that a lot yesterday is the light flattering my subject so a lot of yeah you are focused on posing and that's great but when you're posing her make sure your priority is putting her in flattering light okay that's going to take priority imposing lading gear in the studio okay, this is what we're gonna work with alien be eight hundred these air the modifiers I love that will be easing today I recently just started on john cornyn tells recommendation got the west cut or that thing is so cool you know it's round so I like the catch light and there's silver inside it so it kind of creates a bit more high contrast um than the soft box that use pocket wizards grace seamless background I use what's called dove grey I think it's really nice warm medium tone grey make it darker later but I just love it so rich and if you can in the studio I used nine um obviously when I go on location we'll talk about that in a second eyes the forefoot because you can't think you bringing nine into hotel fit it in a lot of places and the blow it fan as we saw yesterday um I love that thing definitely upgrading from the household fan I've been using backdrop stands like stands gaffer tape on a clamps are pretty obvious and then going on location this is that one by one light panel we were using it was at the end of the shoot I think we're calling to get like champagne or something I don't remember I just kind of snapped this is a total after the shoot kind of shot, but I freaking love it uh question blaine you with the grace inglis why do you go with? Why did you say I'm going to do great instead of that's such a great question I'm glad you brought it up the reason why is remember I roma business on the keep it simple motto I only want to use one light source always, always, always because I only want to be bringing one thing and I love that I just love dropping things off to shadow um, so the grave really user friendly with the black, you're going to need a hair light a lot of the times you're going to need a second light to show separation, especially with brunettes from the model to the backdrop and with white high key white, you're going to need a second light tio tio blowout white so grey was just like, first of all, it's my favor in terms of the way it looks technically it's got that richness without being so dramatic as the black um and it's you know, fashion look yeah totally khun darken it up um but really the reason was because keeping it simple and using one light uh it's a great question thank yeah uh do you ever use a beauty dish like this like um you know what? I'll get to it eventually and try it out do you love your beauty did tell me about it let's talk about I want people to benefit I think it creates a little bit more contrasts on defines a little bit the light and create a little bit more moody images we just loved to listen to your accent wait you're saying more movie and it was everywhere um okay um yes you think it's more moody yes, it creates more with more contrast you know, I actually used I don't want you remember that tiger cub shoot? No, I wanted to bring that as a sample of telling a story day it forgot uh maybe I'll bring it tomorrow morning remind me um we used a beautician and I was so not interested in it was just like yeah, I get it but I won't play with it more sometimes I don't give things enough of a chance so we'll play with it more based on your recommendation. Thanks, carlo thank you um so on location on bringing the strobe I bring that one by one and these two modifiers I'm digging that orb so I'm going to bring that but the twenty four thirty six is small enough and I like working with that one um pocket wizards and the four foot gray seamless and the black muslin black muslims like a hundred fifty bucks but you can get twenty dollars tablecloth at target is the same dang thing um and if you get the polyester one's awesome doesn't wrinkle um and then a reflector which I never use sometimes ideo if I have to is is um the blow it fan ah and you know all that other jazz any questions about going on location and bringing equipment there's usually a lot of those orb like goes it's it's on umbrella frame it and so it packs real small does it's super cool yeah it's kind of interesting that makes him a good lesson to yeah hotel yeah, well see that it will be demo ing that and are first shoot today any questions about bringing here on location the black muslin yet besides using it as you know potential backdrop yeah, what else do you find yourself using it for regularly sometimes if I don't have the reflector on me you know do mission glare on the window sometimes I use it um strategically to cover up stuff uh like some ugly headboard I'll just kind of like, you know, drape it over yet there was a shot I'm here working with women was a woman lying on her stomach and you just saw sheet and black above her was very dramatic. That was the black muslin because I wanted a nice clean line instead of, like whatever textured and ford they had was distracting, so I do that a lot with headboards I find myself, but I also hang it if I can't bring the four foot like, for some reason that's packs in your bag, you hang it up, you don't even need to bring a strobe at, uh, hotels like you hanging up next to a window and all you need is maybe just for here up, do some, you know, nice close ups with that it's really pretty it's, not a lot of gear, but it's obvious when you're rolling through a hotel with that kind of I mean, how do you manage it's? Like I'm going through a lobby with, you know, a four foot box with, you know, I don't mean to get weird looks or any, uh I'm not like a pack mule, and I usually have someone helping and honestly, that really isn't a lot of stuff, yeah, I mean, that's still coming? And when we showed up the other day that we showed up with a car with four women, all these bags and always said someone came in from l a this morning, someone came in from new york, we're just having fun here, and then the bellhops were into it, too, pilot all the stuff on, they were laughing about all the stuff we had and it just kind of through really well, yeah, yeah, I really you know, I haven't had problems, I and I've only had one bellhop asked me he's like, oh, you're doing a shoot go, yes. Hey, you okay? Uh, one other thing we may want to mention hears we're talking gaffer's tape. Does everyone know week? After's tape is a supposed to duct tape gaffer's tape is made for the film industry, and it sticks well, but it doesn't, but the glue doesn't come off the tape so we can take something to the wall in the hotel and take it down without tearing the wall of the hotel duct tape tends to be really gooey and melts and does all kinds of strange things, so gaffer's tape is a very specific nothing to look for that such a great question and both gaffer's tape and a clams come in super handy for like wardrobe. Is is I find you know, I don't have a stylist on set and so well, I'm often like clamp in like fabric or like pitching her dress back there were taping stuff up? Um, yeah, so go ahead. Can a question from uh r o r reynolds, did you ever use off camera small flash on location? Never, ever, ever? I really don't like the look of it, and I know there are people who are masters with it, so more power to him, I'm just not skilled in that and, um, don't wanna break my neck trying to figure that out. I'm like I got stuff that works, so I've never yeah them question from map regarding lights with your alien bees do use policy buff triggers or do you like the pocket wizards better pocket wizards? I know there are other stuff out there for some reason like, you know, I got juju with the pocket wizards not going would um uh one time I cheap down, but I won't say the brand because that's wrong a lesser brand, they failed on me, so I just kind of stick with the pocket wizards. I'm sure there's a budget option out there it works when you use flashes location, do you always use more than a light with the bucket with them on nbc? Do I use more than one light no more than I like oh do I use the modeling yes absolutely I love the look of the modeling light so well it's very different than firing the strobe so what kind of c I a tribal see which one I like better or maybe I'll do it one set with the modeling light and then one set with the strobe but I love using the modeling light um yeah it's really soft even so the wescott or bligh is at the ring light the circle right no you're gonna be demo ing that later today oh it's a modifier goes on the light so I d what do you feel about the ring like the ring lights like a fluorescent rings what's that circle in the you see the lightning yeah I'm not a big fan of just the look it's just not my style um but I I think if you love the look of that do it it's very distinctive that's for sure go ahead I kind of sort of asked you this yesterday and I might be kind of jumping the gun because you might be discussing it later but okay um I also have the alien bees and I feel like they are too strong for my small space right and so do you take with you also eh? So there are eight question thank you which alien beauty I have the eight hundred but I have a very small studio space and all of my walls are white and I feel like it is just too powerful and I can't shoot wide open which I love to dio I have this same problem so I don't get frustrated and I don't use them and I know that it's I've invested all this money and you and I want to use them with easy fix john are you running to get them right now what's that could you get a few diffuser we had that problem this weekend. What I did is I brought neutral density gels here so this thing inside it's off box rapid sort of around the daily and behead in the box too drunk or mad and enrolls thiss comes in this side become get roles from a big camera store too okay and you could do one or two stops down I mean you can add on you know this's a set of three a one stop to stop in the three stop so if I combine them together like you get up to six months I need to put that on the list. I'm sorry I left that off the list uh you do need to do to bring those if, like me you like to shoot it um so very important because I started with a photogenic twelve fifty was the first true hand it was like right I'm shooting in a ten by ten room so I had to do that there's also you get filters for your camera but I prefer you know doing the light instead okay good questions okay, we have just a couple minutes before we move on to the next segment do you wanna ask more questions gonna yes let's do that uh question from j sank nineteen eighty seven who is from outside of philly do you meet her through the lens or do you ever use a light meter uh good question never use a light meter once again not wanting to bring a lot of equipment and I started you know, shooting film back in the day um but no I you know I don't feel it's totally necessary um and one other thing I left on the list is make sure you bring your creativity and resourcefulness that will serve you more than any other piece of gear you can bring that about I thought I was going to wrap it up way have more sides shooting on location so this was actually like a you know those things they put in front of a fireplace is to block the whole letter those called anyway that's what this was so I had to get all the way on the floor I framed in super tight just looks like this exotic location doesn't it? It was really not and that was shot at like fiftieth and that was one of my favorite things hair toss right movement okay, just a couple of notes of shooting outdoors I love to shoot outdoors a lot people think oh boudoir ds bedroom right no no no shoot outside if you can sometimes just one wall in the most unlikely place um well look awesome uh just you need a little space a brick wall remember that girl running jen he said you loved girl running that was outside my studio there's like just this much room of brick with that one cool light and you know, just took her two seconds like just run and I had to do it like five times until I nailed it um so you don't need a big space just sometimes an alleyway get great light um just me and the model no assistance I don't bring your eminence just my camera um I kind of pre planned what she's going to do? I tell her what she's going to dio uh and I try and get my setting set before like I have her do something and get in get out so no, I don't ask for permission and once again yes, I don't ask for a permit but I asked for forgiveness from ever busted which I haven't been not the interiors I find the best light maneuver furniture around remove distractions we kind of went over this when I did the budget hotel room pretaped on dh use what's available this? She actually has the video light on her here. I was going to say we, this lounge was closed and they were setting up, and I just kind of go hate, is it ok? Like, my friend and I come in here, we just take one or two shots will be five minutes. They're like asher, like the guy setting up the bar, you know, so I actually had the luxury of using the video light in this, the same video late, you guys.