Morston

Just six miles east of Wells-Next-The-Sea along the North Norfolk Coast lies the small hamlet of Morston. Used by fisherman and tourism businesses alike it also provides many opportunities for the landscape photographer from big skies to colourful wooden boats. It's a place I'm going to visit regularly in 2014 as I think there are many beautiful images to be had. Just need these Winter storms to ease a bit.

A small boat at Morston on the North Norfolk Coast

The Albatros

The Albatros, also known as a North Sea Klipper is a sailing ship built in 1899. It was used for carrying cargo between Holland and the Baltic and was in operation until its last commercial sailing trip in 2008. It is now permanently moored alongside the Quay in Wells-Next-The-Sea, Norfolk U.K. where it is used as a B&B and bar. It also serves great pancakes.

This photo taken in early December on a cold still morning shows the Albatros under a blanket of thick fog, home to a number of Starlings and Gulls.

The Albatros

Le Paon Du Jour

The Summer months seem such a very long time ago as I sit here typing this latest blog post in the depths of Winter. But the days are getting longer, albeit very slowly at the moment and in a few short months the Earth will awake from its slumber and the insects and flowers will emerge once again. I am keen to photograph more flora and fauna in 2014 but for now I have posted one of my favourite images from 2013. This has been a successful photograph for me, mentioned and favourited on several blogs and featured on the British Craft site Folksy's homepage.

 http://folksy.com/items/4439911-Le-Paon-Du-Jour-A-Fine-Art-Photography-Print-on-Ivory-Double-Mount 

Le Paon Du Jour - The Peacock Butterfly

Christmas Lights and the Fuji X100

Regent Street

Whilst in London earlier this month mooching around the main shopping areas of Oxford Street and Regent Street, it was impossible not to notice the many bright and cheerful Christmas decorations hanging above my head. They were lovely to see and combined with the general street lights and low cloud, produced a lovely warm and colourful glow in the sky. Wandering further afield, Fuji X100 in hand, I came across yet more lovely colour in both Chinatown and the West End. I knew that the relatively dark conditions would push the Fuji to the max and I would have to bump the ISO up accordingly if I were to capture the night lights accurately. Maintaining a fast enough shutter speed and reasonable depth of field meant that I was quite often shooting with the X100 set at 3200 ISO. This didn't prove a problem at all for the little chap which took it all within its stride. I simply had to nail the exposure in camera to avoid any major post processing afterwards in Photoshop. A combination of Aperture priority coupled with exposure compensation or switching to full manual mode allowed me to achieve just that. As I shoot in raw the only thing that was necessary to adjust once I had the files downloaded and on the computer was to add a bit of clarity and a touch of saturation.  

The West End 

The lovely Carnaby Street

Carnaby Street is one of my favourite areas of London. I love the little side streets and the fantastic independent shops.

One of the many restaurants in Chinatown 

One of the many boutique shopping arcades

Trafalgar Square

This was the first time that I had visited Trafalgar Square. Somehow not as big as I thought it would be but still very impressive, particularly the ever changing colour of the fountain.

I know I keep banging on about how good the Fuji X100 is, ( and now of course its replacement, the X100s ) but it really is such good fun to shoot with. What makes this camera so special is that despite its reasonably small size, it just keeps on churning out superb quality images, some of which I sell as limited edition 16'' x 12'' prints. It's really solidly made and has a lovely tactile feel and because the lens and camera were made from the ground up it produces pin sharp files every time. The fact that it has a really useful ISO range as well as a fast F2.0 lens means I can use it at weddings alongside my big Nikon bodies without ever worrying that it won't deliver the results. And bearing in mind that I shoot with a Nikon D4 and D3s, that's testament indeed.

Around London with the Fuji X100

London is a busy place. A very busy place. For someone like me who appreciates open spaces and plenty of room to move around London can be like hell on earth. I'm not sure why you would want to live in such a congested and noisy place given the chance, but some people love its bustling, never goes to sleep nature and think quite the opposite. One thing it is good for though, even I would have to admit, is the many street photography opportunities it provides. Being so busy the keen photographer is best advised to travel light, preferably with a camera that can be shoved in to a pocket whenever needed. The Fuji X series of cameras fit this bill nicely. I've been shooting with a Fuji X100 for many months now and find its small size a great advantage in such situations as it doesn't sacrifice image quality in comparison to much larger and heavier DSLR's. It also tends to go unnoticed by members of the public as it looks not too dissimilar to the majority of point and shoot type cameras on the market at present. With a fixed 23mm F2.0 lens, ( equivalent 35mm on full frame cameras ) it always manages to capture beautiful, saturated sharp images.

The Underground is always a great place to shoot a bit of street photography as there are normally so many people about, although if it gets too busy you can't really see the wood for the trees. People tend to keep themselves to themselves on the tube, either having a nap or their face buried in a book or tablet computer. This can make for some great images. Just remember to try not to look like some kind of stalker. The fixed 23mm lens on the X100 means you have to get in close if you want to capture images with impact and sometimes this means you can look a bit intimidating and weird. Best just to react quickly when you see a photo opportunity so the 'target', I mean subject, doesn't really know what's just happened.

Taking a nap

Colliers Wood Station 

The Tube

The museums provide some fantastic photo opportunities also, and so many of the people are using cameras of their own that you tend to be largely ignored by everyone else so can happily shoot away. The Natural History museum has some fantastic exhibits and the the architecture is particularly grand providing the opportunity for many photos.

The Natural History Museum

Many lines

The Science museum also provides an opportunity for some great photographs. Because the Science museum and the Natural History museum are right next door to each other it's easy to hop between the two. You probably need at least half a day in either one to truly appreciate what each has to offer so bear this in mind.

It's above you 

Rocket

These are just a few examples of the many places that make good street photography locations in London. There are more great areas like the colourful Chinatown, Soho and Carnaby Street that you may want to venture round so best put aside a week or so, book a room and some cheap travel and get on down there. Just be prepared for the hustle and bustle and you'll be fine.

After the Storm

After the Storm

This is quite a poignant image for me and one I will fondly remember taking. Captured just after the worst tidal surge to hit the Eastern side of the U.K. in sixty years it shows the coast in totally different conditions to those which were experienced just 48 hours before. Norfolk is known as big sky Country and this image perfectly encapsulates that quality. A fiery red sunset, calm conditions and little fishing boats provide the landscape photographer with the necessary ingredients to capture beautiful images, and when you're stood there surrounded by such glorious scenery you can't quite believe such violent storms can possibly happen.

All is Calm

Both Norfolk and Lincolnshire seem to be under a blanket of fog at the moment, the days and nights are both still and grey. While this can make landscape photography somewhat challenging at times with a lack of beautiful warm low light, if you try to embrace the murk and include it in the composition, you can capture some rather striking images.

I was out for a stroll on the sand banks to the Eastern end of Wells- Next-The-Sea with my Nikon D4, Nikkor 70-200mm F2.8 and Manfrotto tripod one afternoon last week and was struggling for a bit of inspiration. The light was flat and visibility was low. I was looking for interesting details either on the sandy beach or possibly a small boat nestled in one of the many small lagoons that are created during low tide. Nothing was really working for me until I turned back towards the town and saw that the mist had thinned considerably, allowing tantalising glimpses of the quay front and its many boats. The conditions were calm and the boats were casting lovely soft reflections in the water. I set up my tripod and got to work. It can be slightly tricky shooting in foggy conditions because although it may look dull and dreary it's actually more than likely far brighter than you may think. The camera is probably going to underexpose the scene because of this so exposure compensation will need to be used if shooting in Aperture priority, a value of +1 E.V. being a good starting point. I mainly shoot in manual mode when photographing landscapes and also manually focus. I find that this gives me the greatest possible control over the captured image and it also slows me down, something that I feel is very important when shooting this type of photography.

Looking back towards the Quay at Wells-Next-The-Sea.

 

Miranda MS-3

Miranda MS-3

I have to confess that when I first picked up this camera at a car boot sale I was somewhat disappointed with the build quality. It was marked up at £32 but I managed to haggle it down to £20 so thought what the hell and purchased it. This is a Dixon's own camera, not to be confused with the SLR's produced by the Miranda Camera Company from Japan. The Japanese Company ceased trading in the late 1970's and in the early 1980's the British electrical and photographic retailer Dixon's acquired the rights to the Miranda brand and used it on a range of photographic equipment. The quality of the camera isn't up to the Japanese models, it's mainly rubber and plastic and the focus ring is a bit stiff and slow on the Cosina kit lens. But spend a bit of time with it and it starts to grow on you. Easy to hold, quite tactile in fact and the more I used it the more it grew on me. The camera is most likely going to be used in semi automatic mode, meaning the user sets the aperture value and the camera selects the shutter speed, although a manual mode can be selected if desired. LED's seen through the viewfinder help with obtaining the correct exposure and the max shutter speed is 1/1000. There is also a bulb mode. The shutter mechanism works well and makes a positive sound when in operation. I was shooting with cheap Agfa Vista 200 ISO film which isn't the best but does the job. When I received the developed film back from the lab I was quite shocked at just how good the images were. The lens, while a relatively cheap and plasticky F1.8 50mm was obviously pretty darn sharp, the best of the cameras so far in fact. The camera tended to over expose bright scenes slightly so I would need to adjust for this in future, dialing in -0.3 E.V. to compensate would probably do the trick, nothing too drastic.

Overall I was very impressed with the results that this camera produced and it's certainly one I'll use again in the future.    

ISO dial and film rewind dial 

Film advance lever and shutter release button

The plasticky and rather cheeky Miranda MS-3

Nature's Harvest

Winter's Sun

Colourful leaves

A walk in the woods

Leaves burning bright

Indoor Portrait Shoot with Natural Light

I love portrait photography. Getting a shot both you and the subject love is a great feeling and something that they will hopefully cherish for many years to come. I do use off camera flash when I have to but much prefer natural light when I have the opportunity. It can provide a beautiful soft quality to the subject which can be difficult to replicate with a speedlight. That's not to say artificial light doesn't have its place. I do use it and enjoy doing so and you can get some ace results with it. Check out http://brettgardnerphotography.blogspot.co.uk/2013/11/off-camera-flash-portrait-in-flat.html to see what I mean.

If there is a large window available near to where i'm going to shoot a model I will always try to utilise it. The side of the subject lit by the window will provide the main light source and a simple reflector positioned opposite the window will bounce light back towards the darker side of the model, filling any unsightly shadows that may have formed. By moving the reflector you will be able to see the effect it is having and decide on its best position.

Becca 1

The window was used as the main light source with a silver reflector used to bounce a bit of light back towards the models right hand side.

Becca 2

The window's natural light was directly in front of the model with a silver reflector adding a bit of light to the right hand side of the face.

Becca 3

Similar to the first setup. The only difference this time was that the natural light was dropping off quickly so the lamp became the main light source. Any spill from the lamp was reflected back towards the model by using a silver reflector. 

Natalie Gail

Landscape photography can be very frustrating at times. You seem to be waiting an eternity for the weather conditions to become just right and all the elements to gel together. When they finally do you run round like a loon trying to capture as many beautiful images as you possibly can which is surely a recipe for disaster. I have found through experience that taking your time when planning the shot will help enormously when it comes to capturing that special moment. I recce places days beforehand even if the weather is foul as I can sometimes create a composition in my head or check where the sun will be at a certain time of day. I have found that even if conditions have changed since a previous visit I will still have a good understanding of a place and its mood. This can be vital if you only have a few minutes to capture the shot on the day.

Natalie Gail during low tide at Wells-Next-The-Sea

This image of 'Natalie Gail is a case in point. I knew the location well, knew where the sun would be at the time I wanted to shoot and had checked the tide times days in advance. The shot I had in my head required for the tide to be out and the boat to be marooned. I arrived a good 30 minutes before this shot was taken, set up the camera on a tripod and finessed the composition. By the time I was ready to shoot the sun was in the perfect position, just catching the side of the boat and its hull, a lovely reflection in the water. There wasn't a breath of wind and the fog was starting to roll in, the way it tumbles across the image from right to left adds a real sense of mystery and depth. The pair of geese that by happy accident had just landed beside the boat add a neat final touch to the image.

This is the sort of view that is often seen during quiet sun filled days in the depths of Winter on the North Norfolk Coast and being in the right place at the right time allowed me to capture it.   

A Walk in the Woods

I like to get out into the woods with my camera whenever I can. I like the solitude and the peace and quiet, just me, the animals and the birdsong. It's always great to explore new wild places, not that there are many of those left in England. Any time I have the chance to get away from the rat race and explore a woodland I haven't walked through before I take it. I feel like an explorer, never knowing what i'm going to stumble across next. There's a lovely little wooded area near my girlfriends mum's house with windy little paths and a beautiful small river snaking through it which is crystal clear, surely a haven for Kingfishers. The Fuji X100 is the perfect companion for such a walk as it's small and light yet so capable. It's great for wide angle as well as close up and macro shots and woodlands like this provide many great photo opportunities.

Low Winter Sun

Moss covered branches provide great detail shots. 

 

Autumn Colours

The trees are really showing off at the moment, so much colour on the leaves as the sun beats down, turning them a fiery orange and red. I had a wander around my local wood yesterday and it was truly magical. Quite cold but not a breath of wind so everything was still and quiet. I took with me my Fuji X100 and a little film SLR which is going to be the subject of my next '12 months of film' blog post. I love shooting with the Fuji as it's so unobtrusive and it really encourages me to snap away. It's once you get the images back home though and start to browse through them that you realise what an amazing sensor it uses. Images are fantastic, sharp, clean and full of detail. I quite often shoot up to ISO 3200 and have no issues with noise from the captured files. Dynamic range is also top notch. Just check the fifth image in this sequence. Shot straight towards the sun with much of the image in shade, I was easily able to recover the blown highlights and lift the shadow areas of the raw file without any degradation of the image. If I'm carrying all my kit I normally set up a camera on tripod and bracket a set of 5 or more images with values anywhere from -3 E.V. to +3 E.V. and then merge them in Photoshop. But being able to capture pretty much the entire dynamic range of the image in just the one photograph is a real bonus. It means I can travel light and still not worry about missing a shot because of tricky lighting conditions.                                                                                                                              

Fiery Orange leaves and a low sun make for beautiful contrasty images.

Roughton Moor Woods full of colour

Beautiful golden patterns

Burning bright against a cold blue sky

Great dynamic range from the Fuji X100 sensor

Fuji X100

The X100 is now rocking the latest version 2.0 firmware which was released from Fuji about 6 weeks ago. It's made a classic camera even better and although stocks are now extremely low as it's been superseded by the X100s, there are still a few available if you have a search on the internet. And for about half the price of the newer model it's an absolute bargain.

The Old Wreck

On the North Norfolk Coast, not that far from Hunstanton, lies a small hamlet by the name of Thornham. Most of the delightful little places dotted along the coast have a small track or road that leads down towards a bay and colourful boat sheds and Thornham is no exception. What makes this tiny place more interesting than most though is the landscape, decorated with old mooring platforms and decomposing wooden structures that are scattered as far as the eye can see. The jewel in the crown is arguably an old abandoned fishing trawler left high and dry by a long forgotten Winter's storm, slowly succumbing to the harsh coastal conditions which pound it on an almost daily basis. It has been photographed many times by both amateur and professional photographers alike and anyone visiting the area will almost certainly wish to capture their own image of this fragile, decaying wreck.

Old Fishing Boat, with storm moving in.

Thank you very much for spending the time to look at my blog. I'm passionate about all things camera related and would greatly appreciate it if you took the time to look at some of the ads on my page. They're related to the stuff I blog about and you may find some great deals. I use a number of companies which advertise on my site when purchasing gear, and find them all to be fantastic, reliable with quick delivery.

Valerie Teresa

A seascape image from the beautiful North Norfolk Coast, this time taken when the temperature was decidedly less chilly.

It was late September and we were having a bit of an Indian Summer, temperatures in the high teens and lovely blue skies ending with glorious fiery orange sunsets. The tide was out and everything was still, hardly a breath of wind. The lovely warm glow reflecting off the side of the boat 'Valerie Teresa', a perfect reflection in the pool of water below. I'm drawn to large, open, peaceful places especially now that we are living in a World so congested, one that always appears to be moving at breakneck speed.

Valerie Teresa at Sunset

Autumn Storm Over The Bay

I went out for a stroll along the quay at Wells-Next-The-sea a couple of weeks ago with the intention of capturing a nice shot of the boats and surrounding sand banks as the tide was out. The weather had looked promising as I prepared my camera gear but leaving the house, I noticed the clouds rolling in. Arriving at the quay the camera was attached to a tripod, composition set. And so I waited... and waited. The light which had looked so promising not half and hour before was now dark and flat, a huge cloud obscuring the low sun. At this time of year with the sun being pretty much at its lowest, it's all about the timing. The sun was disappearing fast behind the buildings on the quay and this large cloud didn't look as though it was going to budge. I was toasty and warm, wearing a thick jacket, but Emma wasn't so lucky and was starting to get cold. ( I did offer her my jacket and have since left it with her before you ask ) I was aware that if we didn't capture an image within the next 10 minutes or so it would be all too late as the light would be gone and Emma would be just too cold to continue. The sun finally disappeared behind one of the buildings and all seemed lost until I noticed a large bank of clouds moving in behind the scene I was trying to photograph. I could see that the sun, while not lighting the quay and boats directly was bouncing light off the large cloud bank back towards the scene just like a giant reflector. As it moved into position behind the boats the wind suddenly whipped up forcing me to up the ISO to increase shutter speed. I could see through the viewfinder that there was slight camera shake caused by the wind even though I was using a trusty and solid old Manfrotto tripod. I needed to make sure any vibration was negated by upping the shutter speed in the camera. Luckily ISO 800 is a walk in the park for the Nikon D4, the image is super clean with a huge dynamic range still possible. ( I only normally choose low ISO's simply because it's good practice and ultimately will result in the cleanest of images with the highest dynamic range ) The sky was turning a lovely yellow orange colour and this light was reflecting off the boats, the water and the sand. I took about six images across a period of 30 seconds before the cloud had moved out of frame and the moment gone.

I love the final image. It will always remind me of a beautiful fleeting moment of a lovely little seaside resort... I just hope Emma agrees.

Nikon D4 with Nikkor 70-200mm F2.8

        

The Old Trawler

With the sun remaining pretty low throughout the winter months, you can pretty much shoot at any time of the day as the light will usually appear warm and not overly harsh. This image captured with an old Praktica BX20 film camera shows the warmth of the low sun as it hits the side of a fishing trawler not long after returning from its latest voyage out into the North Sea. The warm low light hitting the side of the boat highlights the detail of wear and decay, bouncing off the window frames and turning the cabin a fiery orange. The paint peeling from the cabin and roof, a stark reminder of the harsh conditions both man and trawler must face each and every time they travel into the bitter and sometimes wild North Sea.  

Praktica BX20 with Agfa Vista 200

Mervyn and the Starbeats

Last month I was asked to photograph a band called Mervyn and the Starbeats who have been touring around Norfolk for a number of years. A couple of the founding members have been playing as part of the group since the sixties and the band play a selection of classics from that era as well as songs from the seventies. I was tasked with taking a simple group shot but wanted to make it more contemporary and less like the images that had been taken of them in the past.

One of the previous band photos

I decided to go for an image that was slightly more gritty, and showed them the sort of thing I had in mind. We ( my girlfriend Emma was helping with setup and reflector duties ) only had about 20 minutes to create the shot as the band was rehearsing straight after. A background close to their studio was found and away we went. The type of flint wall that forms the background in the shot is something that is very common to the Norfolk area. Both Emma and I felt it was appropriate as this is the County the group most often play in. This particular wall was chosen as it was shaded from the sun and a reflector was used to bounce light back towards the four of them. I asked the group to just relax into a pose that felt natural and said I didn't mind if they looked at the camera or not. I wanted the finished image to look like a candid shot.   Trouble was, as we were setting up, the sun disappeared and the reflector just wasn't as powerful as it could have been. It still bounced just enough light back towards the band members to add subtle catch lights to their eyes though, so it still managed to serve its purpose. I took a few different images of the band posing with and without instruments and once happy we had the shots we were after, packed up and travelled back to the house and downloaded the Raw files into Photoshop. I selected four that I really liked and edited them by upping the contrast and trying to give the images a slightly grungy look, something that was  prevalent on album covers from the Seventies onwards and still persists to this day. It's a stark contrast to the album covers from the previous decades, the 50's and 60's which have a far cleaner cut look. Once completed, I left the four images with the band and was thrilled when they got back to me a week later saying they loved them and that they would be used for promotional material in the future, starting with their new blog. Click on the link to check it out, http://mervynandthestarbeats.wordpress.com/       ( it's still in its infancy ) for future gig dates. If you happen to be in Norfolk, U.K. on one of the dates, why not go and see them, they're well worth a listen.  

Nikon D4 with Nikkor 24-70mm F2.8

Details

When I first starting taking pictures of the rings at wedding shoots, I invariably took the standard shot of a best man holding them either in the palm of his hands or in their boxes. Nothing particularly wrong with it, just not that inspiring. I had a look around the internet to see if I could come up with a few new ideas and to generally find a bit of inspiration. I noticed that a lot of other photographers would take the rings and place them in a setting that would mean something to the bride and groom. That could be any number of things really, it just depends on the individual couple. I had noticed at a wedding I was shooting at in August that the bride had gone to a lot of trouble producing the many table decorations and mini flower displays that were dotted around the reception room. One particular bouquet took my eye, it was fairly simple, beautiful and fitted my needs exactly. I asked if I could borrow the two rings for a few minutes and placed them within the centre of one of the flowers in the bouquet. I think that with these type of shot, it's important not to include any clutter. It wants to be a simple image, making sure the rings are the main focus. The image was taken into Photoshop where levels were tweaked and a subtle texture added. I think the power of the image lies in it's simplicity and I now frequently use this technique on the couple's big day.

Nikon D3s with Nikkor 24-70mm F2.8

 I try to use natural light with these still life images where I can. I feel that it gives them a somewhat soft quality with pastel colouring, an almost delicate feel. Why not give it a try on your next shoot.

Thank you very much for spending the time to look at my blog. I'm passionate about all things camera related and would greatly appreciate it if you took the time to look at some of the ads on my page. They're related to the stuff I blog about and you may find some great deals. I use a number of companies which advertise on my site when purchasing gear, and find them all to be fantastic, reliable with quick delivery.

Off Camera Flash Portrait In Flat Lighting

One of the things I'm faced with as a wedding and portrait photographer on a regular basis is flat, lifeless and boring light. Sometimes it can be impossible to do anything about it, especially if I'm shooting a wedding ceremony where I may not be allowed to use flash or it's just not convenient to do so. When this is the case, it's important that I concentrate on technique and try to capture 'the moment', the image can always be tweaked in Photoshop afterwards. On other occasions I may have time to add supplementary light by rigging up an off camera flash setup. A good example would be during the bride's preparation in the morning or possibly an intimate shot of the bride and groom after the ceremony has finished. I will generally have more time with them during these moments and it's really worth the extra effort setting up a shot and introducing some extra light if needed. It can really give punch and a certain wow factor to the finished image. During the summer months I try to use natural light with the aid of a reflector but during the darker months of Autumn and Winter I may need to introduce a flash because the light levels can be low and somewhat flat. I use a Nikon SB-700 with a Pixel King transmitter and receiver set. The combination works really well for me, the King's offering TTL metering and a flash sync speed of 1/8000 sec if needed.

The two images below show the differences that can be achieved by using a burst of flash and a bit of imagination and also show how easy it is to manipulate the light to create dramatic portraits, especially when a decent backdrop isn't available. The first image was taken of Emma in a garden with a Nikon D4 and Nikkor 70-200mm F2.8. I love this lens, it's stunningly sharp and I like using it for both full length and head and shoulder portraits. Depth of field is controlled really well and isolating a subject is easy. The longer focal length of this lens can also help put a nervous subject at ease as they don't have a camera and photographer up close and in their face, I find that it offers breathing space. As you can see, the first image below, while okay, is flat due to the overcast grey sky, looks quite cold and even though the background is out of focus, you can just make out a fence behind which is slightly distracting.


Nikon D4 with Nikkor 70-200mm F2.8

The settings selected were IS0 800, F8 @ 1/125 sec and a focal length of 200mm. Admittedly I could have used a wider aperture to throw the background out of focus even more but it would've still been visible and slightly distracting. Overall, there just isn't much definition on the face and it just lacks punch and looks a bit cold. It would be fine if it were a candid shot but we can do much better than this with a little thought, time and effort, and the introduction of flash.

Now that I had Emma where I wanted her I took another image, this time with the intention of completely underexposing it. To do this I experimented with aperture and ISO settings until I was happy the captured photograph was entirely black, no detail showing whatsoever. This in effect, makes up my black background. The settings used to do this were ISO 50, F8 @ 1/250sec, too fast for the sensor to record any light. I set a shutter speed of 1/250sec to match the Nikon's fastest flash sync speed. I know I mentioned earlier that the Pixel Kings would sync up to 1/8000sec and I have done this on numerous occasions, but to do this the camera has to cheat a bit ultimately leading to a slightly lower power output from the flash. As it was bright outside, shooting early afternoon, I wanted to utilise all of the SB700's available power so chose the maximum normal sync speed of 1/250sec. At this point it's worth mentioning that for this technique to work with a speedlight you probably won't want to try photographing during midday as the ambient light may be just too bright for the flash to overpower it. Seeking shade or waiting for the light levels to drop slightly may help considerably. Now it was time to introduce the flash. With the above settings dialled into the camera, ( ISO 50, F8 @ 1/250sec) the flash was placed on a tripod which was then fully extended to approximately seven feet in height. It's important to make sure the subject isn't close to a wall or some other object. Light from the flash can inadvertently spill onto it causing ugly distractions and spoiling the black background effect. I used a Lastolite Ezybox to help soften the light from the speedlight and the whole unit was placed to the left of Emma, about four feet away. Angling the flash down allowed more light to spill across the frame, helping to illuminate the right hand side of the face. (Emma's left) Even at this close distance, the SB-700 had to be fired at full power to achieve an exposure of my liking, hence the reason why I suggest shooting in shade or early morning/late afternoon light. The flash simply may not be powerful enough to illuminate the subject while you are trying to achieve an underexposed black background. It's then really a case of experimentation. I was happy with the exposure settings on the camera, (making sure I shot in manual mode to achieve this) so it was simply a case of moving and angling the flash slightly and changing the power settings until I achieve the desired effect. The beauty of adding flash to this image is that it really helped warm Emma's skin tone and also added beautiful catch lights in Emma's eyes. The finished image on the back of the camera's LCD screen looked great so I imported it into Photoshop where the raw file was converted to tiff and just tidied up, a touch of sharpening, levels and curves.


Nikon D4 with Nikkor 70-200mm F2.8

This is a great technique to use if you want to capture a 'powerful portrait' and don't have a particularly nice background or backdrop. It's pretty straight forward to set up and really is worth the effort. By converting the finished image to black and white afterwards in a software program the overall effect achieved can be even more powerful.

Plan of the setup

Thank you very much for spending the time to look at my blog. I'm passionate about all things camera related and would greatly appreciate it if you took the time to look at some of the ads on my page. They're related to the stuff I blog about and you may find some great deals. I use a number of companies which advertise on my site when purchasing gear, and find them all to be fantastic, reliable with quick delivery.