Creepy Ghost Portrait

Creepy Ghost Portrait

This photo would not be mistaken for being a better family photo, and I tend to agree, but at least it was a lot of fun to shoot, hit the jump for the full story.

Are You Ready for AlienBees?

In the last several years, speedlights have been roped into tasks that have traditionally been filled by studio strobes.  The underlying premise is that speedlights are much more compact, and easier to bring to and set up for a location shot.  Combined with their TTL and high-speed sync capabilities, plus their lower upfront cost, speedlights do offer practical advantages over studio strobes.

At some point though, we run into barriers that remind us of the natural limits of speedlights.  The most significant limit is of course power.  Another is the speedlight's reflector design, which sends light only forward.

It is possible to engineer solutions around those obstacles.  For example, if we need more power, we can combine two or more speedlights.  However, sometimes those solutions create problems of their own.  If we gang four speedlights, we indeed get more power but then we limit our options for light modifiers (there are only a few softbox designs that can accommodate 4 flashes).

Instead of going to extreme lengths to stretch our speedlights, however, perhaps we could reconsider using a studio strobe instead.  One particular studio strobe stands out for its dependability and very high power-to-cost ratio: AlienBees.   Hit the jump to learn more about AlienBees and whether they are right for you.

Radiopopper JrX Studio Review

I was looking for a dependable wireless flash solution that would allow me to adjust my flashes from behind the camera.  I considered several alternatives and ultimately decided on a Radiopopper JrX Studio.  Did it perform as promised?  What's it like to use it in real life?  Hit the jump!

Tutorial: Sharpening Images For The Web

Have you ever wondered how some images you see on the web look very sharp while the ones you post are not that sharp? I faced this problem when I started writing for this blog and now I claim that I can post very sharp images on the blog. Here's what I know about the subject.

Flash Series - Part 7: LumiQuest Softbox III - Off Camera Review

LumiQuest Softbox III

Welcome to a new post in the flash series of posts, today I will attempt to review the Lumiquest Softbox III and how it performs in real world scenarios, Mic has already covered the larger Fotodiox 8x12 here, and now it's time to see how the smaller one will do. Hit the jump for the full treatment.

Better Family Photos Index

Mshafik and I are putting together an index of articles.  The index will appear as a permanent link under "suggested articles."

Meanwhile here's a link to the first draft (which covers the most recent 200 posts or so):
http://betterfamilyphotos.blogspot.com/p/better-family-photos-index.html

Canon 60D vs 550D (and 600D): Real World Usage

Canon 60D Top View - Credit: Canon USA

It's finally time for me to review my two months old Canon 60D and compare it to my old pal, the Canon 550D (T2i). I have been postponing this review for quite a bit until I get used to the 60D, but I have passed the 10,000 images mark just last week, if anything, the 550D lasted with me for 9 months and has only done around 9,000 images. So lets dive into the hands on review, a small warning, this will be quite long. :-)

Why I Love My Sigma 50-150

Here are a couple of shots that I took with the Sigma 50-150 that show why I love it.

Flash Series - Part 6: Use Flash in Daylight? Really?

I hear this exclamation a lot whenever I advise someone to use his flash as a fill light in strongly backlit situations, or when someone sees me using it in broad daylight. Despite being initially counter intuitive, this is perhaps the only practical use (image quality wise) of your built-in camera flash. Hit the jump for more explanation.

Flash Series Part 5: Remote Adjustment Radio Triggers

This post picks up from Part 4: Triggering Your Hotshoe Flashes by mshafik, where we saw some of the advantages of a radio trigger.  In this post, we discuss radio triggers that allow remote adjustment.

Backlight vs. Rim Light

Since I didn't get to take any truly interesting or challenging photos over the weekend, I decided to re-take the low-key self-portrait that I did recently.

DIY Passport Photos

Yes, you can do your own passport photos.  It's completely permissible in the U.S. and it's not difficult if you have at least one external flash.  If you want to trade time for money, then instead of spending $10 or more, your cost drops to around 20 cents (that's for 5 photos, mind you).  I also get a sense of pride from using my own work product.  Plus, for the vain ones among us, you can take as many shots as you want until you're satisfied with how your photo looks. :)

Low-Key Self-Portrait

I took some self-portraits last night using some of my new gear.

MK-RC7 review updated

In the past few months, my MK-RC7 has been unreliable as a remote shutter.  With some testing, I found out that the problem was with the remote shutter cable.  See the updated the review of the MK-RC7.

Flash Series - Part 4: Triggering Your Hotshoe Flashes + eBay RF Trigger

Welcome to the fourth part of the flash series, we've already discussed some of the Canon flashes, home made flash gels and reviewed the Rogue grid. Today I am going to talk about how I trigger my flashes, and my experience with non-branded cheap triggers. Click on to read more.

Candlelight Photos Revisited: Birthday Cake

ISO 1600, f/2.8, 1/125

This is just a short follow-up to my previous post about candlelight photos which has been updated with an alternative approach to setting the color balance.

Preview of Upcoming Posts

Last week was another photographically productive week.  Here are some upcoming posts:

• Alien Bees:  It's only been a week since I've had them but I've already found them useful for family photos and even candid photos.  Yes, it's a keeper.  This week, we'll find out why and more importantly, how.
• RadioPopper JrX Studio: These are flash triggers that allow remote manual power adjustment of speedlights and strobes.  How useful are they for family photographers?  Can they be integrated with your existing optical wireless system (such as Nikon's advanced wireless lighting or Canon's wireless flash)?  I'll also discuss aspects like max sync speed (a pleasant surprise), triggering groups, and other issues.
• Linco background support system: Sure they can be used to support backgrounds, but I got them primarily for other reasons.  Stay tuned to see how this useful system can help you in other ways.
• A softbox is on the way.  I will be comparing it against umbrellas (shoot-through and reflective) and softbrellas (aka umbrellabox, brollybox, umbrella softbox).
• We celebrated my father-in-law's birthday, and of course we had a cake with candles.  I will post a follow-up to the recent post about candlelight photos.

Balancing Flash and Ambient: Candlelight Photos

ISO 1600, f/2.8, 1/30. TTL flash.

Shooting in candlelight is easy if you know a few simple techniques.

Can You Stack 50 UV Filters? And Take a Picture?

When I discovered the lens rentals blog, I was quite impressed and have subscribed to it since then. Roger's articles are very informative and based on a lot of experience with lots of lenses (if you think a lot is 10 or 20 then you're in for a surprise) and cameras.

I have read all of his posts and learned a lot through the process, some of my favorite posts are "Things You Should Know About Your Lens But May Not" and the "Lens History" series, true eye openers. Today's post is actually pretty hilarious that I thought to share it with you, have a look for yourself.