Quick Tip: Packing Some Power

Packing Some Power - 24 AA Batteries
Packing Some Power - Spare AA Batteries

I do a lot of strobist work out on location and really enjoy it. One thing that is a real bind is battery management and how to pack them in your kit bag so you know which ones are which when it comes to using them. This quick tip explains how I go about it.

The image above is, for me, part of the solution. I simply use an old, plastic business card box with dividers made from some of the old cards. It’ll comfortably hold 24 AA batterie, enough for 2 spare sets with 3 speedlites  or 3 spare sets with 2 speedlites. This is more than enough for me as I’ve never depleted more than two sets per flash gun and only then because I was in a dark nighclub.

The dividers keep them together in their sets of 4 and depending on which way up I put them I can immediately tell if they’re charged (positive end up) or depleted (negative end up). They’re only used in my speedlites so its really easy to maintain the grouping – they’re either in the box, in the speedlite or in the charger but just in case I do also number them as I mentioned in this post on Battery Management I wrote a while back.

There are commercial solutions to keep batteries together but I like this quick tip. It’ a nil cost solution made from something I already had lying around the house.

First Attempt at TtV…

TtV in the Studio using Canon 5DmkII and Delmonta TLR

I was in the studio a few days ago for a vintage style pinup shoot with the theme “Military Cheesecake” and thought this would be an excellent opportunity to try my hand at TtV or “Through the Viewfinder” photography.

Simply put, this technique involves using the viewfinder optics from a vintage TLR (Twin Lens Reflex) camera with a modern, digital SLR. In theory one simply points the lens of the DSLR at the viewfinder of the TLR and takes a picture of the image on the ground glass.

In practice there is a lot more to it… Continue reading First Attempt at TtV… »

How a Non-Destructive Workflow Can Lead to a Happy Client

A long time ago I adopted the policy of making all my edits in Photoshop non-destructive fo rthe simple reason that I could easily go back and change something if I needed to. This slowed me down at first but as I became more adept at wielding a stylus and graphics tablet, and through the benefit of actions, experience and perseverance it is no longer true. Using the right tool for the job is also a huge help and my workflow consists of a mixture of Lightroom and Photoshop.

Earlier today I embarked on a retouch session. Nothing spectacular about that as it happens all the while. What mad this one all the more important though was that my client was off on holiday this afternoon and needed the images before she went. Continue reading How a Non-Destructive Workflow Can Lead to a Happy Client »

Tutorial – A Light Retouch

Lightroom Retouch Tutorial, Before and After
Lightroom Retouch, Before and After

Here is a “before” and “after” look of a beauty shot I did last week. The “before” shot on the left being straight off the camera and the “after” shot post retouch. The interesting thing about this image is that all the retouch was done in LightRoom 3 and so is entirely non-destructive. Yes, I could have done this in PhotoShop too, but on this occasion I chose LightRoom.

Step-by-step tutorial after the jump…

The Drones, Band Promo Artwork

The Drones

It’s always great to see the final image at work. None more so than this one which I shot for the Drones towards the end of last year. Very cold day, just before that huge dump of snow we had. We were fortunate enough to be working inside for this one. Thankfully.

The band did a great job of turning the original image into this poster. If you’ve not come across them before, it’s well worth checking them out here: http://www.myspace.com/dronesuk

This was another outing for Big Mamma (aka the Westcott Apollo 50″ softbox). Did a great job of lighting the interior of the building too. Absolutely cannot get enough of this modifier. More shots from this shoot here: https://theLightMatters.com/?p=906