Here’s me yesterday, shot by my student Sarah. Great portrait. She shot it vertically, but I cropped it horizontally. Did she need a lot of equipment? Noe: her existing 7D with 580EX flash, plus my stand, bracket and umbrella.

I would today just like to briefly answer a few frequently asked questions.

1. Do you shoot RAW? Yes. You have to. It’s a no brainer – only shoot RAW please.
2. What mode do you shoot in? Manual. That way I am in control. Not the camera.
3. What ISO do you shoot at? Whatever I feel like. High enough. 1600 easily, 3200 if I must. See yesterday’s post!
4. What batteries power your flashes? Rechargeable, NiMH. Low-self discharge. Using Maha or Lacrosse conditioning chargers.
5. Do you use TTL or manual flash? TTL at events, usually. But of course, when shooting in studio settings, when I take repeated shots, or in a studio or outdoors using strobes, then it’s manual flash all the way.
6. Can you use your flash straight-on? Sure. When you have to. Or outdoors, when your flash is just the fill light (say, two stops below ambient). But otherwise, bounce; or use off-camera flash, or softened flash, or all of the above.
7. Is a catch light necessary in portraits? I would not say absolutely necessary, but it is highly recommended. See above.

Useful?

More on this blog: search for these terms here and red all the detail.

And have fun!