Tag Archives: Flash Modifiers

Accessorize.. accessorise.

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Especially when it’s useful. Like in this case: the Honl Photo light modifiers’ carrying case. If you don’t have one yet, get one:

Very handy bag to keep all your modifiers, like bounce cards, gels, and snoots in one convenient place. And it attaches to a light stand, camera bag, etc, with a convenient clip.

Mine carries things like the reflector you see David Honl himself aiming at Studio Moirae’s Christie, when he joined me for my flash workshop in Phoenix a few days ago:

These small modifiers really have made a tremendous difference to the utility of small speedlites in professional lighting. If you do not yet have the range of Dave’s bounce cards, reflectors, gels, grids and more, then get them now.

Joe McNally is rumoured to have said that “if your subject is interesting, don’t light all of it”. That would be right if he had, and it is there that Dave’s range of modifiers shine: there and in being small, affordable, light and especially, durable, so that I can use them on the road.

That’s not all. There’s more exciting news coming soon from David Honl soon. Stay tuned until I can reveal the latest modifier.

Gold and blue

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One more “blue background, gold foreground” picture for you all. No, two.

Here is Christy, of Studio Moirae, looking radiant, mainly because she looks radiant – but also perhaps just a little because I lit her with a CTO gelled flash (with the white balance set to “Tungsten”, which turns everything blue except the bits lit by my gelled flash)?

And one more lovely participant in the course, who soon will be two:

More technique:

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Here’s me, shot by Christy Smith of Studio Moirae:

Yeah, I model too.

But wait. That cool blue urban look. Was it actually like that?

No. The actual scene was like this. Here’s Christy and David Honl taking a test shot:

So wait. How come it’s all blue?

That’s because Christy and Dave set their camera’s white balance to “Tungsten”. That will turn daylight blue.

But then I would be blue too!

Except they are lighting me with a flash with a CTO (“Colour Temperature Orange”, i.e. Tungsten-coloured) Honl gel and with a Honl Grid to make the light go mainly to my head and shoulders. The flash was aimed straight at me and set to manual, and it was fired with pocketwizards.

That’s the kind of cool technique Dave and I taught the participants who came to the workshops Monday and Tuesday in Phoenix, Arizona. If you have the chance, come to a future one: they’re fun and you will lean sooo much.

New toy

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Just received the new Honl Photo bounce card/speed snoot.

It is like the previous ones in that it is small, sturdy, and conveniently attaches to the Speed Strap.

What’s different?

This one has not a white but a gold reflector (equivalent to 1/4 CTO).

That means I can use it to:

  • Shoot with flash in Tungsten ambient light without making the background warm or the subject too blue; or
  • Warm up portraits with a nice warm glow.

Yet another thing to make my light-life easier.

I am going to be once again sharing my Flash expertise in Phoenix next month – 22 and 23 March – for pro and emerging pro users. You can be sure I am going to show how these small modifiers enable a whole new world of flash.