4 Generation Portrait

The slideshow below is available to view in 360p and 720p HD.
Select full screen viewing and resolution at the bottom right of the video panel.
The high resolution video (720p) takes longer to load, but will give you an idea of how it will look full screen at maximum quality.

I hope you enjoy it.

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Flashes and Splashes

From time to time every photographer needs to produce an image that reignites their enthusiasm and reaffirms their self-confidence.

Today’s contribution will do just that.

In this tutorial I will show you how to create some very dramatic images with fairly straight-forward equipment.

More info after the jump.


Gear and Setup

Photographic equipment required
• Camera.
• Tripod.
• Telephoto lens. (100mm or longer)
• Flash.
• Ability to trigger flash off-camera. (2nd flash, Cable, Infra Red/Radio transmitter)
• Cable shutter release.

Set props
• Table with reflective surface. (Glass or Perspex work well)
• Wine glass.
• Jug. (for pouring water)
• Towel. (To clean spills and protect equipment)

Room requirements
• White wall. (Surface to bounce light off of)
• Low ambient light. (Set up with adequate light, but dim/turn off the lights before taking test shots and the final image, as this image relies on flash lighting to freeze motion)

Setting up
• Set up your table near the white wall.
• Place the glass on your reflective surface, with the glass near the far edge of the table.
o Light reflecting off the wall needs to effectively backlight the glass.
o This also affects where the edge of the table cuts through the stem of the glass.
• Place your flash on the floor below the glass, aiming the flash head to illuminate the wall just above the glass.
o This will provide backlight for the glass as well as the water.
• Set up your camera on a tripod in front of the glass.
• Compose the shot with enough negative space above and below the glass to allow for the stream of water and the reflection of the glass.
• Once your composition and focus is set, switch your lens to manual focus.

Camera settings. (These were the settings I used. Feel free to use them as a starting point)
• Manual exposure.
• Shutter speed: 1/160s.
• Aperture: +- f11 for adequate depth of field.
• ISO – 400.
• White Balance: Flash.

Flash Settings
• Triggered with pocketwizards.
• Flash Power: 1/64.

Take a test shot (without water)
• Check exposure and make adjustments as needed wrt ISO, flash power and aperture.
• Check focus on the glass.
• Check composition of the glass and vertical alignment of the stem of the glass.
• Check position of the light on the wall relevant to the glass.
Once everything is set, you’re good to go.




Take the image.
Using the cable release in one hand, and pouring with the jug in the other hand, take your final shot.
This image can be tricky, simply because you have one chance to capture the pour as the water hits the bottom of the glass, and timing is a big factor.

Images taken after the glass starts filling (see image below) do not look as dramatic, and taking further shots means drying the set, setting up a new glass and achieving focus and composition all over again.

The images below were taken on my first attempt, and none of them impressed me enough.

Creative options
- Pour faster from higher for a dramatic splash
- Shoot in tungsten white balance for a blue tone.
- Add a colour tone in post processing.
- Add illumination from the front and a little inspiration to create something unique.


Learning Bites
The need for a low Flash Power and low ambient light.
A lower flash power is achieved by discharging the pulse of the light for a shorter amount of time.
If the ambient light is low, the camera’s sensor will only record what is illuminated in that fraction of time that light is discharged.
In other words, lower flash powers will work better at freezing motion in this setup.

Manual Flash power and Manual camera exposure
This achieves consistency in exposure from shot to shot, which is critical in this situation.

White wall
This provides a n efficient surface for light to bounce off of.
Light also picks up the colour of the surface it reflects off of, so using a white wall will keep the light that illuminates the glass and water fairly “clean”.

Take a dry shot before the final image
Firstly, this allows you to check your exposure.
Secondly, if your final image has a number of unsightly drops on the table, you can use your initial image to quickly clean this up using a mask in Photoshop.

Position of the glass
The position of the glass in relation to the edge of the table will have an effect on the amount of light that reflects through it.
Also, it will affect where the edge of the table is seen to pass through the stem of the glass.

Height of the pour
Pouring faster from higher above the glass will create a more dramatic splash, and subsequently, a more dramatic image.
Be careful, as this also means the water will be more likely to splash on the floor near your flash equipment.

I hope this tutorial has been of some use to you.

With a little bit of practice and a fair amount experimentation it can honestly yield some rather amazing results.

Feel free to submit any questions you may have regarding anything that remains unclear.

As always, happy flashing.

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New Flash Workshop Dates

Just a brief note to announce the next 2 dates for the Flash Workshop.

December 17th 2011 - Saturday
January 14th 2012 - Saturday

Spaces are limited to 12 per day.
$180 for a full day's tuition, meals, refreshments and notes.

Detailed information on the website:
http://www.fireflyphotography.co.nz/tuition.php

For bookings or further information:
Rory - 021 063 1279
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Fireworks over Auckland

New Zealand is currently playing host to the Rugby World Cup, and it seems the entire country has taken on a very patriotic and festive atmosphere.

I witnessed this firsthand last week during the festivities that marked the opening of the tournament.
Part of the opening ceremony was a 12 minute firework display over Auckland City.
Seeing as I have never had the opportunity to shoot fireworks, I opted to spend my night on Mount Victoria (The best lookout over the city) and see what I could come up with.

Planning, thinking and learning bites after the jump.

This particular shoot posed two distinct problms.
Firstly, the fact that I had never shot fireworks before.
Secondly, finding and securing a location which was likely to be swamped with people (given that Mount Victoria was the best place to view the show)

Preparing to shoot something New
The internet is full of little gems of information if you know where to go look for it.
Preparing for the shoot, I was not surprised to find that one of the photographers I respect most, Joe McNally, did a fairly comprehensive post on the subject in his own blog.
Take a look at it here
The blog post is actually a condensed version of a chapter from his last book - The Life guide to digital photography

Seriously good writing by an absolutely amazing photographer.
Well worth the purchase, and at around NZ$20 (and free worldwide shipping) from The Book depository, it's an absolute must read.

The basic take home message for me:
1. Get there early and stake out your claim.
2. Compose the image with a lot more sky than you think you'll need. You can always crop in later, but you can't recover things if you cropped too tightly.
3. Shoot at your lowest ISO and an aperture of around f8/f11. Experiment with shutter speeds and figure out what exposes the static part of the image well.
4. Try shooting in bulb mode to vary your exposure time.
5. Using a black card in front of the lens with a bulb exposure will allow a longer exposure time.
6. Remove the card with each fresh burst of pyrotechnics, and if you time things right you can combine a series of bursts onto one image.

Location Location Location
I've done enough landscape photography to know that location planning is the foundation on which everything else is built.
Where to set up, what time to get there, how to get there and what to pack for the job.
Ignore these questions at your peril.
This shoot promised to be fraught with curve-balls.

Mount Victoria was by far the best place to view the show, but this also meant that I would be one of possibly thousands with the same idea.
This posed a number of problems that I could identify, though with no idea of how much they'd affect the shoot.

Mount Victoria is a long-dormant volcanic mound in Devonport, which is just north of Auckland across the Waitemata Harbour.
Great spot, but with one main entry road.
Timing it wrong would leave me stuck in traffic, lead me to arrive late, find parking miles away, lug gear and refreshment all the way to the top of the hill and then not find a spot to set up (Not a pleasant prospect)

I opted to leave home 5 hours before the show, thinking this would buy me plenty of time.
I'd packed an ipod, book and camp chair, so the wait for sunset would be a piece of cake.)

Despite this, I fouind myself backed up in traffic from the exit of the motorway. My heart sank into my shoes even further when, 30 mins after taking the exit, I arrived in Devonport to find every street parked up. Not looking good.

Luckily I grabbed a spot that must have only recently been vacated.
A brisk 10 minute walk and I was on top of the hill.
Luckier still, there were many unobstructed spots to choose from.
Game on!


Conditions could not have been more perfect, and with the festive atmosphere that existed, it was promising to be a very enjoyable and memorable evening.


I was incredibly fortunate to find a spot beside a really lovely family whose company and conversation made the long wait for 8 o'clock a real pleasure.

So, tripod out and set up, I opted for the 70-200mm.

Took a few test shots, tried a few different framing options, and settled in to await the setting of the sun.

In the meantime, I couldn't resist taking a few snaps of the "neighbours" kids.

Growing up is all good and well, but losing the ability to be completely enthralled by the promise of something exciting is a sad fact of adult life.

I honestly love landscape photography.

The thrill of being out with your camera in that golden hour around sunrise or sunset and actually capturing something special is something that most photographers relish.
I love the vibrance and energy of a city scene, and this particular night was something amazing.
All I had to do was get my focus and exposure right and the scene did everything else.




The time actually passed rather quickly, and before too long I found myself sitting at 19:50 with a cable release in my hand, waiting for the first salvo of light.

I decided to stick with th 70-200mm lens, with the option to change to the 24-70 if necessary. (I reckoned there'd be plenty of time during a 12 min performance)
I was soon to learn that if you want to create magic when shooting fireworks you've pretty much got to get things right at the beginning.
The sky fills with smoke so quickly that pretty soon your scene loses all of its character.
I got lucky with the title shot of this blog, but the rest, apart from telling the story, are not likely to have much commercial value.







All in all, a pretty good night.

As I always do after any shoot, I sat down the next day to do a post mortem and jot down what I learnt, and what I could do to improve things next time.

1. Don't understimate how early you need to get to your spot.
2. ISO 100 @ f11 is plenty good to give a shutter speed that works really well.
3. The black card idea needs a little work. I don't think I created anything with it. Using the bulb exposure made things pretty tricky exposure wise.
4. White/yellow fireworks tend to blow out your exposure very quickly compared to red/green.
5. Get the money shot early on - a sky full of smoke kills a photo.
6. Don't plan on changing lenses.
7. Possibly set up a second camera + tripod.
8. Warmer clothing - Auckland wind on an unexposed hilltop at night for a few hours is no picnic.

The task now is to work at marketing some of the images.
Hopefully a few of the ideas I have will pan out, and that process itself will turn into a worthy blog topic.

In the meantime, thanks for stopping by.
As usual, any comments or questions are most welcome.

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Flash Photography Workshop

27 August and 9 October 2011

Firefly Photography is proud to announce the resumption of the Flash Photography Workshop series.
The relocation of the business has created a number of obstacles to overcome, and a fair amount of planning has gone into getting things up and running again.

Following the success of the workshop at the Photographic Society of New Zealand's National Convention I have spent the last 3 months researching venues and refining the program.

I am happy to say that everything has been finalised, and 2 dates have been set aside for presenting this workshop in Auckland in the latter half of 2011.

Full details, dates, cost and description of the day's tuition after the jump.



Click the images to view at full size





Much preparation has gone into this workshop, and I guarantee you'll leave it fired up and eager to make magic with your camera and flash.

Places are limited to 20 per day, and are on a first come - first served basis.

Looking forward to seeing you there.
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The Eaton Family

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Whangarei Academy of Gymnastics

It was my privilege recently to photograph members of the Whangarei Academy of Gymnastics.
I have long known that a great image depends in a big way on putting something interesting in front of the camera.
To say I was unprepared for the grace, poise and athletic prowess of these girls would be a massive understatement.
In fact, my initial planning was woefully inadequate, as I underestimated the size of the backdrop I would need to illuminate in order to capture them doing what they do best.

But as with everything in my life, I was not satisfied with a second rate performance, and quickly arranged for a second shoot with Hannah Russell (Pictured above) which ironed out all the wrinkles that the first shoot threw my way.

Th idea I had in my head from the start was to do their abilities justice with a camera.
Gymnastics to me is all about grace and flexibility - it is a demonstration of the abilities of a finely tuned and meticulously trained body.
The simple fact that these girls are easily capable of physical feats that most people will never accomplish, demands that they are captured in as pure a manner as possible.
For this reason I opted to use a pure white backdrop, and in most cases, eliminate the distraction of shadows and the texture of the gym mat in order to present the gymnasts in a pure and uncluttered manner.

So, 7 hours of shooting and 10 hours+ of editing has brought me to this point.
I hope you enjoy these images as much as I enjoyed creating them.



Hannah Russell
Hannah is grace personified, and what she was able to do from a standing jump still amazes me.
Aside from this, she is absolute dynamite when tumbling, which was something I was determined to capture with a camera.





Claire Fuller
Photographing Claire was an absolute pleasure.
Aside from being incredibly comfortable in front of a camera, she has both poise and natural beauty in spades, which made photographing her so easy and so much fun.





Emma Espie
I haven't laughed so much behind a camera in a long time.
Working with Emma was a real pleasure because of that fact.
She is incredibly focused, and pours all her concentration into what she does.
However, she tends to poke out her tongue when she is concentrating hard, and this simple gesture had her, and most of us, in hysterics during the shoot.
(Wait for the blooper reel!)





Zoe Espie
Talk about dynamite in small packages!
Both Zoe and Emma were adamant about getting things "just right", which is a principle I am sure will reward them in their lives.
Zoe too shares Emma's penchant for strange facial expressions when she is concentrating, which honestly had me chuckling through most of the process of making the rough selections.
(Again, wait for the blooper reel...)





Pippa Benton
It's been a while since I've photographed anyone who has been as enthusiastic in front of a camera as Pippa was.
She has such a beaming smile I should have turned the lights down when shooting her!
Full of life and energy, she was also a pretty tough artistic director who regularly headed away from the lights to check the images that I was getting.
I hope you like what we came up with.





Maia Prochazka
There is something really special about Maia.
It is clear to see that she enjoys what she does immensely, and is so visibly happy that I am led to wonder if she has ever frowned in her life.





The WAGS Complete Slideshow
I am very grateful to have worked with such an amazing group of girls.
You are all so talented and well mannered that you made the act of photographing you so much easier than I had expected it to be.
I wish you all well with your young lives ahead, though I am sure, given what I have seen of you thus far, you are all headed for bright and wonderful futures.




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