Outlet Photography

REMINDER: go to OUTLETPHOTOGRAPH.COM for new updates.

2009-12-04T15:01:00.000-08:00

REMINDER: All new updates are listed on the new blog, to visit click here:

See you at the new blog!

The new Outletphotography website is ready!

2009-12-01T17:47:00.000-08:00

Ok everyone, the new Outletphotography.com website is complete. You can find it here Outletphotography.com
This old site will continue to be here but I will not update it with new photos, you will need to update your bookmarks to go to the new site. If you are following this site via a feed reader, then you will need to update and do it on the new site. I will try to transfer the feed so it follows the new site, but unsure if I will be able to do it.

Thanks, and see you at the new page! http://www.outletphotography.com

Basic setup for a Home Photography Studio.

2009-11-28T18:10:00.000-08:00

As promised, I am going to discuss a basic home studio setup. I know some of you might already know this and perhaps have one at home or use a professional studio. This is more for those who are new to photography and have never used or setup a home studio. It will be a quick run through and even though some stuff may seem obvious to all, I will still mention it.

First, you need a large open space, it can be a bedroom, living room, garage, etc. The larger/wider the better. Try to have a high ceiling, I would say a minimum of 10 ft. Second, would be the strobes, start out with one or two, two is best. You can buy studio strobes as a set or individual. Prices can range a bit, but if you loo around you can get a two light set with umbrellas or softboxes, including stands for a few hundred dollars. But be careful, they can also go for several thousand. It all depends on the brand and power/output. For starters I would recommend Britek, they are relatively inexpensive, you can check out thier sales site here.

Third, get yourself a back drop stand, you can find these easily online for under $100 or create one yourself with pvc pipes, then use simple clamps to hold on to your backdrops. I purchased the clamps for a $1 each at the local 99 cent store. The backdrop itself can be a muslin backdrop than can cost from $75-$300 each or find solid colored fabrics at the widest length they make. But don't expect to find to many regular cloths that are wide, they simply don't make any. The ones shown above are not very wide but were the widest I found that were not muslin. If you want to go inexpensive, try your local Walmart and ask them for the widest cut they have.

Fourth, get a flash meter, sorry, this is one you cannot do without. Its needed so you can read the light output of your lights and set your camera accordingly. If you don't have a flash meter, expect to be doing alot of trial and error shots and even then you will not get the results you wanted, so might as well invest in one, its well worth it. I use the Sekonic L-308S Flashmate Light Meter,I paid about $180 or so for it.

Fifth, you will need a regular flash cord, this connects your camera to the flash strobes, so that when you press your shutter, the strobes will trigger. Or you can use a wireless mechanism, but that will cost you more. And of course you will need a camera, SLR preferably.

Finally, you will need a willing participant so you can practice! I prefer the female type myself. But anyone will do!

Why Hot Lights don't seem to work for me.

2009-11-28T08:39:00.000-08:00

I own two sets of studio lights, one regular set with strobes and the second one a continuous light set (hot lights). But I must admit I prefer studio lights 9 out of 10 times. In fact, it seems each time I use the hot lights, something always goes wrong! Not to mention the heat! For those of you who have a set or have used them, they get VERY hot and if used in a small enclosed area, a few fans are a must or AC turned up to high.

A good example of a shoot I did using the hot lights, which was plagued with problems, involved the beautiful Latina in the photo to the left. The room was not very big, and although the AC worked, its only functioning fan speed was "low". The room was much too hot for her and me! I was constantly sweating and I was having problems getting the right settings for my camera using the hot lights. After a while, I got so tired of the heat and so did she, that I would turn off the lights and use a regular Nikon SB strobe and attach it to the camera. I know, I know, rookie move, but I had to do something to make the model feel a little more comfortable, she was melting in the heat even in a bikini!

One last thing, please make sure you bookmark the url http://www.outletphotography.com because I may be moving the blog to a different host sometime soon. I'd like to move it to a different host where I will be able to upload more photos and larger sized files. If you have http://outletphotography.blogspot.com bookmarked, then you will not be directed to the new site once I move it, but as long as you have the outletphotography.com url, it will always take you to where I have the blog. I'll keep you posted when this will happen.

Take a break from Black Friday sales!

2009-11-27T13:00:00.000-08:00

After a night of eating myself to sleep with lots of turkey, ham, stuffing and pie, I woke up this morning to the call of shopping. I went shopping for a while, but then came back to relax with friends and family. I noticed many great deals on camera's, so you might want to look into it! I'm taking a break from the guests to check some emails and thought I would share another photo of this great looking Latina. I can't say enough about her, she is just a joy to photograph. Attending the local community college and working at a real estate office, we get together on occasion to do some fun shoots.

Continue to have fun this weekend and remember, be safe! I'll update the blog again soon sometime this weekend. Have to run now, the eating continues today, leftovers!

Why understanding how depth of field works can enhance your photos.

2009-11-26T18:00:00.000-08:00

This morning before heading out to some Thanksgiving dinners, I decided to spend some time working on a request. A girl I photographed a while back contacted me wanting more copies of the photos I took of her. At the time we met up at a park I like to use for outdoor shooting, her friend recommended her to me and I agreed to shoot some basic images for her personal use. I gave her a few photos at the time, but now she needs some for a beauty pagent of some sort.

In regards to the photos, I noticed that when I took these images, I really didn't have a plan, so many of the shots are not to my liking. For example, this photo of her standing with that pose, not my favorite, but its what she wanted to do. Then its the depth of field (DOF), I should have moved closer/zoomed in to blur out the background more, or opened up my aperture more, after all I was using a Nikon 80-200AF 2.8. I guess this happens when I don't plan the shoots, sometimes I don't get what I want. The second photo, as you can see, I zoomed in and was able to blur a lot more. One other aspect of the photo I don't like is the bright sun spots in the background, at the time I took the pictures, I knew they would be a problem. Later as I worked on the photos at home, I realized it was more of a distraction than I thought they would be, but there is little I could do about it know. Oh well. At least this was just a fun shoot only!

Well, turkey time! Got to go!