How to Make Dramatic Photos with Backlight

By: Mat Coker

Most people don’t notice light. But visual artists do. Light is one of the essential ingredients in your photographs.
Light can be tricky to deal with until you understand camera settings. But once you’re familiar with your camera, light is wonderful to play with in your photos.
Personally, I love backlight. It adds a sense of drama and beauty to your photography.
I’ll show you examples of backlight with food, landscape, and portrait photography (studio and outdoors).

In order to achieve backlight in your photo, have the main light source behind your subject 

coming toward your camera. In this photo, you can actually see the warm setting sun as 

the source of backlight.

What is backlight good for?

I love backlight because it adds depth and drama to an otherwise flat, two-dimensional photo.
Backlight helps to bring out the texture of objects that you photograph (sidelight is good for this as well). Texture is created through a combination of highlights and shadows. Since photographs are two dimensional, texture adds depth to your photo.
A strong burst of backlight adds drama to your photo. Think about the bursts of light at a rock concert or other performances. The temperature of the backlight (warm or cool) adds to the drama of the photo.
The backlight source might be in your photo along with your subject (as with the sunset photo above). Or the light source can be outside of the frame (as long as it illuminates your subject).
Any source of backlight can be used creatively, but sunlight, windows, and strobes are among the most popular.
The principals of backlight are the same no matter what camera you’re using, even your phone.

This ice-covered tree is backlit by the sun. Without backlight shining through the
branches, this tree would not have stood out so much.

Food

It’s great to begin practicing backlight with food. Backlight can be used to illuminate steam and bring out the texture of the food.
While any light source will work, many photographers love using window light to illuminate food.

The light source is not visible in this photo, but there is a window backlighting the food and 

making the steam visible.

This food was photographed while still in the oven. The warm backlight is coming from
the oven light.

This is an example of soft backlight produced by a large window. I wanted to bring out the
texture in the cookies. An iPhone 4s was used to capture the image and Lightroom was used
to process it.

Your food photos will be less flat and have more pop to them when you use back (or side) light. 

Just look for a window or any other light source. Get creative and use the light from fridges, stoves, and lamps.
The great thing about practicing backlight with food is that if you can’t reposition the light source, you can easily reposition yourself and the food.

Landscape and Nature

Once you get the hang of backlight with food, use it to add drama to your landscape photos. In most cases, you won’t be able to reposition your backlight source since it will likely be the sun. However, you can always reposition yourself in relation to the sun and your subject.

I saw this scene as I looked in the rearview mirror. I couldn’t resist pulling over to take a photo. 

The setting sun is the light source for this scene. You can’t see it in the frame but it’s behind 

the trees to the left. Notice how the electricity wires are shining and standing out from the 

dark trees in the background.

The setting sun behind this crab apple tree caught my eye during a walk. I came back with my 

camera and found a perspective where the sun was visible filtering through the tree. An 

aperture of f/11 was used to create the starburst effect.

A combination of backlight and water droplets on the lens created this special effect. 

I don’t recommend letting your lens get wet, I was using a waterproof case. The case was 

still wet from using my camera underwater.

Portraits

I love to incorporate backlight into portraits to accent the emotion. Beautiful or intense moments are brought out even more with the use of backlight.

Studio

The best part about backlight in a studio is that you can position your light source any way you like.

Two off camera flashes were used to produce this dramatic backlight.

Superheros are dramatic characters by nature. Using harsh backlight instead of soft front light 

is better for bringing out the nature of the subject.

Natural light

When using natural light, you’ll have to position yourself and your subject according to the light source.

This little guy is backlit by the setting sun, while the big open sky in front of him illuminates
his face.

Troubleshooting

One of the biggest problems about backlight is that your photo may turn out as a silhouette when you don’t want it to.
You’re likely using a semi-automatic setting such as aperture or shutter priority. Your camera sees the bright backlight and meters itself accordingly. You can use exposure compensation to help you avoid unwanted silhouettes. Try setting your exposure compensation to +1 or +2. You’ll need to experiment according to the light conditions.
If you’re experienced then manual mode might be the best option for you.

The main light source is the sky in the background. The sun has not risen over the horizon yet.

Practice backlight with everything

Once you get the hang of it, you can introduce backlight into all sorts of situations. Use it to bring
out texture and to heighten dramatic moments.

Concerts are a wonderful place to have fun with backlight. The rapidly changing lights will 

create a challenge for you. Take lots of photos and be happy with the few that work out.

I love how golden hour can add a nostalgic feel to photos.

Use a combination of low angles and backlight to make your photo more exciting.

I always wait until evening to visit the beach. That way the sun isn’t shining straight down 

onto the sand. Instead it shines down at a lower angle, creating texture through shadow and
highlight.

I love my little guy’s hair. There is a window just above him as the source of backlight.

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How to Travel Safely with Your Camera Gear

By: Tim Sullivan

One of our favorite things about becoming photographers is the way the entire world seemed to open up once we picked up a camera. We currently live wherever we’re shooting. Over the past year, we’ve visited 10 countries on three continents, and countless cities in between. While we love the freedom of travel, our biggest concern is always how to travel safely with our gear. Whether you’re hopping on flights every other week or want to keep your camera with you to document your kiddos around town, there are some simple hacks to keep your gear in good shape and out of thieving hands.

Make a list and check it twice

Before you leave the house, make a detailed list of every piece of equipment you’re taking with you, along with all the serial numbers. It’s helpful to be able to tally the list up whenever you’re in transit. There isn’t a worse feeling than hopping on a train and realizing you thought your 50mm lens was in your backpack when it is actually waiting for you on the kitchen table. Make a list, run through it, and save yourself the effort of keeping every piece of gear in your own head. Having the serial numbers recorded will help you report and track them should they ever go missing.

Our travel gear checklist changes depending on how long and far we’re traveling. When we took a six-month honeymoon in Asia last autumn, our list looked very different from when we fly to say, New York to shoot a wedding. Our two checklists look something like this:

Personal Travel Checklist

• 2 Canon Mark IIIs – one for each of us, though sometimes we get crazy and only bring one body.
• 50mm f/1.2 lens – ALWAYS. We never leave home without this lens as it affords us the greatest flexibility to shoot any scene.
• 45mm f/2.8 tilt-shift lens – When we travel through cities, having a tilt-shift is ideal for us, and since we also love shooting portraits with it, it somehow became one of our most versatile lenses.

Professional Travel Checklist

• 2 Canon Mark IIIs
• 50mm f/1.2 – If pressed, we could probably shoot an entire wedding with it!
• 45mm f/2.8 tilt-shift – Again, awesome for setting scenes and for individual portraits.
• 35mm f/1.4 – Shooting couple’s portraits with this one sets a slightly more interesting scene than the 50mm and allows you to get better environmental details. It’s also our go-to for dance floor shots.
• 85mm f/1.2 – Though we wish this one had a faster focus, it is just nuts how gorgeous this lens is. It takes portraits to an entirely new level. But it also weighs roughly one million pounds, so we use it less often than we’d like because it’s just too heavy for casual personal travel.

Depending on the size and scope of the project, we may also bring:

• 70-200mm f/2.8 – This is a battle because we definitely prefer to not carry it. But it’s a great catch-all lens for shooting from the very back of large ceremonies or capturing wedding guests from a distance and staying out of a scene.
• 17-40mm f/4 (we use this wide-angle lens less and less, but occasionally it provides a good way to grab an entire wedding ceremony or a building from closer up. We’re increasingly turning to our 35mm for the work we used to put on the wide angle.)

Our lighting setups are the most difficult part of travel, and inevitably earn us a long date with security. If we’re bringing our bare minimum, it includes the following:

• Canon Speedlite 600EX-RTs – We have two matching Speedlites and the ST-E3-RT Transmitter. These serve us well for most weddings, but if we have to bring something a little heftier, we’ll also add . . .
• Profoto B1 setup – This light is amazing. But it adds one more whole bag to carry on with us and we try to leave it for home studio work as much as possible to reduce our carry-ons. with the Profoto 36″ RFI Octa Softbox. The B1 also requires a . . .
• C-stand –These are heavy as heck and a huge hassle to fly with, so we normally end up leaving it at home and just renting it wherever we land. For some equipment that is just too bulky, heavy, or awkward, consider the relative costs and benefits of renting it at your shoot location. For us, the $20 or so to rent a C-stand far outweighs the hassle of traveling with it.

Before you leave for any trip, whether personal or professional, it’s imperative to know your ideal outcome for photos. We don’t bring a zoom lens or flashes on personal trips because we don’t shoot wildlife or anything that would require long lenses. We use only ambient light whenever possible and prefer our night photography to only incorporate the light that already sets the scene.

Even for professional projects, we pack very carefully and keep our projects in mind as we put our gear together. Some large weddings or events might require a wide angle lens or a longer zoom, but if we can avoid bringing a lens we will. This requires more work on the planning end, working closely with our clients, and knowing our equipment really well. But it’s worth it when we can pack all of our gear into a little bag and be very confident that we can produce great work with it!

Downsize

On that note, pre-travel is a great time to downsize your gear. Take only what is most important to you, and consider the images you’ll be aiming for while you travel. We never leave home without our 50mm f/1.2, but depending on the kind of trip we may also bring along our tilt-shift lens or our 1950s Yashica film camera as well. You want to have options, but bringing along your entire catalog of gear without a specific plan for it will only add stress to your life. Keep it light, and use what you’ve got.

We got this case used for $20 at a camera shop and it has the best repackable/removeable 

foam pads in it.

If you’re flying, this is especially true. Keep your gear minimal enough to fit in your carry-on luggage. We would rather crawl to a destination than check a bag containing our most precious gear and let it out of our sight. Yes, it’s a super hassle to run your gear through security (they always seem to be blown away by light sets, old film cameras, and unusual lenses), but it also leads to some good conversations, and the extra time is worth the peace of mind.

Going through customs

A thought on customs forms: If you enter a country that may have an iffy relationship with journalists, lay low and don’t mark “photographer” or “journalist” on their customs forms. Drawing attention to your camera gear and your ability to use it will often create more hassle at the airport when you land. While we don’t encourage anyone to lie on their entry forms, the more you can stay under the radar the better.

Protect your data

We carry LaCie Rugged hard drives with us everywhere and back up whenever we can. We use online storage when we can find fast internet, but good luck finding wifi strong enough to upload a thousand raw files when you’re high up in the Burmese mountains. I keep track of this thing just as closely as I keep track of my passport. Why LaCie Rugged? The last thing we need is a hard drive failing because the dirt road was too bumpy when it was sitting in the back of some mud covered jeep.
Note: Price LaCie Rugged drives on Amazon.com and B&H Photo’s websites. 

We also use large memory cards that we back up every night. We always have a backup card in our briefcase, but as long as our cameras are with us, the memory card is as well. 

Make your gear look cheap

Avoid fancy, overdone camera cases and accessories. Anything with brand logos or obviously expensive features will draw attention to you. While you move your gear into your new low-key camera bag (there are lots of solid options out there that look like a regular bag, or you can buy protective inserts to slip into the old backpack that’s already sitting in the back of your closet), make a couple of tweaks to your gear that will instantly make it look less conspicuous:

• Remove your logo-covered camera strap (I mean, unless Canon is paying you to advertise for them, you don’t need their logo on your strap) and replace it with something more personal.Cover up your camera brand on the body with black gaffer’s tape (or even duck tape if you’re super committed). Not having that white print will make your camera look more average and take the attention away from how much you might have paid for it.

• Scuff it up, baby! We’ve been shooting on our Canon 5D Mark IIIs for over three years now, and they are certainly showing the wear and tear of being dragged all over the world—and I love it! It’s like that well-worn sweater that everyone else thinks is a bit too beat-up, but you love it more every time you wear it. Those scuffs and marks mean you’re using your gear and that it’s serving you. Don’t rush to polish it up or replace it when it looks old. That charm is hard-earned and will cause anybody eyeing your gear to think it’s worth less than it probably is. Double win.

Safety at your location

Of course, getting to a place in one piece is only half the battle. Once you’ve landed, you have to keep your wits about you and work wisely. A few brief thoughts on shooting safely once you arrive:

• Just like at home, don’t display your camera gear in a way that invites attention. Keep it close to your body, on a strap, or zipped into a bag that’s close to you. It’s amazing to me how many people will wander around with their cameras on full display, which doesn’t just make you look like a tourist, it’s inviting thieves to follow you.
• Don’t talk to strangers about your stuff! We sat next to some drunk and friendly travelers in a bar once who wanted to show us their big zoom lenses they just bought. They made fun of our tiny 50mm, but we couldn’t help but feel like we’d get the last laugh as our camera setup was (though more expensive than theirs) tiny, inconspicuous, and less appealing to thieves who don’t know the difference.
• A thought on tripods: we never, ever travel with them. They are awkward to set up in public areas, invite unwanted attention, and in 99% of cases aren’t actually necessary. We use makeshift tripods – things like banisters, tables, rocks, bar tops, etc., to get a steady shot when needed. We too often see other photographers making a big deal out of setting up a tripod Hi, thieves! We’re over here!) when they could have gotten just as excellent a shot with a slightly faster shutter speed. Strongly consider whether or not you need a tripod and make the best decision for yourself, and if you do bring one, keep your camera strap around your neck while you shoot. 
• While you should always be careful in unsafe neighborhoods, we also recommend that you do not limit yourself to only visiting “safe” areas while you travel. Not only can theft happen anywhere, but you’ll miss some of the best parts of travel if you restrict yourself too much. When shooting in neighborhoods with a higher likelihood of crime, be alert. Walk confidently with your head up and avoid hunching around your gear as if you have something to hide. Keep your bags zipped and always be aware of pick-pockets, no matter where you are. Shoot confidently without inviting too much attention to yourself. 

Capturing all the beauty and hidden corners of this world is one of the most satisfying things about becoming more proficient with our gear. Though there are risks anytime you leave the house with pricey items strapped to your shoulder, this gear is made to be used, to show some wear and tear, and not to be thought of as so precious that it’s left at home.
How do you protect your gear when you travel? Please share your comments and tips below.

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8 Tips for Rocking the Photography Equipment You Currently own Versus Buying New Gear

By: Karthika Gupta

“I really don’t need any more photography equipment in my gear bag”, said no photographer ever!
We all know that is this far from the truth. Even if you have not voiced this thought out in the open, you have certainly thought it. Especially when you see a photographer that you admire rave about a certain piece of gear that they absolutely cannot live without.
We, photographers, get very upset when strangers compliment our gear over our skill. Yet we seem to fall into that same trap when we don’t quite get the shot we really want.-If only I had that fast lens, if only my camera could handle a low light situation, if only I had image stabilization on my lens, or if only I had a camera that takes more frames per second, etc., etc., etc.

Before you get ready to give up on the gear you have, I encourage you to look at your pictures with a critical eye and analyze if it is truly a gear limitation versus user error or inexperience. Now, I am not saying that the user is at fault in every situation. I will admit that in some situations gear is very important. For example, photographing a leopard chasing down its next meal or that sports car as it races around the track.
But in most cases, depending on your skill level AND the intended use of your pictures, you can get the shot with the equipment you already own. Here are some tips to help you.

#1 Perfect your composition skills

There are several different composition techniques that you can use to take your photographs from boring to interesting. Often just a small change can create a big impact. Are you finding yourself using the same center focused composition time and again? Try using the rule of thirds instead. Are you always photographing at eye level? Change your perspective and perhaps photograph from top-down or at a 45-degree angle.

A cloudy gloomy day in Vridhavan, India gave me the perfect opportunity to capture reflections on this relatively still river. I intentionally chose an off-center composition to add additional interest to this image.

#2 Take your camera everywhere

If you are really serious about improving your photography, one of the first things to do is to understand your gear. The best way to do that is to take lots of photos. Take your camera with you everywhere you go.
If you really want to improve your photography, you have to take lots and lots of photos. By taking lots of pictures, you will start to understand how to use your camera in different lighting conditions and what works and what doesn’t. You can only do this if you give yourself many different opportunities to photograph different subjects in different lighting situations.
Take this a step further by actually taking and using the gear you want to perfect. If you own a DSLR but find it too heavy or cumbersome, then perhaps it is time to buy a simple point and shoot or smaller mirrorless camera.

I am always carrying my camera to the barn where my kids learn horse riding. There are
so many interesting stories that unfold and the lighting is quite challenging especially
during winter so it gives me a chance to practice difficult lighting techniques as well!

#3 Learn to read and analyze light effectively

One of the most important elements of photography is light and yet it is amazing how many photographers don’t understand this important concept. Also, not all light is equal.
Light changes during the day and different types of light can affect images differently. Morning light is different from afternoon light which is different from evening light (a.k.a golden hour) which is yet again different from blue hour. In order to really improve your photography, you must learn to distinguish these different types of lighting situations and how to effectively work in each situation.

I saw this image long before I even took the photo. Just something about the light filtering
from the right, the catch light and even the color of the horse just made this one of my favorite
equestrian photos of all times!

#4 Use a tripod

A tripod is a very useful tool for you as a photographer. It opens up new opportunities for creative photography like low light or night photography. You can experiment with the light at night to capture really beautiful images.
A tripod can let you capture sharp images of non-moving subjects and blur out moving subjects, creating very interesting photographs. You can take this a step further by using a remote trigger that will also enable you to take long exposure shots without fear of camera shake.

#5 Learn to photograph in manual mode

Your camera is a pretty sophisticated piece of machinery with a pre-programmed brain (shooting modes). These modes can be found on the top dial of your camera and are generally labeled as P (Program), M (Manual), Av/A (Aperture Priority), and Tv/S (Shutter priority), plus other automatic modes.
Manual mode (or M on most cameras) is much like using an old film SLR, when they didn’t have buttons that do it all for you. Being the only option, photographers were forced to learn to use their cameras in Manual. In doing so, they fully learned how their cameras worked. Once you know how to properly use your camera, it becomes much easier to spot where you’re going wrong and to fix it.
Semi-automatic modes are good for some situations but, once you know how to properly shoot in Manual, you’ll find there’s no need for them and you’ll get better results on your own. Manual mode also gives you the freedom to make mistakes, freedom to bend the “rules” of photography, and in turn, gives you the freedom to excel in your art.

Manual mode on your camera gives you so much flexibility in terms of getting creative,
photographing in different conditions and also allowing you to experiment with different
techniques.

#6 Find great locations to photograph

Don’t just sit at home and expect great pictures to happen. Find local and state parks or perhaps even national parks that might be close to you (by close I mean within an acceptable driving distance) and look for potentially good spots for photography.
When shootig landscapes, you will have to envision your image to see what could look good and what may not. For example, a still lake is a great way to produce a mirrored image where the clouds, trees, and other objects are reflected on the lake. For portrait photography, drive around and see if you can find locations that will look good in the background.
The great thing about portrait photography is that a good background is often easy to find like a white wall, an old building, or an interesting fence. Use your imagination and you will soon be finding great spots all around you.

#optoutside and I guarantee you will find amazing things to photography. Just being outside in nature changes our perspective and lifts the mood!

#7 Understand basic post-processing

Exposure or brightness, contrast, color balance, and tone/tint are some of the basic things you can fix in an image. There are many free post-processing software out there in the market that you can use to make basic adjustments to your image.
If you want to learn advanced editing techniques there are many options for you like Photoshop, Lightroom, Luminar, etc. Adobe has great creative editing programs that are subscription based (a fee every month). Maybe invest in these programs on a trial basis and see if they will suit your editing needs.

I have a certain style of how I like my photos and I always look for elements that will work
well with that style. I have a relatively easy hand in terms of editing my photos – minor
adjustments in exposure, contrast, tonality and shadows/highlights and I am done. My
preference is to keep the natural look and feel of my images intact – just
my personal style of photography!

#8 Photograph in RAW

If you are still using JPEG for your pictures, it is about time to move to RAW. Most of the newer cameras today are capable of recording images in RAW format, so give it a try. A RAW image is called “raw” for a reason – it is an unprocessed image with a lot more colors to work with than a JPEG image.
It might not look great at the back of the camera when you take the photo but when you import it into your editing software, you have a lot more options to adjust to give it the look and feel you want. One caveat is that RAW  images do take up more space than JPEG, so you might have to invest in memory cards with more storage and a larger hard drive.

When we visited this state park, there were a lot of wildfires that were burning in the neighboring areas, so the sky had this general pink glow all throughout! By photographing in raw and editing in post, I was able to retain the look as I remember seeing the park when we visited!

I hope these tips help you understand your existing gear a little bit better. Sure, you may have reached a point in your career where an upgrade is absolutely required and essential.
If not, rather than investing more money in gear that you may not be ready for, try to improve your craft with what you have and a little extra effort.

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How to Light a Portrait with a Single LED

A Post By: Christina N Dickson

 creating beautiful portraits with a single LED.

The LED for On-Location:

There will be times in your on location portraiture sessions when the available light is just too dim or weak to create an even portrait. Getting rid of shadows and adding catch-lights in this scenario is impossible unless you bring in another light source. An LED is a quick and non-imposing way of adding just enough light to create an artistic flair to your portrait.
1. Position your subject near the primary light source. In this case, window light is my main light and illuminates my subject. I turn my subject into the light until her skin is appears soft and luminous.
2. Add the LED. Rather than the LED acting as my main light, I use it to soften the transfer edges of the highlights and shadows along my subjects face. I am able to maintain shape and depth along her face without having harsh and distracting shadows.
3. Pull the LED away from your subject: If the LED is too close to your subject, the lighting will become flat – especially if we are using the LED as a fill light. Move the LED away from your subject as much as possible while still filling in and softening the shadows just a bit.

The LED for Studio:

If you don’t own strobes or speed lights, you may not be as limited with off camera lighting as you think. LED’s can help you create extremely artistic portraits without a lot of financial investment. Here’s a look at using the LED for a studio like portrait.
1. Place your subject away from your backdrop. If the area behind your subject is dark, you’ll create a nice, black backdrop – no matter where you are. For this portrait. my subject is 5 feet in front of a dark hallway wall.
2. Get rid of all other light. To create a contrasty portrait, eliminate other light sources. Though you are using a single LED, the light will be more even and controlled without other competing light sources.
3. Position your LED. For a close up portrait with no other light sources, you will want to position the LED, 1 foot above and 2 feet away from your subject. This distance will enable you to cast light evenly along the face, and you won’t have to worry about distracting shadows falling under the eyes or the edge of the nose.
An LED can be purchased at Wal Mart or Amazon for $10 to $20 and is a pretty simple solution to acquiring an additional, easy to use light source for any off camera need.

How to Create Catch Lights in Your Natural Light Portraits

By: Oded Wagenstein

What is a catch light, and why you should have it in your portraits?
A very popular technique in portraiture – a catch light is a spark of light in your subject’s eyes. This spark will help you to draw your viewer’s attention to your subject’s eyes, making them full of life and, well, sparkling.

For this portrait, I made recently in Cienfuegos, Cuba, I used the light from the setting sun to create a catch light, even without having the subject looking up.

How to create a catch light in portraits?

To create a catch light, all you need is a source of bright light to reflect in your subject’s eyes. This source can be artificial, like a flash, or natural, like sunlight. In this article, I will focus on creating catch light in portraits using natural light.

Creating a catch light – indoor

To create a catch light in an indoor location, all you need to do is to make sure there is a visible source of light, which will be reflected in your subject’s eyes.
Position your subject near an open window or door, during daylight, and make sure there is a direct line between the source of light and the subject, without blocking objects like furniture. Your subject does not have to look directly into the source, as it might be too dazzling or uncomfortable. The important thing is that the light source must be visible as a reflection in the subject’s eyes.

I met the lovely Nagina at her home in a small village of Roma people, outside Bukhara, Uzbekistan. Although she was only 10; she was very busy caring for her small brothers, along with few other neighbors’ children. She asked me to take her photo, and I was drawn to her gaze right away, choosing to go for a close-up portrait. The house was completely dark, except a large window, which was position at a 45-degree angle to her face, which created that catch light in her eyes.
Good to know: The closer your subject is to the light source (open window or door) the larger and more dominant the spark of catch light will seem.
Taking it to the next level: Think carefully about the location of your subject to the light source, as that will not only affect the size and visibility of the catchlight in the subject’s eyes, it will also control the entire Illumination of the subject’s face. To read more about how the direction of light will affect your portrait, check out: Understanding Natural Light Part 3: Direction of Light.

Creating a catch light – outdoors

For achieving the best results in an outdoor shooting, all you need to do is aim your subject to look at the largest light source – the sky. DO NOT instruct the subject to gaze at the sun, even for a brief moment, as it can lead to pain and damage to his or her eyes.
If you do not want to stage your subject, or if there is a language barrier, a great technique of aiming your subject’s gaze up, is by simply positioning yourself a bit above your subject. While they gaze it your lens, the sky (behind you) will reflect in their eyes. This is why I photograph many of my outdoor portraits at an angle, which is a bit higher than my subject.
Mordecai is Jewish Orthodox, from the old city of Jerusalem. I was very surprised that he agreed to be photographed, even with joy. To give a spark to those amazing eyes I told him to look into my lens, while I positioned myself slightly higher than him, and the lovely skies of holy Jerusalem were reflected in his eyes.

Good to know: On a sunny day, I recommend positioning your subject in the shade, as gazing at sunny skies might be uncomfortable.
Taking it to the next level: If you want it or not, it is almost sure that apart from that spark of light, your own image (the photographer) will also be visible in the subject’s eyes. You can turn this fact into a creative portrait (of your subject) and a self-portrait (of yourself) in the same frame. Just do not forget to move the camera a bit, to let your face be visible. You can also use this technique for less narcissistic reasons, as with really tight close-up, as almost anything in front of your subject’s face will be reflected in his eyes. It is a wonderful technique for making a landscape shot, or an image of an iconic place, with a twist.

Creating a catch light – while using a reflector

Using reflectors in portrait photography is a wonderful technique (a more in-depth explanation about using reflectors in portrait photography, in this article: Reflectors: Your Secret Weapon for Amazing Portrait Photography), that can help you to create catch lights in almost any situation, indoor or outdoor, sunny or cloudy.
Not only do reflectors allow you to create that spark of catch light almost anywhere; but they will allow you much more control, over the intensity, color, and direction of that spark.
A pocket size silver reflector was the best tool for the job for this portrait, photographed in a very hot afternoon in Armenia.

Good to know: Reflectors come in many sizes and colors. For the best results, use a small pocket-sized silver reflector. Why? Because you do not need anything larger or heavier. Those small reflectors are the perfect weapon of choice, for creating a catch light in close-up portraits. Position the reflector just under the chin of your subject. You can hold the reflector with your left hand, or ask the subject to hold it.
Taking it to the next level: Although using a silver reflector will give you the most notable catch light, you can add warmth to the portrait by using a golden one, which will result in a golden catch light.
A mix of shade, slightly higher camera angle, and gaze upward toward the sky, helped create the catch light in these portraits photographed in India and Israel.

See how the eyes are alive in their portraits? The catch lights help add the sparkle you see there, and without them the portraits wouldn’t feel as alive, vibrant.
Now it’s your turn, show me your portraits with great catchlights. Please share in the comments below.

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Why Every Photographer Needs a 70-200mm Lens

By: Tom Mason

As photographers, some pieces of advice are universal; the same can also be said for some camera gear. The 70-200mm lens is a staple for a reason, found in pretty much every pro’s camera bag around the world, they are trusted on location from portrait studios to the heart of the Amazon.
So here is why you need one in your kit.

Optical Performance

Let’s start with the big reason, optical performance. The 70-200mm is a professional lens and features the latest in optical design and quality.
Perfected over the last 30 years they have an excellent edge to edge sharpness, both wide open and stopped down. Featuring the ED elements and the latest lens coatings, they fend off chromatic aberrations and flare very well and produce stunning sharp, contrasty images shoot after shoot.

Focal Length

Short telephotos and wide-angle lenses are fantastic for getting up close into the action or taking the wider view, however, they can often be problematic. If you are trying to photograph wildlife, candid portraits, or anything that you can’t get close to, the 70-200mm lens will come in handy.

The reach of the 70-200mm is perfect for so many situations, allowing you to focus in on key subject areas, crop out distracting areas or elements in your frame and just get closer to the action.
The focal length allows you to also give your subject space to move without you having to be right up in their face, while still giving you the scope for those tight shots. It also allows you to be creative in new ways, giving you options to focus on small details within a composition or landscape, all the while not needing to move your feet.

Large Maximum Aperture

The 70-200mm f/2.8 is a fast lens, with the wide aperture being a key reason why so many pros love it. This gives you a number of benefits for shooting on location, once again making this a top quality lens in which to invest.

Benefits

The first benefit is the bokeh (or out of focus areas). The fast f/2.8 aperture means depth of field wide open is very limited. This results in much of the background and foreground dropping into mushy out of focus goodness, helping to keep the viewer’s attention on your main subject.
The large aperture, combined with the telephoto reach of the lens, really allows for the rendering of wonderful out of focus elements. This gives a truly dreamy quality and feeling to the images produced with the 70-200mm lens.

A second benefit of the wide open aperture is that of the low light performance. Having a fast f/2.8 aperture means the lens lets in far more light than slower alternatives. This, in turn, means the camera has more light to work with. So, when the light starts to fade you can still get sharp shots with reasonable shutter speeds without the need to stretch your ISO capabilities.
Another benefit of the fast aperture is the brightness it brings to the viewfinder. If you haven’t used fast lenses before you’ll soon fall in love with the brighter viewfinder experience that comes with the 70-200mm f/2.8. This might not sound like a big deal, but being able to see your composition better allows you to be more focused on selecting what you want in and out of the frame, helping you to hone your compositional skills for better images.

Speed

When working with fast paced action, speed is imperative, and the 70-200mm lens doesn’t disappoint. As a pro spec lens, the 70-200mm offers brilliant AF speed that is a huge benefit when working with erratic subjects on fast paced shoots.

The autofocus, aided by the fast aperture, locks onto subjects quickly and focuses through the range in the blink of an eye (something that certainly can’t be said for all telephoto lenses). The speed of the focus reduces frustration when trying to pick up moving subjects, helping you to focus on composing your shots rather than the frustration of your lens not focusing.

Size and Weight

Some people think the 70-200mm is a large lens, however, that weight and size also have their advantages. The physical length of the lens itself, being around 25cm, provides for good placement of the controls, with the large zoom and focus rings being well spaced on the lens’s barrel.
The length also allows for the inclusion of a tripod mount (collar). This is handy for working with a tripod for better balance and for lowering the stress on the bayonet mount between the camera and lens.

The size also lends itself to being comfortable for handholding. The wider barrel fits well in the hand, with the weight of the lens balancing well with medium to large camera bodies. The lens is also a little front heavy that means when attached to the camera it helps equal out the balance to a comfortable feel.
Of course, modern versions of the 70-200mm f/2.8 also include the implementation of image stabilization (VR, IS, or OS) helping to once again improve the abilities of this lens when working handheld. The optical stabilization systems help to reduce camera shake by up to 4-stops, meaning even when the light gets low you can work handheld with sharp results. That is something that can really come into its own when on location on a fast moving shoot.

Build Quality

The 70-200mmm f/2.8 is designed to be used by pros, and it’s constructed like a tank. Metal construction and weather sealing mean it’s built to last while being taken out and abused day in and day out.

My 70-200mm has been everywhere with me and is built to withstand the elements.

The 70-200mm lens is also a fantastic addition to the kit bag for those nature photographers who also have a passion for landscape photography. The focal length is excellent for giving you the reach to pick out sections of a landscape, details within a scene or for compressing layers for flattering images. The 70-200mm offers flexibility for composing, with the telephoto reach helping to compress a scene for flattering perspectives that might not work with a wider focal length.
I’ve had my 70-200mm lens for many years and worked with it in the rain, snow, freezing conditions, as well as the jungle and it’s never skipped a beat. Rugged and reliable, just as you want a working tool to be!

Teleconverters

This lens was also designed with the ability to work with teleconverters in mind. These small optical devices fit between the camera and lens, helping to magnify the image for a greater telephoto effect.
That means that the 70-200mm, when paired with a 1.4x teleconverter, becomes a 105-300mm equivalent or a 140-400mm when paired with a 2.0x converter. This can be very handy if you need some extra reach but don’t want to invest in a super telephoto or you just can’t fit it into your bag.

Shot at about 280mm using the 1.4x teleconverter.

Going the other way you can also add extension tubes to the 70-200mm to reduce the minimum focusing distance. That results in the ability to get ultra close for some semi-macro images, once again showing the scope for the versatility of this stable lens.

The 70-200mm lens is truly a worthy lens to be part of every photographer’s kit bag. Offering top optics, a fast aperture, excellent speed, ergonomics, and weatherproofing. They are built to last and perform day in, day out.
They are expensive, but as a long-term investment, the 70-200mm f/2.8 is certainly one that every keen photographer should think about making. You certainly won’t regret it.
Grab Yours: Check out a large range of 70-200mm cameras for all brands of cameras here on Amazon.

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