Macro Lighting Best Practices I - in the field

Macro Lighting - Best Practices in the Field - Show Notes
Hello all! Welcome back to Allan Walls Photography!
Before I forget, if you want information about the equipment that I use and/or discuss throughout all three chapters of this video, you can find all that, with links, in the accompanying article, published on my website and available right here:
www.allanwallsphotography.com...
This is the final part of the never-ending (that’s a contradiction - but I like it) Lighting for Photography Series, AKA - Part VII - “My Best Practices for Lighting in Macro Photography”. And this was a monster of a video to put together. By the time I was finished it topped out at one hour and forty minutes! Obviously, I wouldn’t do that to you! So I went back and split the material up into three separate chapters (clearly what I should have done in the first place).
Surprisingly, the edited content broke down into three, roughly equal, standalone videos:
1. Macro Lighting - Best Practices in the Field
2. Macro Lighting - Best Practices in the Studio - Equipment
3. Macro Lighting - Best Practices in the Studio - Technique
This is the first of those chapters. But before I go further, my sincere thanks to my wonderful Patreon supporters and to the marvelous human beings who have made donations through my donation page (www.allanwallsphotography.com.... None of this would be possible without your support!
If you are not among these fine individuals, but would like to support my efforts and help keep the videos coming, please consider signing up as a Patreon patron, which can be done by going to / allanwallsphotography . I could certainly use your help!
Let me hasten to add a special “Thank you!” to supporter, friend, and awesome photographer, Alison Pollack, whose fantastic slime mold images are featured in this video. I asked Alison to let me share these photographs (they were used with permission) because I couldn’t think of any better example of how continuous LED can be used in the field, providing you have the requisite talent (which is why I didn’t have any of my own to share!). Thanks Alison!
To see more of Alison Pollack’s wonderful work, check out her instagram page…
/ marin_mushrooms
So, this is the last video in the Lighting for Photography Series. It’s called Part VII, but because I had far too much to say, it is actually video #11 (or something - I really have lost count). But I promise you this - with these three chapters, I am DONE talking about light. Forever.
Not really.
In Chapter One - this one - I share with you all the things that I think are important for macro photographers interested in shooting in the field. We talk about natural light, continuous artificial light and, of course, flash. I don’t go back over material we have already covered, but rather, I try to take all that information and put it in the context of field macro photography. As the title suggests, it is presented as a list of my “best practices” - the things that I do myself, and the things I encourage my students to do. A few of these practices include planning your shoot, managing your equipment, packing light, keeping a notebook, and critiquing your work. But there is a lot more than just that.
If I have been successful with this and the next two chapters, you will come away from this video with a practical, realistic, and durable roadmap for getting the most out of your macro photography lighting. If I have not, you will get to see some pretty pictures and hear me tell a couple of stories - better than nothing, right?
Just in case there is anybody who actually would have have watched the entire video, prior to my dismembering it, I am releasing all three chapters at the same time, so you still can. You brave soul, you.
I hope you enjoy the material!
See you again soon,
Allan

[@TeresaTrimm]

My roommate saw your video with no sound (I had headphones on) and thought that I was listening to some 'hippie dude' that was giving me life lessons!! And macro lessons CAN apply to real-life!! I thought that you would appreciate that!!!

[@AllanWallsPhotography]

I am honored to be mistaken for a hippie, or wise enough to give anyone life lessons. You need to show your roomie a picture of a real hippie, she will never make that mistake again! Thanks for a good laugh!

[@TeresaTrimm]

@@AllanWallsPhotography Actually, she is a decade older than me and I am perilously close to 60! She is a hippy herself and really proud of it!! I am a relocated midwesterner (thank goodness) and an aspiring 'hippy'. A goal that I will probably never make, but as long as I keep trying!! Maybe it was the short beard in the video that I was watching at the time that made her think that...or maybe it was the headset over my ears that messed it up and she didn't say hippy at all!!! :D

[@mariomifsud1302]

Very informative as usual.

[@robertstorost629]

Lots of great practical tips! By the way I admire your tremendous Poise Under Pressure. When you were showing how to use that packing material by taping it over the Speedlight, which is a great idea by the way, some lady near your microphone let out a huge laugh. It kind of came off as some sort of an opinion on your idea. You never skipped a beat. I had to rewind it several times, it just cracked me up. Keep up the great work I find something useful in every one of your videos.

[@AllanWallsPhotography]

Thanks Robert, her laugh sounded a lot more derisive on the video - I could never have kept a straight face if I'd heard it clearly!

[@messylaura]

great vid Alan

[@BeetleBuns]

this video came just in time, I just got into macro this week

[@AllanWallsPhotography]

For real! Excellent! You should check out my back catalog - there must be 50 macro-related videos. Good luck and have fun!

[@glarvenz]

Thank you! So helpful! What wattage is the little led cube you carry?

[@AllanWallsPhotography]

Hi Gail. The Lume Cube 2 that I use puts out 1500 lumens, so it around 25 watts. At that power the battery lasts about 6o minutes.

[@numinoos]

Thank you Allan. I noticed you use a ring flash. I am also using the Nissan MF 18 ring flash and it has a built in diffuser. Do you have recommendations on using a ring flash for macro work. Greetings from Switzerland.

[@AllanWallsPhotography]

Hi Philippe, sorry for the delayed response. I do like to use a ring flash for my field work, mainly for its compact convenience, but lately I have moved away from in favor of less harsh light sources. I have found a low power off-camera speedlight with aggressive diffusion gives more natural looking results. I designed and built a clip-on ring flash diffuser that I thought could improve on that, but it really didn't;t. I may make a video of the ring flash diffuser, just to get people thinking how it could be modified and improved. But I think we are getting ready to see a big game changer in the macro-lighting world. The release of the MF12 micro flash units from Godox promises to be the affordable R1C1 system for mere mortals. I think it is going to change how we think about flash for macro. I will be reviewing the new units as soon as they arrive.

[@numinoos]

@@AllanWallsPhotography Many thanks for taking the time to answer; this is very helpful. I found a diffuser for this ring flash from a dental photographer. Will test it out in the field.

[@thestalicho]

Using the word Speedlight for flash gun is an advert for a Nikon Brand Speedlight Flash gun

[@AllanWallsPhotography]

Not really - "speedlight", with a lower case "s", has become an acceptable term to describe any compact standalone flash unit capable of on-camera use, and it is in common usage today. If I was talking about Nikon Speedlights (or Canon Speedlites, for that matter), I would use those terms.

[@wassim2364]

☕️👍Ty