Controlling the Light: Beginners Guide to Off-Camera Lighting and Control

[@Jieuhpewpew]

I'm french, fortunately i understand english. This guy is simply amazing, explains and answers everything, clearly. Being his assistant must be amazing ! Thank you, you are the man !

[@BandH]

@zrexsashimi At this point we only have this one lecture by Erik Valind on our channel. Thanks for watching.

[@Bloggerky]

Even though five years old, this remains very helpful on the basics. When he talks about some of the gear (pocket wizards, e.g.), the technology has advanced since the video was made. However, the basics on exposure, light positioning, and the like are well presented, still true, and clear.

[@reilanthony6582]

this is University of Flash Photography right here! =) ... Thank you all the way from the Philippines!

[@kenfilipiak5509]

From someone fairly new into digital photography as a hobby, this is by far the most helpful video i have seen...and i have see A LOT. Not overly technical for the newbies, but some more specific information for those who have been at it for awhile.

[@BandH]

@feel3sam At the moment we don't have any videos that explain nightlife or nightclub photography specifically. That is an excellent idea, however, and we are looking into it. Thanks for watching.

[@SHUFFful]

This a great tutorial,rather than prattling on about self promotion, which a majority of free on line resources usually do,this guy is giving a fine easy to consume instruction.Top Job !

[@BandH]

Hi, please contact Erik directly at contact{at}erikvalind{dot}com. Thanks for watching!

[@Jerry-kg9pr]

I watched and listened 3 times and understood what he is explaining ..Thank you for sharing !

[@barlow2976]

I've found all the B&H videos useful, but Erik has a great tutoring style,I feel I've remembered everything he has said. I'm a beginner in flash photography, and this has inspired me to try and be more creative with the small amount of gear I have. Thanks.

[@jheffhree]

This guy is awesome. His enthusiasm is contagious.

[@bruce-le-smith]

this presenter is freaking amazing, thank you! Florida surfer guy is on point

[@aidamohsen]

As a beginner photographer I am finding this tutorial very useful ... thanks for sharing.

[@BandH]

@Raj Singh Arora Thank you so much for watching the B&H Photo KZbin Channel and for your participation. We are very pleased that you derive value from and find our presentations useful and informative.

[@robchros]

This is simply the best speedlite video I have found! Thank you, Eric is great explaining what others struggle with...this shows both his skill and enthusiasum.

[@BandH]

@Renee Ansell , @matthewcolosus , @Eva Cubitchi Thank you for watching the B&H Photo KZbin Channel and for your participation. We are very pleased that you derive value from and find our presentations useful and informative.

[@BandH]

@Srinivasan Siva Thank you so much for watching the B&H Photo KZbin Channel and for your participation. We are very pleased that you derive value from and find our presentations useful and informative.

[@tedddan]

This is better than going to university! I can relax in my sofa with a beer and learn tons of photography stuff ! This rocks! / Sweden

[@chileheadcraig]

Can't believe this was free... Excellent and informative!

[@kuunami]

I was thinking the same thing. Very informative.

[@shapna2010]

I have been shooting photos profesionally over a year now and this master class gave a lot of new ideas to on set or on the street. Thank you BH for uploading this vid. Erik you arer cool.

[@RellyOhBoy]

I'm moving from NYC to NC soon. Now I can sit on the couch in my boxer shorts and still attend the Event Space Workshops. No more crowded Subways, No more overpriced Parking lots and No more Parking tickets on 9th Avenue... B&H is Brilliant !

[@RMO6701]

Eric with a K. This was a very good tutorial. Although i am a lil past this point but i still sat through it, thanks. Which means your never told old to go back and learn the basics.

[@Angnic22]

Of all the videos I've ever watched, and I've watched a few, this has been the most helpful - HANDS DOWN. Bravo to Erik and B&H!

[@BandH]

Hi, please contact Erik Valind directly at contact{at}erikvalind{dot}com. Thanks for watching.

[@isitric]

I saw this for the first tome a couple of years ago and, as a beginner, it made a huge difference to my grasp of lighting. Some tricky concepts simply explained. Def one of the more informative videos on here. Thx B&H & Erik.

[@BabyfacephotographyNet]

Most informative video I have seen. The next time I watch, I will take notes.

[@donzi32boats80]

He is fantastic. Answered every ones question, answered without going totally tech. really well done.

[@jaymack9442]

I want to say thank you for this video. I'm that old dog(44 this April) looking to learn some new tricks. I just got a Nikon D3200. You have helped me grasp the light. and the imprtance of getting it right. I plan to watch all the tutorials by B&H Photo. I wll be buying a 24-70 lens from you guys in two weeks. Thank you again

[@BandH]

@DroidMike69 Thank you so much for watching the B&H Photo KZbin Channel and for your participation. We are very pleased that you derive value from and find our presentations useful and informative.

[@Cotictimmy]

There are lots of these B&H lighting videos. Add in all the lighting videos on KZbin and there must be thousands to choose from. This one is a really great basic primer. It's 2012 but that doesn't matter. If you are a Nikon user like me, then yes he's using stuff you'll recognise, but this video is for everyone. He's probably using a 2008 12MP D3 or D700, but ask yourself: which is more valuable: the latest 2018 megapixel wonder, or the skills shown here?

[@NatheaLee]

Excellent tutorial. I do a lot of events and performances, but recently have started getting more into shooting off-camera portrait and headshot lighting. Erik really covered the basics...and then some. Many thanks.

[@Bridgestreetnursery]

I put this information to work today. I got some professional looking photos for the first time. Awesome information. Thanks.

[@littleshoeshopper]

This was great. People who got impatient missed out.

[@Coffeeology]

I was about to spend a lot of money for a class at a community college for this class, but you've answered all my questions.

[@azziz67marrakchi]

Such a great photography teacher! Thanks, Erik.

[@BandH]

Thanks for watching!

[@BandH]

@shapna2010 Thank you for watching the B&H Photo KZbin Channel and for your participation. We are very pleased that you derive value from and find our presentations useful and informative.

[@lievenmams]

11 years old and absolutely relevant in 2023!

[@armanavancena1286]

IT is Better than spending $ 200-400 TO GO TO PHOTOGRAPHY WORKSHOP this video helps me a lot of thing about lighting :) thank u so much bro Godbless

[@BandH]

@EckoMunky How many kinds of photo assignments can you can handle with a compact outfit like the Impact Three Light Portrait Backlight Kit (120VAC)? It's got 2 VS-LCD 400w/s digital monolights, one Impact EX100A 100w/s monolight, two white umbrellas, two 10' light stands, one 3' backlight stand, a radio slave transmitter and receiver, and a kit bag to hold everything. B&H # IMVSLCD4003K

[@krstone0]

Thank you very much for posting this video! You answered every question I had about lighting in one video than the countless hours spent researching online.

[@MrTMoore55]

Erik, awesome tutorial video, ive been struggling with manual mode, but learning SP controls ambient light and apature controls flash power, you talking about taking frustration out of my shooting, THANK YOU well done.

[@mikeygrigoryan8005]

worth watching a few times. AWESOME VIDEO TUTORIAL!!

[@AydinProductionsLtd]

I think Erik did a great job explaining the basics of speed lights .

[@BandH]

Most welcome and thanks for watching.

[@thetrueJammy]

Excellent video. I've been watching videos for a few days on Lighting - this is the first one that has actually made sense! Thanks!

[@BandH]

Most welcome. Thank you for watching.

[@dakotarich024]

Fantastic video! I see myself watching it again and again.

[@jheffhree]

Best tutorial in B&H. Really helped me a lot! Thank you so much Erik Valind and B&H!

[@SoobinOh]

Wow, that was super helpful for this here newbie noob. I learned so much!

[@vramirez101]

i had so many Einstien momments. You connected all the dots. Good work and thank you again.

[@whoeever]

It's unfortunate that most of the people in the audience are not asking sincere questions but instead boasting to the teacher about what they know. we are missing out on a lot of good helpful information because of the audience interruptions.

[@brewxx]

Agree!

[@Madamegato]

Agree. Though he invited that on himself. He lost control of his talk. When you have someone who starts inviting comments and questions by trying to be too friendly, people will become comfortable enough to offer them without being invited to do so, thinking it's just a laid back talk. Had he really stuck to his guns about no questions til the end, or not asked, "So does anyone else feel like [insert word]," he would have retained a lot more control. I've never in any B&H video I've watched seen one of their own people take over a portion of the talk either - that could be editing, but it feels, to me, like even Dave decided he could jump in and educate. Erik just needed a little more understanding of public speaking. (aka crowd control.)

[@angiecurtis5076]

Showeeeee, I have watched hundreds of videos on lighting and settings etc...this has taught me sooooo much! Thanks b&h and Erik!!!!

[@shawvercreations9703]

Erik is amazing teacher!!! Thank you B and H!!!!

[@BandH]

@jimkells B&H only has1 store and it's located in New York City in the USA, though we do ship worldwide (with a few exceptions). While we do ship internationally, do note some items in our inventory have international shipping restrictions and cannot be shipped outside the United States, and due to the chemical makeup of other items, some items cannot be shipped at all and can only be purchased in our NYC Superstore. Products with restrictions are indicated during the checkout process

[@Lydondelossantos]

Learned a lot. Well explained, very informative. Thumbs up to this guy.

[@secretsigns1970]

Thank you so much for the detailed video. I was having problems with lighting in the studio. This video helped me so much more than the classes I took. I am going to try all this in the studio today and I pray I get the same results. I have shot in RAW and it is the best, the quality of the photo is much better and you can do so much more in RAW. I used a reflector outside but not the diff-user so now I have to go and try that als..this has me wanting to try so many different things. Thanks

[@beckhead25]

I go through all the b&h videos and count it as study- there's one called being creative and getting the shot' i think, it's a dutch guy presenting it- one of the best ones yet :D

[@richardl7570]

I'm 20 minutes in and it sucks that I have to go do work :) ....this is such an awesome instruction thus far. Wow. I'll be back!

[@BandH]

@NO0Bstatus If your goal is to learn and understand lighting exposure, a manual flash is the better choice. As a beginner, using an automated TTL flash you will not learn the process or metering and judging exposure. Chuck

[@BandH]

@Jibz Alom An umbrella, orb or softbox will do different things so the choice would be dependant of the effect you were looking for. The Vello Bounce Dome (Diffuser) will diffuse the light output of a flash, producing softer shadows and a more natural glow rather than the harsher effect when using a direct flash. The diffuser provides even coverage across the entire frame. Type > Vello Bounce Dome < into our web sites search bar. C h u c k askbh{at}bandh{dot}com

[@BandH]

@ClemCerf Yes, the Fujifilm FinePix X100 Digital Camera's built-in flash can trigger the Fujifilm EF-X20 Shoe-Mount Flash off-camera when used as an off-camera slave flash.

[@carolrasmussen7269]

This was a great video with instant feedback with the shots taken via lightroom

[@BandH]

It could be due to an incompatible sync speed, but if you are using a Nikon Speedlight not likely. It sounds like you have your camera set to TTL meaning the camera's meter is trying to balance both the ambient & flash light. As you underexpose the the ambient light, you need to increase the flash output to round out your exposure. Check to see if you set the flash to underexpose. C h u c k askbh{at}bandh{dot}com

[@ducatitastic]

fantastic workshop, Erik is a fun and energetic tutor, many thanks,

[@Tynomac]

great video. Helps a lot. I now enjoy my camera and taking photos much more. I will be checking out more of your vids.

[@jhammond1901]

You're a great instructor. Thank you for uploading such great videos. Cheers

[@BandH]

@madhavpt Thanks for watching!

[@BandH]

@Nyamka5516 The Oben AC-2310L 3-Section Aluminum Lateral Tripod with BB-0 Ball Head Kit from B&H pairs the versatile aluminum AC-2310L lateral tripod with a sturdy ball head that pans 360° and tilts 90° to portrait orientation. B&H # OBAC2310LQ

[@ErikValind]

Hi Motty, I'm living and shooting freelance fulltime in NYC now. I'll have a new website coming out this week with updated speaking schedule too. Thanks for watching!

[@hamsterpoop]

Awesome intro! This covered almost everything relevant to lighting in photography! Thanks for the upload!

[@bummer4451]

Great Tutorial. I watched it 3 times in a row!

[@BandH]

@cockerspanielhome “Thanks for your comment - we’re actually adding subtitles to all Event Space videos from now on.”

[@peterbustin8604]

Complicated as im a newcomer, but very intuitive, many thanks from the UK.

[@BandH]

@WooHyunSung The larger 43" Ord will have a slightly broader spread of light than the Apollo and because of the shape the Orb fall off will be more rounded. For many shooters, an important factor will be the catch light reflection in the subjects eyes. Rounded SB's have a more natural looking catch light is a persons eyes compared to the square shape a traditional SB creates. C h u c k askbh{at}bandh{dot}com

[@larryrael]

Very nice video! He never got round to answering the question (if I remmeber correctly) about whether to use a stofen on a flash with an umbrella. I'm interested in that...

[@coolyungdru]

5 stars. Technology wise it's dated however the actual techniques are exactly what I needed. Thanks.

[@rajsingharora1]

this is just simply outstanding......thank you for these brilliant tutorials :)

[@davidponce1901]

Great workshop. Thanks B&H and Erik.

[@b.a.franklinmd2418]

Great job of explaining lighting. I picked several good points.

[@ErikValind]

The one modifier I recommend everyone have is the 60" Westcott Umbrella (White Satin with Removable Black Cover)

[@RandellJohn]

At 1:24:00 Erik gives a brief explaination of the 'Inverse Square Law', where he states that if you double the distance between your flash and subject that the light will fall off 'Three' times the amount. I'm sure this was a slip of the tongue, but it's incorrect. If you double the distance between your flash and your subject the light will reduce 'Four' times the amount. Or another way to describe the effect is that the light reduces by 2 stops. So opening up your aperture from f11 to f5.6 will maintain the same exposure when you move the flash further away from your subject.

[@jeffersonsantiago5567]

good tip about the shutter speed. i didnt know that it controls ambient light. now i know why i wasnt able to imitate the image i wanted to copy. the light was bleeding cuz i have a low shutter speed and just actually needed to bump it up.

[@Kidraver555]

Thanks for that, cleared up a few questions for me as a beginner.

[@alexmorgan3435]

32 mins in, Erik is correct aperture does control both flash power and DoF, but to control flash power alone use power of flash rather than aperture is you can then control DoF independently. Erik doesn't explain WHY shutter speed controls ambient light and flash light controls lighting of the subject. Shutter speed is generally a lot slower then flash light i.e. 1/125 - 1/250 second where as flash light is 1/50,000+ of a second i.e. a lot faster. So while your camera shutter is open collecting ambient/background light, your studio lights/portable speed lights are illuminated for a much much shorter time. Once you grasp this you can make far more creative images. It's like painting with light.

[@TheIrritableVegan]

Thanks, I'd love more detailed info on using different frame rates that you touched upon in this tutorial.

[@nikhilsrl]

Wonderful video and Erik is an excellent teacher.

[@Sisco296]

I'm referring to the model at 20:00. To remove the shadow couldn't you just light both sides of the model? Then the light on the left put the right side of the light on the model and the rest on the background. Then the same on the right light, put the left side on the model and the rest on the background? Then use a light mounted on the camera. This might be a solution that's cheaper on equipment but is it a solution none the less??? I hope you follow what I'm saying. Thanks for all your hard work on this video it was very helpful!

[@Satya6664bs]

Erik with "K" is an genius idea (:

[@BandH]

@jndassaro Glad we can be of help and thanks for the feedback. On behalf of all of us at B&H Photo, I'd like to take this opportunity to thank you for your patronage. We look forward to earning your trust and continued business for many years to come.

[@decon4611]

This was super helpful! I sat through the entire thing and learned a lot. Thanks!

[@trevorpinnocky]

Nice job. I absolutely understand this as a way to encourage sales in the main store, but many of these techniques have very low cost options that don't involve the purchase of expensive items from wetscott or triggers from pocketwizard. Those should be explained as well. Well done.

[@rami8361]

GREAT AND an EXCELLENT explenation and samples...........thank u very much

[@madhavpt]

Very informative and Tnks for sharing this awesome piece of video. It pushes me to transfer my photography skills to a next step

[@MarkShawMedia]

For those of you who may not have discovered a product that has come out since this video for radio flash ttl triggering at a very affordable price check out the YONGNUO YN-622C. You can pick up a pair for about 80 bucks and it is FULL TTL inluding HSS with a low focus assist beam as well. They are limited to only 3 channels but for the money you can't beat it.

[@BeejadiNagraja_Praveen]

THank you so much.. this was the first video i went thru this channel., and my goodness.. i already subscribed, i'm gonna watch and download almost all the videos.. so nice presentation..

[@Shaeomar1]

Thanks alot B&H! What a great resource! Truly appreciated.

[@tscholent]

when you say that the light of a flash falls off 3 times as quickly as one doubles the distance to the subject , I ask myself if it is prudent to use a lightmeter in order to save time and get more accuracy? I really like the way you teach!

[@tombow00]

Great video!!! This solved me a lot of questions, and on top of that, all the advices you gave were amazing!!! Thanks for this!

[@pMeheux5]

Excellent talk, thank you from a beginner!

[@bummer4451]

great tutorial. Some much info in 1 session. Love to see more of your tutorials.