Flash-Ambient Blending

[@NathanCoolPhoto]

UPDATE February 2023: This particular video is a few years old and cameras, lights, and software have changed since then, so I have up to date information in two sources that can help with this process. The first is my online course at prointeriors.nathancool.com and the other is my books on real estate photography, in particular the introduction to using this technique at amzn.to/3wTZrNZ You can find the entire series at amzn.to/3YmXAgn

[@tyronecrossmanphotography2713]

You're amazing Nathan! Thank you so much for sharing these videos!

[@tomingrassiaimages8776]

Bought all of the digital books...outstanding Sir.

[@HobbyDad1989]

Hey Nathan, just want to drop a tremendous thank you! You and Rich have helped me so much since I starting shooting real estate a year ago. Loved your first book and am looking forward to reading the others. The book was great, and has helped me explore my own creativity through these flAmbient method you guys have nailed down so well. Thank you!! I very much enjoy your help and your content. Thanks for keeping it real!

[@NathanCoolPhoto]

Thanks Nubar, glad we could help, and thank you for making my day!

[@rhw2005]

You've taught me so much, thank you, thank you, thank you!

[@AneilSharma]

Big thanks for sharing your knowledge and taking the time to create this content. Fabulous and invaluable resource.

[@jeremywest6603]

Nice job on the explanation, Nathan. Bought your interiors book as well and am enjoying it. Thanks!

[@RexSingleton]

Nathan is always dropping the knowledge! Thank you!!

[@cwalkerbell]

Great content, I've learned a ton in the last hour from you! I appreciate it!

[@CentralValleyRyan]

Thank you for your videos! They are helping me take better photos of my remodeling projects.

[@yans3113]

Thank you, its clear and smart.

[@khaingzaw1715]

Thanks for your Great Tutorials.

[@EGAinspection1]

Really enjoy your videos. Thank you

[@josephblack123]

Great tutorial, and excellent production quality. I live barefooted and had to laugh at the last shot. Especially liked the shout-out to Rich. Liked and subbed.

[@jaredm2725]

ok, I have to say it;) great work Nathan! I've found your channel and learned a lot 'how to'

[@NathanKull]

This was a great video, thank you so much for posting!

[@slybroGFY]

Hi Nathan great tutorial! Would you suggest using large umbrella for a bigger house I’m talking 15 feet ceilings 10,000 square-foot house?

[@NathanCoolPhoto]

Thanks! You're referring to a very old video, so two things to help: This newer one should help with that question at kzbin.info/www/bejne/oZvbdYZvptyKZ5I Also consider looking through my lighting guide, which has more information on this as well at amzn.to/3kzpcxF

[@toddstrong1353]

Hi Nathan, you mentioned a video shooting a room with high ceilings but I'm having a hard time locating it. Do you have a link for that particular tutorial?

[@jeffj4530]

Great stuff! Tutorial on creating actions would be helpful!

[@essentialpassion]

Big thanks for the videos and also a cheeky thanks for not using the word boom anymore in your new vids :D

[@HighSierraBob]

Great video! I went to high school with a Bob McCool.

[@laureenvollmer7413]

Great Video. Thank you!

[@davebhianco4748]

Thanks so much, i almost invest more lights as i guess to highlight room

[@begosanchezfotografia9304]

Thanks for the great tuto. May I ask you which digital tablet do you use?...thanks.

[@NathanCoolPhoto]

Wacom Bamboo

[@JC122650]

Enjoyed the tutorial. Do you have transcripts for these videos? As a former college level photography instructor in the "film age" , and now knee deep in digital, I find myself in need of step-by-step "recipes" to grasp and retain the skills you demonstrate in your great tutorials. i.e. ... FLASH-AMBIENT BLENDING.

[@NathanCoolPhoto]

Sorry, no transcripts. Maybe an eBook someday.

[@ethanwolvek5068]

Hi Nathan, Do you have a more updated basic flambient tutorial that takes into the current LRC/PS versions? I'm learning this process from the ground up.

[@NathanCoolPhoto]

Here ya go: kzbin.info/www/bejne/n3PMhJ6KmKl_eNU

[@alanabley525]

Hi Nathan, I really enjoyed this as well as all your other tutorials. I am an interior photographer and would like to know your preferred method for capturing the glow from lamps and lights. I seem to be able to capture the fixtures themselves quite well. Do you use luminosity masks. Thank you

[@NathanCoolPhoto]

Luminosity masks...some of my other videos show that as well.

[@andrewmcgibbonphotography4867]

Thank you so much for these videos. I have been working on my flambient technique and am having a horrible time removing shadows from the flash layer by painting in the ambient. What happens is that instead of covering the shadow it just changes the color of it. Any idea what I am doing wrong?

[@NathanCoolPhoto]

I have a video that can help at kzbin.info/www/bejne/iaq5eJSpq8ifbqc and I cover a lot more about this in my advanced editing book at www.amazon.com/dp/B0779PCVWC

[@andrewmcgibbonphotography4867]

Thanks so much for the quick reply. I own all three of your real estate books and am just working through them, as I'm working. I hope you sell lots of books.

[@Nhan.T.Nguyen23]

Thank you so much for your videos. For the flash shot in this video, did you used the Flashpoint 600W at full power or less? Did you use bare bulb, reflector or soft box?

[@NathanCoolPhoto]

The previous videos shows all of that: kzbin.info/www/bejne/eJjXqIRvec9mZ5o

[@jp99575w]

I was considering a BenQ, are you happy with it & which model do you have?

[@aerialdronemaster7483]

Hi, I really love your vidoes, I have 2 question , hopefully I can get an answer, when the room is bog, and the flash will not cove the whole room, what would you recommend? multiple flashes in the corner ? also I was testing shooting yesterday with sony a6000 and TT685, I wanted just like you have a normal ambient picture, and 1 with a flash, plus each window, what happened ambinet piciture got very dark !! because probably the wirelles trigger was on the camera, anyway, I had 1 dark pictures with perfect windows, 1 with flash and because the first 1 was dark, I didni't have to do windows pull, but is it a good approach to have 1 dark picutres with good windows and treat it as ambient ? it was ok for me, just the pictures were a little dark ( no light in room) so I need some solutions for lighting, thank you

[@NathanCoolPhoto]

Check out my recent video on composition, I think it will answer a lot of what you're asking

[@Avat6]

Hi Nathan, with this technique how long do you think it should take to shoot a 3000sq ft home? Thanks

[@NathanCoolPhoto]

Depends on how well you shot it and how fast you can go. I know some photogs that can do a 3K home in 1.5 hours editing, but for me it would take longer...it's all a matter of prep, experience, and circumstance.

[@davidgibson2615]

Hey Nathan..when I try and brush in some brighter light in the shaded areas of my image, it brushes in a little DARKER..I have copied your flow settings etc..what am I doing wrong? Thanks!

[@NathanCoolPhoto]

Hi David, I'd have to see what you are doing, which would require a remote coaching session. Short of that, I'd suggest going through the steps in my interiors e-book at www.amazon.com/dp/B0755KXSL4 It could be you are using the layer not the mask, or not setting layer blending mode correctly, or something else.

[@TheKyNguyen]

Hi Nathan, do you adjust the white balance when taking ambient shots vs flash? I cant seem to match the two colors

[@NathanCoolPhoto]

You don't need to match the two colors since the ambient shot will be set to luminosity in PS. I have more detailed steps on this in my interiors book at www.amazon.com/dp/B0755KXSL4

[@hemidancer64]

Hi Nathan, just purchased your book series and I am learning a great deal! I am very new to the flambient technique, and I just need a little clarification on the order of layers in Photoshop. Do you always place the flash layer on the bottom and mask the ambient layer and the window pull layer? If so, why is it done this way? Thank you so much!

[@michaelsabell9294]

I love your work Nathan, you've been a huge influence on my developing real estate photography!! I don't know if anyone has asked but ... where does your name come from?! :)

[@NathanCoolPhoto]

Thanks! It's Scottish, with a more recent English spelling over the past couple hundred years: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coull_Castle

[@WileyLulfs]

Hey there. I do pretty well with RAW/Merge for real estate photos but I'm looking to work with Flash-Ambient. One issue I have is I never used Photoshop (Other than Camera Raw) or Lightroom. Your tutorials are great, but they quickly run through the "working with layers" process. Do you provide a more detailed video for working with layers for those who have yet to use them? Or, can you recommend a particular layers tutorial which is best related to your method? Many thnaks.

[@NathanCoolPhoto]

Hi Wiley. I have a entire chapter dedicated to working with layers (and a bunch of other stuff) in Photoshop in my new book, which I think would help: www.amazon.com/dp/B0779PCVWC

[@maceino]

Do you have any videos about controlling color temperature with different sources of light in one shot? Thanks!

[@NathanCoolPhoto]

Hi Matt, it's a matter of eliminating as much of the ambient artifacts as possible, which I talk about (with steps) in my interiors book: www.amazon.com/dp/B0755KXSL4

[@marnienorris]

Great video

[@Avat6]

Is there an alignment issue when using a different aperture for the window pull shot than was used for the interior image?

[@NathanCoolPhoto]

None that I've seen, but not sure why you'd want to use a different aperture, I've never had the need.

[@Avat6]

Thanks Nathan for the reply! So the Ambient shot, Flash shot and the third shot shown in this video was clicked on aperture mode,which is f/8 for all three images? Do you prefer f/8 or just exposed for the scenario? Thank you

[@NathanCoolPhoto]

Everything is in manual mode. I set my aperture and ISO and fiddle with shutter speed till it looks about right. I'll have another tutorial on that as well. In short though, if you're shooting RAW, then you can easily adjust up or down a full stop without introducing issues, so if you get it close with shutter speed, you're golden.

[@Tommytoolsqueezer]

Hi Nathan. I’m only new to photography and I’m wondering if HRD blend photos are quicker and easier to do then Flash ambient processing?

[@NathanCoolPhoto]

That's a loaded question, but I cover it in great detail in the intro section of my book: www.amazon.com/dp/B0755KXSL4

[@zoesmith4182]

Hi Nathan! I really need this technique in my work...but after having watched this video and two others, multiple times, I'm stymied! I need one-on-one tutorial help, by phone, for pay! Got time Nathan? Or are there any other takers out there?

[@NathanCoolPhoto]

I do hourly one-on-one consulting, email me for more info: [e-mail]

[@thiagodacunha8503]

Could you give the monitor link please?

[@GeorgeMadrid]

Hello, I shoot with a Nikon D750. I shoot my camera at 5560 kelvin. That works fine for studio and speedlights. But when I do Flash-Ambient Blending is turns into a lot of work to get the white balance to look right. What can I do to make my job easier?

[@NathanCoolPhoto]

AWB, my D^10s do great using AWB...also don't forget to grey card each room's color, here's more info kzbin.info/www/bejne/hoevi318aLR2esU

[@andrewmcgibbonphotography4867]

Hi Nathan, I'm having an odd thing happen when I go to paint the ambient, I have flow at 6%, in the layers panel I have it set to luminosity, Opacity/Fill@100%, yet I am getting a very heavy stroke when I paint, it darkens things quickly and heavily. This worked fine for the longest time but I'm not sure what I might have changed that would cause it to behave this way. Anyone with any thoughts, any and all feedback is welcome and appreciated.

[@NathanCoolPhoto]

You never change the layer opacity or fill, it's for the brush or eraser only. I break that down step by step in my interiors book: www.amazon.com/dp/B0755KXSL4

[@alaskadronepicscom6728]

Just curious... What model Bamboo tablet is that?

[@NathanCoolPhoto]

An old one :D I'm not using it much any more, I'd have to dig it out...they're all good though.

[@gjperrow]

where do I get the re full bump?

[@NathanCoolPhoto]

Hi Greg, I show all of my presets in my e-books, here's a link if you'd like to check them out: amzn.to/3d5wYeY

[@alaskadronepicscom6728]

Thank you so much!

[@MachineElf1111]

Great video