The 30″X40″ (roughly) softbox has been my favorite studio light modifier for years. I really like the contrast that this box provides while maintaining a relatively soft quality of light. The only down side to this tool is that it is sometimes temperamental when it comes to setting it up or tearing it down. I’ve had several new guys helping in the studio recently and have gone to my slightly larger Halo because it is much easier to set-up. I’ve discovered, however, that I really like the light that it puts out. I’ve used it for a main light for portraits as well as for a glamour set and a sensual intimate look.

This modifer is actually larger than my go-to softbox, so the light has a softer quality. It’s not too soft though.

We used the Halo as the main light in a class I taught on working with models. Sharon Sanchez sat for the class and I created these two beautiful portraits during a brief demonstration before the students stepped behind their cameras.

We used a strobe with a grid spot as a fill to give the images a little more “snap.” It’s easy and beautiful portrait lighting.

This halo also works wonders as a main light for a glamour set. I like to use a large soft light as my main light for a glamour shot because it provides beautiful even light so I then use smaller more contrasty lights as edge or rim lights. The soft light sets the stage for me and I can use the smaller lights the lead the viewer around the photograph.

The halo provided a wonderful base light for these glamour photographs of Nazly Fuller. We still used a spot light for a fill, though, so we haven’t seen the beauty of the halo as a single source of illumination. We wanted to create a more subtle, yet peaceful and beautiful scene, so we turned off all of the other lights and just used the halo and a large white card for a fill.

I wanted to create a scene that looked like a natural setting for this idea: a bedroom with a large window flooding the room with light seemed perfect. We brought the halo in very close and placed a 4′X8′ white card on the opposite side of the bed. We did need to add a second reflector to fill some shadows under Nazly’s chin.

I’ll be using this light modifier a lot more often!

Please visit www.hawaiischoolofphotography.com for more information on my workshops, seminars an on-line courses.

Sorry about the delay in posting something new. Here is a short video showing a very simple but effective fashion lighting set-up.

Here are some of the photographs captured by my students (and me) at my Working with Models seminar on June 14, 2010.

Photographs by Orlando Benedicto.  Used by permission all other rights reserved.

Photographs by  Stacey Sawa.  Used by permission all other rights reserved.

Photograph by  Shon Uekawa.  Used by permission all other rights reserved.

Demonstration photos taken by me.

Please visit http://www.hawaiischoolofphotography.com to register for these classes or to take my online beginner class:

Hi everyone,

I have finally posted a new tip on my Facebook As Steve Photography Related Questions after a long lag. Please check it out (this one is really basic) and as always please feel free to post any questions (drop me a note to tell me about it).

I have two new articles that were just posted to www.prophotoresource.com. One is an artist’s profile of the fascinating Amyn Nasser and the other is a quick review of the Content Aware Fill feature in Adobe Photoshop CS5. Check them out too. It’s free to join.

Finally an announcement that I am extremely proud of: This is a small indication that dreams can come true with a lot of hard work and dedication. I am amazed and humbled that my little school is actually a reality. Hawaii School of Photography launched on June 1st! I am holding a little meet and greet at 3 PM on July 18th at Queen Kapiolani Gardens (Leahi and Monserrat). We’ll talk about landscape photography and anything else that comes up. Please join me as I celebrate the launch of a dream.

Please drop me a line to let me know if you are going to make it on the 18th. steve@dantzigphotography.com

In the meantime there is still time to register for the following classes (There is an online class for those of you who are not on Oahu):

A 3.5 hour class on “Working with Models” on June 14th, “Introduction to Digital Photography” starting on June 16th, “Small Lights BIG Impact” on June 13th, “Oahu Photo Excursion” on June 19th, “Outdoor Lighting with a model shoot” on June 26th and “Studio Lighting with a model shoot” on July 17th. (more July classes coming soon)

Information and registration at www.hawaiischoolofphotography.com.

Steve

I just got the new Photoshop CS5 today and could not wait to try the much anticipated “Content Aware” Fill feature. I had the perfect image to try it out on. I just finished a photo shoot with Angelica Reyes. The set was pretty tight when we shifted  to full length poses and I didn’t have time to move all of the elements of the set, so I “shot to crop.”

I wasn’t too worried about all the junk along side of Angelica because I knew I’d crop most of it out.

The cropped version still left me a lot of work to do and I was not happy with the converging folds of the backdrop on the floor.

The Content-Aware Fill command handled both problems quickly and easily. This feature truly revolutionizes photo editing as we know/knew it. It’s worth the upgrade price by itself!

Hi Everyone! My new free article once again features Sharon! http://prophotoresource.com

Classes for Hawaii School of Photography begin in June!

There was a question posted on a local photography forum that asked about the differences between using a softbox and a similar sized shoot through umbrella. My response was that they are different tools for different purposes. Softboxes are designed to spread the light out evenly across the entire opening of the box. Shoot through umbrellas will have a more pronounced hot spot with a more distinct fall-off of light. Each can be very effective: The softbox will allow you to “feather” the light and fill some of the shadow side (depending on the size of the softbox) while the added hotspot of the umbrella/hallo can create a neat effect. The following two images are from my Portrait Lighting for Digital Photographpers: The Basics and Beyond. They are from a series I shot to show the different effects of different sized light sources (quality of light).

This image was taken with a 3′X4′ softbox. The box was turned so the light feathered across Jenie’s face and filled in the shadow side a little. Feathering the light across her face also kept the light from spilling onto the backdrop.

The light from the halo is a little more direct and creates a slightly denser shadow (this halo was actually a little larger than the softbox, so the light is a little softer). The light was aimed directly at Jenie so there is a little spill onto the backdrop.