Harsh light, wolfie what the f&*&?!

Lately I have been using a lot of harsh light, and people think I am nuts. Well I am an artist, so that is a good thing, no artist is normal. Well harsh light kicks ass, if you can use it right, I love it personally and it is my style! But learning how to use it was always a challenge.

I am primarily a location shooter, personally studio work is boring to me unless you are doing something like nudes. But I also do live in Oklahoma, where the wind blows! After several torn up softboxes and lights, and hearing of photographers horror stories, I decided to use a bare SB800. I had used it once prior before my last 4 shoots, and it was with a local photographer named Kevin Camp. Well I say local, but he is really in Tulsa, Oklahoma. But it was such a wide angle stobist style with a model named Traci Lacek, I never thought about ever using it again. But I do love being a strobist, why I am a starving artist, a successful starving artist I might add. But the thought of the sundial shadow, and the hot spots on the models skin or even blown highlights. A big no no in photography. I decided I would give it a try. The first shoot I did with harsh light was a formal dress, I had the flash too close models face got blown out, and you will never see those photos (and I thank God everyday I had a few good ones) and was like, well I will need practice.

I had a shoot a week later, she wanted some sunset stuff done, with a maxi dress, and I was fretting about lighting again. I had always used a modifier. Than it hit me like a brick wall, as if I were running 100 mph. Chuck Majors, www.shotbyephoto.com, had apparently used harsh light a lot! Everyone always says that he does, so I decided to Facebook him one day and ask him if he really did, of course like any good photographer, he said he did depending on the situation. So I asked him for his advice, he said with speed lights back it off about 10 feet, and about eye level, maybe a little higher and do not go over a quarter power. So I kept that in mind. Well the shoot comes up, I have no LCD on my camera, and I am nervous as hell, so she got into the dress and I got ready and went at f8 to control the flash, flash at a quarter power, and 200th of a second shutter speed to kill the ambient (ever want a dramatic sunset? underexpose!!!)  backed it off about 10 feet, that I counted, and started shooting. Not knowing what I was going to get, I got a great surprise when I got home, and I think I like it. Makes the models skin look smoother, harsh contrast, and well the wind blowing isn't going to break a bunch of stuff.

Almost NO editing.