I know most of what you are teaching but this video allows me to put things in better context with more understanding of lighting. I wish other flash manufacturers did the same thing. Kudos to you.👍👍👍😀
Thank you Brandon, for breaking up your presentation into sections and for providing time stamps. That's the kind of respect I appreciate in all tutorial videos. I don't want to watch an 8 hour 30 minute video just to get the answer to 1 question really. Great video.
I love how you kept stressing the camera settings will not be the same in different lighting situations. I appreciate that do my students can learn to trust their own instincts to change settings when needed to get the “look” they’re trying to achieve. Great tutorial! This teacher appreciated it very much!
I'm so thrilled to have watched this entire course - it has eliminated some of the unknown fears of flash photography to a point where I want to begin to experiment with my ability to control light using some of these instruments. Thank you for your guidance.
I'm new to off camera flash and hungry for knowledge but because I know nothing I didn't even know what I didn't know, so didn't even know what questions to ask to figure out what I needed to learn! This video was EXACTLY what I needed. It started from an assumption of zero knowledge and slowly built it up from there. Possibly the best video I have ever watched on youTube. Thankyou Westcott - I am feeling inspired and I will be back for those 20 lights in a flash - haha see what I did there ;)
Hi from South Africa. Thanks very much Brandon for explaining everything so well and for the very helpful practical demonstrations. I learnt a huge amount and am so motivated to go and try things out. All the best
@@WestcottLighting got my fj400 and 48” octa L rapid box today! Do you recommend a brand or size of light stand? I have some small cheap ones that aren’t going to work well with this larger light. I do mainly outdoor portraits so something fairly portable would be nice but it needs to not blow away if it’s windy.
Thank you for taking the time to create this tutorial. I have been using flash in and out of studio for some time now and still picked up some useful information.
You will find that most seasoned photographer ‘s are still using there Norman lighting if they have been shooting for some time as a professional, Norman’s will out live the life of the photographer!
love the fj80 touch screen brilliant idea just wish I got it before invested in godox . great training video, the control is using touch screen seems so much easier if implemented right.
Of all the lighting videos I have watched. Your is the most comprehensive! Glad I Starbord across your channel I’m definitely a follower now !! Thanks you sir God bless
Brandon, thank you for making this video and sharing your knowledge and experience with your audience. I'm 4 weeks into my adventure with lighting, but 17 minutes into the video, I just want to point out what I'm hearing so that perhaps, when making future videos, you take into account the limited knowledge of beginners. That said, I did follow your explanations - but that is because I've done a ton of reading and ton of shooting in the last four weeks. My thoughts: Love the fact that you started with the quality of light (i.e. soft, hard, size and distance of the source). Demo of each of those concepts at the beginning would have been great. Side by side images. Source size consistent with changing distance, distance constant with ONLY changing size of source. In a flash for beginners video, to me, it gets confusing when you 1. start using multiple modifiers right off the bat without showing what they do separately (i.e. reflector with grid) - you have to remember that many people watching this may not own both, may not own one of them, and may not know what qualities each of those have by themselves - let alone in tandem. You then proceed to talk about a speedlight round head (entirely different rabbit hole) and add a diffusion dome. Now, unless what I've learned so far is not correct, the quality of the light (soft and hard) really is a separate issue than diffused or specular light - so why right off the bat are we mixing them together? The reflective umbrella with silver lining and diffusion sock again combines two concepts (bigger source and diffusion) again, pretty much right out of the gate for beginners to digest. Again, I'm following you, but I think it would be cleaner in future videos to separate the concepts of "size matters" from diffusion or specularity. I realize there is a time constraint and editing constraint, but side by side images of only changing distance first and then size, to demonstrate just the quality of light change, and then define for us what each modification does, and show that to us, would have been terrific. Later in the video, when demonstrating different modifiers, you mention "grids" "focus the light "even more". I'm not trying to be nit picking, but my understanding is that grids are light blockers (restrictors if you wish), but do not focus light - they block the spread of light. Again, just telling you from a beginner standpoint how I'm seeing this. When I teach what I am a professional at, I have to build with people, one step at a time, and help develop some strong fundamental understanding as I move forward. It's great to have all these tools to utilize, but us beginners do not even completely understand what you are trying to do with each (i.e. add a grid on a snoot, or worse yet add a grid on a softbox - when you are not in a small space). Just want you to know, I'm very appreciative of you taking the time (yes, I realize given your position that you are trying to sell FJ products) to put this together and demonstrate concepts. Your approach is honest and genuine. Just want you to know, don't lose sight of the fact that introducing multiple points and materials at one time may prevent what you are trying to achieve. The more comfortable I am with what a product will give me, the more likely I am to reach for it and purchase it. Hope to see you more! Many thanks to you and your model.
I just became a big fan of Westcott and have recently purchased an Apollo Orb and a Rapid Box to use with my Canon Speedlites. Since I am a starving photographer artist I have to find used equipment at a good deal with the idea that all of this used equipment was brand new/top of the line at one time and can still serve the purpose of what I want to accomplish. Using multiple Speedlites gives me more versatility in arranging lights. Also, carrying 5 or 6 Speedlites is lighter than 2 or 3 power strobes.
Thank you sooooooo very much Sir!!! Absolutely amazing and quite detailed and professionally executed tutorial which basically put most of TH-cam vids to shame! Haven’t been married to the Godox ecosystem I would’ve invested into Westcott to support you! I’ve played this tutorial into its entirety 3 times in a few days and more to come! Keep it up and keep them coming!
Thank you Brandon.. I have just bought my first flash.. And your video has been a great help... I photograph cats and bunnies for an animal sanctuary to help get them adopted.. And its not thr best lighting.. So I wanted to make the shots look better.. And your video has helped in a way to make them look better and get adopted.. 😎
Awesome Video ❤🎉😊 Thank you 1000 times therefore 🙏🏼😃 Is it possible to see some Hisync pictures? I would like to create some action shots with highsync, and it doesn't work most of time 😅🙈😪 Best regards from Switzerland 🙋🏼♀️
Very helpfull your video, I never had picture taken of a photographer. That is also due my nature, I dont like to pass some limits in a frame. It is just matter of thiking to see how to fit that into the knowledge.
Hi Brandon. Lovely video on Flash photography. I really liked it and understood so much from it. I have a Godox AD 200 pro. and an Xpro C for a flash trigger. But whats important are the techniques learnt today in this course. For starters One speed light and 1 shoot thru umbrella is more then sufficient.
Thank you for sharing this video, it was extremely useful. I learned a lot about using speed lights and strobes. I like those backdrops they look very portable.
Thanks Brandon for this complete lighting course, very interesting and easy to learn. the only thing i am missing is how to control the different lights A-B-C for example how to turn them on and off from the trigger... Do you have any other tutorial of how to use the equipment? that would be great !
Thanks Vanessa! Here is a video on the menu system. If you repeatedly press the group selection button, it will change the mode from Manual>TTL>SLP(off). th-cam.com/video/_UjZXiEM_mg/w-d-xo.html
It would be nice if you also talked about the effect of flash on the eye. Eyes are the most powerful part of portrait. Flashes cause the iris to open up. For example, some flashes fire twice to cause the iris to open and close preventing the red eye effect.
When taking a photo of a person do you expose for the sunset the add flash? For best exposure? Or how do you know what the ambient settings are to set the camera?
Great video for people trying to start with flash. 2 points. 1) your first example of soft light. With the young child… absolutely. Not sure if call the other image soft. The transition between light and dark was pretty abrupt. 2). Your definition of fast paced environment talked about changing subjects ( and Manual is perfect) what about changing subjects and distances? A problem I deal with regularly.
I noticed throughout the video, you never talked about the modeling light or how to use it. This is something of great interest to me as most lights have a 150w bulb which will show how your light is hitting the subject, at least in a studio environment. Could you amend this video showing the use of the modeling light?
This video was amazing !! It's so insightful and well done. I've learned so much about how flash is used. Also interested in the FJ80 for on camera flash. That touch screen is brilliant.
Thank you! Very informative...When you speak of reading the ambient light b4 turning on the strobe are you doing that in Manusl mode or auto? Are you taking test shots to figure out the ambient light? There are times when I don't have enough light to get the ambient reading. Also how far do you place subjects away from a backdrop?
Could you breakdown the composite lighting segment for me? I only saw on flash a rim light flash. Where was the other one that took the second shot composite? And what does he mean by burst shooting?
I have 3 FJ400's. What are the settings to have each strobe at a different power level yet have them all trigger? Do they need to be on the same Channel but different groups...and does it matter if they are in TTL or manual??? thanks
Thanks for sharing.
Thanks, Brandon. I'm a 78 year old newbie and you just gave me a jump start. A lot of fun and very informative.
Glad you found this helpful James, it’s never too late to be a newbie!
@@WestcottLighting ίηι ι
@@WestcottLighting ich weiß 😊
one of the best tutorials on strobes and Flash photography. Thank You
Thank you very much for a great video.
I know most of what you are teaching but this video allows me to put things in better context with more understanding of lighting.
I wish other flash manufacturers did the same thing.
Kudos to you.👍👍👍😀
Thank you so much for your support, so glad you found this helpful!
LAN4🎉 0:16
Yes, you tied it all together with practical tips and that made a huge difference.
For the first time in my life, I have actually been able to learn and understand the fundamentals of using light with strobes. Thank you very much!!!
I have done paid courses and I never learned as much as I did with this free one. Great Job, you have a fan for life!
We appreciate the kind words, thanks for watching!!
Good video.
Great great greattttt video man loved this, very helpful💯🔥😂
So glad this was helpful, thanks for watching!!!
Fabulous tutorial ❤️
Thank you Brandon, for breaking up your presentation into sections and for providing time stamps. That's the kind of respect I appreciate in all tutorial videos. I don't want to watch an 8 hour 30 minute video just to get the answer to 1 question really. Great video.
Glad it was helpful, we really appreciate the support!
Very good. Worth every minute of my time. Thank you 🙏
Great to hear!
The best flash tutorial 👍
Can't thank you enough guys!
Breaking each light by itself, great tip
Great job Brandon. Thank you. Excellent presentation with examples.
Thank you so much. This has answered so many questions for me and given me the knowledge and confidence to try new things. 👏👏
Thanks for your support, glad it was helpful Tom!
For free ! Wow ! Thank you !
Thanks for watching Sarah!!
I love how you kept stressing the camera settings will not be the same in different lighting situations. I appreciate that do my students can learn to trust their own instincts to change settings when needed to get the “look” they’re trying to achieve.
Great tutorial! This teacher appreciated it very much!
Fantastic video! Thank you!! 👍🏼
Thanks for watching Brett!!
This was so helpful. Thank you so much 😊.
Very detailed and easy to understand. Thanks 🙏🏿
I'm so thrilled to have watched this entire course - it has eliminated some of the unknown fears of flash photography to a point where I want to begin to experiment with my ability to control light using some of these instruments. Thank you for your guidance.
Thank you so much for watching Mike!! We really appreciate it.
Muchas gracias, saludos desde México!
WONDERFUL TUTORIAL.. THANKS A LOT.
I'm new to off camera flash and hungry for knowledge but because I know nothing I didn't even know what I didn't know, so didn't even know what questions to ask to figure out what I needed to learn! This video was EXACTLY what I needed. It started from an assumption of zero knowledge and slowly built it up from there. Possibly the best video I have ever watched on youTube. Thankyou Westcott - I am feeling inspired and I will be back for those 20 lights in a flash - haha see what I did there ;)
You are so welcome! We're so glad you found this helpful
Hi from South Africa. Thanks very much Brandon for explaining everything so well and for the very helpful practical demonstrations. I learnt a huge amount and am so motivated to go and try things out. All the best
So glad we could help John, thanks so much for watching!
This was an amazing amount of information. We get asked a lot of these questions and it’ll be a great resource to send to those who want to learn.
Great content. Thanks very much.
Thanks for your support!
Excellent video. Very much enjoyed it, thanks.
Very professional.
That was so good! Ordered a fj400 this past weekend.
Awesome choice!! Thanks for your support, Dave!
@@WestcottLighting got my fj400 and 48” octa L rapid box today! Do you recommend a brand or size of light stand? I have some small cheap ones that aren’t going to work well with this larger light. I do mainly outdoor portraits so something fairly portable would be nice but it needs to not blow away if it’s windy.
@@davej6838 This is the one I use mostly. Great for indoors and outdoors. www.fjwestcott.com/10-light-stand-heavy-duty
Excellent presentation.
Glad you liked it!
This was an amazing course, very informative and filled with useful nuggets. Thank you.
This was the beat video I have watched since I started photography last year. You are amazing!
Thank you for taking the time to create this tutorial. I have been using flash in and out of studio for some time now and still picked up some useful information.
Thanks Brandon. Your teaching is awesome. Enjoyed this video so much.
I,ve been looking for a course on this matter for yeas without result.Very greatful for taking part of this.
Thanks for watching! Glad we could be helpful
Great tutorial ! You explained everything clearly and slowly, very informative.. Thank you !
This was so awesome. I learned a lot. Thank you
I had no idea how effective the inner baffle is, thanks for a great lesson!
That small change makes a big difference, thanks for watching Deborah!
Same here i always took it out
Great video! Thank you!
So informative. So far the best I have seen on this subject.
Glad it was helpful! Thanks for watching
Loved it!
🙌🏾 down best lighting video that I have ever watched
Thank you so much for watching!!
You will find that most seasoned photographer ‘s are still using there Norman lighting if they have been shooting for some time as a professional, Norman’s will out live the life of the photographer!
Great video, great explanation. Thank you. I liked a lot side-by-side shot comparisons, really helpful.
Hi
It was amazing tutorial video. Thanks
love the fj80 touch screen brilliant idea just wish I got it before invested in godox . great training video, the control is using touch screen seems so much easier if implemented right.
Thank you sir 🙏
Of all the lighting videos I have watched. Your is the most comprehensive! Glad I Starbord across your channel I’m definitely a follower now !! Thanks you sir God bless
Thanks for watching!!! 🙏
This is excellent!!
Thanks for watching!!
Brandon, thank you for making this video and sharing your knowledge and experience with your audience. I'm 4 weeks into my adventure with lighting, but 17 minutes into the video, I just want to point out what I'm hearing so that perhaps, when making future videos, you take into account the limited knowledge of beginners. That said, I did follow your explanations - but that is because I've done a ton of reading and ton of shooting in the last four weeks. My thoughts: Love the fact that you started with the quality of light (i.e. soft, hard, size and distance of the source). Demo of each of those concepts at the beginning would have been great. Side by side images. Source size consistent with changing distance, distance constant with ONLY changing size of source. In a flash for beginners video, to me, it gets confusing when you 1. start using multiple modifiers right off the bat without showing what they do separately (i.e. reflector with grid) - you have to remember that many people watching this may not own both, may not own one of them, and may not know what qualities each of those have by themselves - let alone in tandem. You then proceed to talk about a speedlight round head (entirely different rabbit hole) and add a diffusion dome. Now, unless what I've learned so far is not correct, the quality of the light (soft and hard) really is a separate issue than diffused or specular light - so why right off the bat are we mixing them together? The reflective umbrella with silver lining and diffusion sock again combines two concepts (bigger source and diffusion) again, pretty much right out of the gate for beginners to digest. Again, I'm following you, but I think it would be cleaner in future videos to separate the concepts of "size matters" from diffusion or specularity. I realize there is a time constraint and editing constraint, but side by side images of only changing distance first and then size, to demonstrate just the quality of light change, and then define for us what each modification does, and show that to us, would have been terrific. Later in the video, when demonstrating different modifiers, you mention "grids" "focus the light "even more". I'm not trying to be nit picking, but my understanding is that grids are light blockers (restrictors if you wish), but do not focus light - they block the spread of light. Again, just telling you from a beginner standpoint how I'm seeing this. When I teach what I am a professional at, I have to build with people, one step at a time, and help develop some strong fundamental understanding as I move forward. It's great to have all these tools to utilize, but us beginners do not even completely understand what you are trying to do with each (i.e. add a grid on a snoot, or worse yet add a grid on a softbox - when you are not in a small space). Just want you to know, I'm very appreciative of you taking the time (yes, I realize given your position that you are trying to sell FJ products) to put this together and demonstrate concepts. Your approach is honest and genuine. Just want you to know, don't lose sight of the fact that introducing multiple points and materials at one time may prevent what you are trying to achieve. The more comfortable I am with what a product will give me, the more likely I am to reach for it and purchase it. Hope to see you more! Many thanks to you and your model.
We actually have another class here: th-cam.com/video/dfhED7M0ugc/w-d-xo.html That covered some of those some of those more basic things too!
This is great thanks 🙏
Glad you liked it, Aurelio!
Excellent content, very well presented
Much appreciated!
One of the best courses I ever seen 👍🏻 Well done, thanks
Thank you for watching!!
This was an awesome training video. Thank you!
Thanks for watching, so glad this was helpful!
Covid and mostly lack of friends really allowed me to watched this entire video 😂
Of course educating yourself didn’t bring you here...
THAT PART! LOL
I just became a big fan of Westcott and have recently purchased an Apollo Orb and a Rapid Box to use with my Canon Speedlites. Since I am a starving photographer artist I have to find used equipment at a good deal with the idea that all of this used equipment was brand new/top of the line at one time and can still serve the purpose of what I want to accomplish. Using multiple Speedlites gives me more versatility in arranging lights. Also, carrying 5 or 6 Speedlites is lighter than 2 or 3 power strobes.
Thank you sooooooo very much Sir!!! Absolutely amazing and quite detailed and professionally executed tutorial which basically put most of TH-cam vids to shame! Haven’t been married to the Godox ecosystem I would’ve invested into Westcott to support you! I’ve played this tutorial into its entirety 3 times in a few days and more to come! Keep it up and keep them coming!
Thank you for creating this video. This is what I’ve been looking for. I’m doing research on my next lighting setup and the FJ200 & FJ400 looks great.
This is I've been waiting for...Thank you so much for creating this video. I can't wait to go out using flash photography
This way Super Cool!!! Thanks so much Brandon.
Charles, glad you liked it!
What a awesome tutorial, learnt so much!
These videos are amazing thank you so much!!!!!
Liked AND subscribed!!! Thanks a lot for this
Thanks for your support Gregory!!
I got autoplayed here and I thought this was Michael the Maven. Thanks for the course!
Thank you Brandon.. I have just bought my first flash.. And your video has been a great help... I photograph cats and bunnies for an animal sanctuary to help get them adopted.. And its not thr best lighting.. So I wanted to make the shots look better.. And your video has helped in a way to make them look better and get adopted.. 😎
Glad we could help!
Thank you!
You're welcome!
Awesome Video ❤🎉😊 Thank you 1000 times therefore 🙏🏼😃
Is it possible to see some Hisync pictures? I would like to create some action shots with highsync, and it doesn't work most of time 😅🙈😪
Best regards from Switzerland 🙋🏼♀️
Very helpfull your video, I never had picture taken of a photographer. That is also due my nature, I dont like to pass some limits in a frame. It is just matter of thiking to see how to fit that into the knowledge.
Thank you so much - really informative, engaging and a clear explanation on each subject matter too. Top tutorial.
Hi Brandon. Lovely video on Flash photography. I really liked it and understood so much from it. I have a Godox AD 200 pro. and an Xpro C for a flash trigger. But whats important are the techniques learnt today in this course. For starters One speed light and 1 shoot thru umbrella is more then sufficient.
So glad you found this helpful Michael! Light is light and learning how to use it is what's important.
Thank you for sharing this video, it was extremely useful. I learned a lot about using speed lights and strobes. I like those backdrops they look very portable.
Glad you found this helpful Roy!
Thanks Brandon for this complete lighting course, very interesting and easy to learn.
the only thing i am missing is how to control the different lights A-B-C for example how to turn them on and off from the trigger... Do you have any other tutorial of how to use the equipment?
that would be great !
Thanks Vanessa! Here is a video on the menu system. If you repeatedly press the group selection button, it will change the mode from Manual>TTL>SLP(off). th-cam.com/video/_UjZXiEM_mg/w-d-xo.html
Hi Brandon, it was a great video and I learned a lot from it. Can you please explain how to setup those 2 sequences.
very cool
This was amazing! Can’t wait to put this knowledge to practice
It would be nice if you also talked about the effect of flash on the eye. Eyes are the most powerful part of portrait. Flashes cause the iris to open up. For example, some flashes fire twice to cause the iris to open and close preventing the red eye effect.
When taking a photo of a person do you expose for the sunset the add flash? For best exposure? Or how do you know what the ambient settings are to set the camera?
Marilyn set your exposure for the background (sunset) then add fill flash on your subject.
@@EliInfante Thanks.
Great video for people trying to start with flash. 2 points. 1) your first example of soft light. With the young child… absolutely. Not sure if call the other image soft. The transition between light and dark was pretty abrupt. 2). Your definition of fast paced environment talked about changing subjects ( and Manual is perfect) what about changing subjects and distances? A problem I deal with regularly.
Excellent
This is an excellent training resource - thank you. A request - F-stop and shutter speed would have been useful as well for various scenarios.
I noticed throughout the video, you never talked about the modeling light or how to use it. This is something of great interest to me as most lights have a 150w bulb which will show how your light is hitting the subject, at least in a studio environment. Could you amend this video showing the use of the modeling light?
Awesome
This video was amazing !! It's so insightful and well done. I've learned so much about how flash is used. Also interested in the FJ80 for on camera flash. That touch screen is brilliant.
Very well organized and presented. I learned a lot. I especially liked your explanation of Hard vs Soft.
Thanks for watching!!
Thank you! Very informative...When you speak of reading the ambient light b4 turning on the strobe are you doing that in Manusl mode or auto? Are you taking test shots to figure out the ambient light? There are times when I don't have enough light to get the ambient reading. Also how far do you place subjects away from a backdrop?
Is good idea to share curses ...if you buy the product and follow the channel is enough to start 🙂
Thanks for the great content. 13:03 is that concept reversed: closer light is harder? According to inverse square law.
Was looking for the "first video in the series" that you were referring to. Unfortunately, I was not sure where to find that!
Here's the first class: th-cam.com/video/dfhED7M0ugc/w-d-xo.html
Could you breakdown the composite lighting segment for me? I only saw on flash a rim light flash. Where was the other one that took the second shot composite? And what does he mean by burst shooting?
Thanks
Super ,Congratulations,***
நன்றாக இருக்கிறது வாழ்த்துக்கள் R.MANOHAR-CHENNAI
I have to use manual on my Z6ii.My Z50 uses TTL.
I have 3 FJ400's. What are the settings to have each strobe at a different power level yet have them all trigger? Do they need to be on the same Channel but different groups...and does it matter if they are in TTL or manual??? thanks
I would recomment putting them on different groups (ie. A, B, C) however the channel stays the same. You can control which group you want TTL or M
So when you’re shooting outdoors, what would be better to use, TTL or HHS?
Hss is to control the ambient light so you could use manual or ttl with hss if hss is required.
So what do you recommend? One of each size?
What about 2 fj400 kits? Or is that wasting money?
I would always recommend starting with 1 light, mastering that, then investing in more as you want more complex lighting setups.
Your vedio very interesting
Glad you think so!
I find that the fill flash used around 26 minutes make the pictures look photoshopped.