There’s a lot of myth and misinformation out there about grey cards. They’re often a bit of a pain to use sometimes, too. But they can be one of the most valuable tools photographers have at their disposal when it comes to getting good and consistent exposure. In this video, David Bergman walks us through how to use one.
Quick tips for choosing the perfect background for outdoor portraits
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When shooting portraits, the background is one of the things you need to be mindful about. And if you shoot outdoors, you don’t have so much control over it as you do in the studio. In this video, photographer David Bergman will give you a few quick tips for choosing the perfect background and improve your outdoor portraits in an instant.
Why you might want to use red or other coloured filters with your digital camera
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Coloured filters have been popular amongst black & white film photographers for decades. Typically, these are blue, red, orange, yellow and green. They help to increase contrast in skies and reduce the appearance of blemishes on skin, but are they still useful today with black & white digital?
That’s what photographer David Bergman explores in this video. He thinks that they are still valuable.
Shooting in direct sunlight? Here are some ways to create shade
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It’s summer and the days are long and sunny. If you shoot portraits outdoors, the harsh midday sun may mess up with your plans. You can embrace it and incorporate it into your shots, but you can also create your own shade and modify or even block the harsh rays of the sun. In this 2-minute video, photographer David Bergman of Adorama will show you a couple of possible solutions for creating your own shade without changing the shooting location.
How to shoot a day-to-night transition, the holy grail of timelapses
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The day-to-night transition has been the holy grail for timelapse photographers since timelapse first became a thing. What makes it difficult is rather obvious. The exposure is constantly changing as time passes. But dealing with that change in exposure over the course of an hour or two is not so straightforward.
But it’s not impossible to achieve, and there are various ways to do it, as David Bergman discusses in this video. Each of the methods has their own advantages and disadvantages, and which technique you’ll use will depend on your own judgement. But this will give you a great starting point to make your own.
Here’s how to mimic the sunlight using only a single flash
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I love it when the warm light of the setting sun fills up the room. It looks nice in photos, and it’s good to know that you can recreate it at any time of day. In this video from Adorama TV, photographer David Bergman will show you how to mimic the warm sunlight using only a single speedlight.
This is why catchlights are important for both portrait photographers and their audience
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Eyes are the windows to the soul and a very important element in every portrait photo. In this video, photographer David Bergman focuses on a very particular part of portrait photography – catchlights. In only two minutes, he’ll teach you why catchlights are important in your portraits. But he also shares a tip about what you can learn what you can learn from other people’s photos only by analyzing catchlights.
What are lens hoods really for and how do you use them?
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If you listen to folks on Facebook, you might think that lens hoods are designed as some form of mystical lens protection. They’re often touted as the alternative to UV filters as a way to defend your lens against the evils of the world that might otherwise turn it to glass dust.
But, no, their primary function is actually to flag stray light from entering into your lens and causing flare. In this video from Adorama TV, photographer David Bergman talks about lens hoods, when you might want to use one and when you might not.
The beginner’s guide to using grids with softboxes
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Every day I see people posting in Facebook groups asking about softboxes and whether or not they should buy one with a grid. Personally, I always advise going for one that comes with a grid. Even if you don’t know why you might need it yet, if you get one without and then find out that you need one, it can often be impossible to source just the right size and shape.
But what exactly do grids do? And do you really need one? That’s what photographer David Bergman looks at in this two-minute video. He goes over what grids are for and when you might choose to use one. I have grids for all of my softboxes and octaboxes. I don’t always use them, but when I do need them, they’re absolutely invaluable.
Start culling your photos for a more effective portfolio
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One of the most common things I see today, especially from newer photographers is posting far too many images from a session online. We’ve all seen it, and probably all done it at some point. You go to a photographer’s page, look at their photos, and you see 50 images from one shoot, followed by 50 from another, then 50 from another.
While we’re proud of many things we create, this can really dilute our most impressive work. In this two-minute tips video, photographer David Bergman explains why we should edit ourselves and cull our work down to only the very best.
