Small Strobes Big Results Workshop

Eastern State Penitentiary was a great place for a workshop. This American ruin, with paint literally peeling off of the walls, provided stark contrast to the elegant models.

These shots are from a workshop that I attended: "Small Strobes, Big Results", given by David Tejada, world-class commercial photographer. The photos are all taken with one to three small flash units (Nikon SB-800s).


Here is an example of the lighting. David is pushing an SB-800 through an octabox, camera right. Then, he balanced the light with the ambient to get a very natural, but defined light on the model.

Here's another set up with the octabox overhead.

The image came out a lot different than you might expect.
David cut down on the ambient light and used other small strobes to add color to the background.
David approached each scene with a fresh, creative eye. Deciding the lighting technique and set up for the current conditions.

Here are some other shots that I was able to make that day.

Changing the white balance to Tungsten gave everything a blue tint for a different kind of effect that can be done in the camera. No software editing afterwards.

Me and David at the end of the day. He's a great guy and really willing to share his knowledge and experience.

I hope to get back there and explore some more of the place. There are lots of things to find there.