Webinar: Real World PocketWizard Oct. 20th, 2011

Title: Real World Off-Camera Flash with PocketWizard
Date: October 20th 2011 @ 1PM EDT

Getting your flash off-camera is one of the most powerful ways to take your portrait photography to the next level. Join host Joe Brady as he shows his favorite techniques for off-camera flash portraiture featuring PocketWizard Radio Triggers. During this live online video seminar Joe will show how to create beautiful environmental and studio portraits using just one or two small flash units. You will get to see the power of TTL photography with the camera systems automatically controlling the exposure.

Joe will share his experiences and techniques using the PocketWizard MiniTT1 and FlexTT5 radio triggers to control off-camera flash for location portraits and wedding photography. Knowing the capabilities as well of the limitations of TTL exposure systems will allow you to get great results with consistency and will allow you to create images that will separate you from the pack.

Join us on October 20, 2011 at 1:00pm (EDT) for a free one-hour live online seminar, sponsored by PocketWizard and hosted by Joe Brady. You’ll have a front-row seat from the comfort of your home or office as you participate in our interactive streaming-video seminar broadcast in real time.

There is no pre registration required. Just visit this link the day of the Webinar. Please note the link will stream the live video Webinar on October 20th at 1:00 PM Eastern Standard Time.

Dom Romney on Wheels or Water

Dom Romney may very well have been born in the wrong country. A native of the United Kingdom, Romney currently lives in Stansted, north of London, and is huge fan of American racing cars of all types. Heavily influenced by his father’s car collection and love of hot-rodding, the younger Romney grew up with it in his blood. Since then, experimental built-for-speed vehicles, classic muscle cars, nitro-based fire-breathing monsters, vintage restorations, and plethora of drag races involving almost anything resting on four wheels have all been photographed by Romney.

©Dom Romney

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On Location with Rick Friedman

What happens when you take 16 working pro photographers, a ton of lighting gear, one location lighting expert, and stuff them all into the biggest barn you’ve ever seen? The place really lights up.

LPA recently sponsored and hosted a location lighting workshop for members of ASMP New England with Boston-based photographer Rick Friedman. Rick’s got the energy dial set to maximum pretty much all the time which is definitely part of his success as both a photojournalist and photo educator. He’s also got a bag full of PocketWizard radios which he puts to work in all his lighting work – both with speedlights as well as with studio lights.

ASMP NE and LPA Design's presentation of Rick Friedman's Location Lighting Workshop at the Breeding Barn at Shelburne Farms in Shelburne, VT. ©Chris Rakoczy

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Kevin Kubota’s Knockout Bride in Action

Photographer Kevin Kubota has posted an account of a very cool photo shoot he recently completed.

First off, Kubota stresses the good things which can happen when you shoot with a photography buddy. In this case, it’s his friend Benjamin Edwards. He details how the two shooters collaborated by taking turns setting up shots of the bride and groom, Jenah and Matt. Mutual feedback was critical to getting the best shots, and a great lesson can be learned from this paragraph of Kubota’s post alone.

The theme for this photo shoot was fairly easy to arrive at. Jenah, it turns out, is “a national team boxer.” What better idea than to put her in a ring, wearing a bridal gown, and have her knocking out her groom? Awesome concept, and great execution, guys.

©Kevin Kubota

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Dave Schmidt and the British Invasion

The following account was sent to us by photographer Dave Schmidt, whose day job just happens to be working at LPA, the makers of PocketWizard.

©Dave Schmidt

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G•Wiz Gear Bags

G•Wiz Trunk

PocketWizard is excited to announce two gear bags to organize and transport your PocketWizard radio triggers. The G•Wiz Trunk and G•Wiz 2x are made of durable rip-stop nylon. Padded interiors provide a way to protect your investment when traveling to and from photo shoots.

We’ve listened to our users and answered their requests for a safe, stylish way to assemble their PocketWizard units. Even if you primarily shoot in a studio environment, these contemporary-looking bags will protect your investment from dust, and you’ll always know where they’re located, along with any accessories you find yourself using frequently.

The G•Wiz Trunk features a zippered inside pocket, web loop, moveable velcro padded dividers, durable rip-stop nylon, and measures 7.5″ wide by 3.5″ high by 3.5″ deep. This bag is designed specifically for the MiniTT1 and FlexTT5, plus accessories.

G•Wiz 2x

The G•Wiz 2x features internal cable/battery pocket, external cable stash pocket, hanging strap, mini carabiner clip, and features durable rip-stop nylon. It can hold two FlexTT5‘s and a MiniTT1 or two Plus II or MultiMAX PocketWizard radios, in addition to batteries, cables or other goodies.

Visit your local PocketWizard dealer to check out the G•Wiz collection in person.

Donald Miralle’s View From Above

Photographer Donald Miralle blogged about an assignment for ESPN the Magazine. For a special Photo Issue, Miralle shot the NCAA Men’s Volleyball Championships at Penn State.

Miralle has achieved some beautiful images with his atypical camera angle. In the below photo, we see the emotion of both the winning Ohio State Buckeyes in celebration on the left and the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos walking away dejectedly on the right.

©Donald Miralle for ESPN the Magazine.

In a brief but comprehensive listing, Miralle reports he shot the scene with a Profoto Pro-7b with a Profoto Magnum Reflector and 10 degree grid spot positioned over the net. A second Pro-7b was positioned in the stands. He used a Canon EOS 5D Mark II with the PocketWizard FlexTT5. The PocketWizard technology allowed him to get his shots at an incredible 1/1000th of a second.

“If you haven’t got one of these yet, go out and do it. You won’t have to use a leaf shutter again to freeze action with strobes,” Miralle writes.

Be sure to check out some really fine photography on his site. His blog is worth viewing, too. Miralle is a talent worth following, and we’re excited to see his future work.

Five Photography Tips: Jason Lykins

Cincinnati-area photographer Jason Lykins is mostly known as a portrait artist, but provides many types of photography to a variety of clients. He recently was kind enough to share some of his insights with readers of the PocketWizard blog. Be sure to check out his links at the end of his installment in our on-going series, Five Photography Tips.

1. Move! Moving is the most important thing you can do in photography. Forget settings, f/stops, aperture, and ISO, etc. Forget about all of that. When you change your position. When you crouch down to shoot lower, or when you climb up to shoot from above, you are creating drama. You are creating a view the person looking at your image isn’t used to seeing. This will make your image more compelling. This applies to every type of photography, but since I specialize in portrait photography I find it especially pertains to people. Often times when I shoot portraits I start by shooting standing up at eye level with the subject. This gets them comfortable with me, and allows me to build a rapport with them. I then switch to a lower shooting angle. Usually I am on one knee or sometimes even as low as shooting from my stomach. Shooting from a lower position does multiple things. On women it can elongate their legs making them appear to be taller than they really are. On Men, shooting from lower often times gives the sense of power. For both men and women shooting from a lower angle gives a feeling of dominance in the photograph. Of course there are many, many more advantages from shooting from down low, so try it out and I guarantee your images will become more interesting. On the flip side, positioning yourself above your subject will thin them down. If your subject is larger, shooting from above will make then appear to be skinnier. When they lift their chin to look at the camera it stretches the neck and eliminates double chins. Again there are many, many more advantages to shooting from above, so give it a shot to see what it does for your perspective.

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Tom Bol and High Speed Sync

©Tom Bol

Photographer and educator Tom Bol has a great post on his blog regarding syncing his Elinchrom Quadra at 1/2500. Bol used PocketWizard FlexTT5 and MiniTT1 radio triggers with a Quadra head, shooting a Nikon D300S with a 14-24mm f/2.8 lens.

This highly informative post is not to be missed, particularly if you’re an Elinchrom user. Bol goes into detail not only how he achieved his sample shots, but the science of what’s going on, and how to avoid unwanted results. He also details the handiness of using the PocketWizard AC3 Zone Controller to set the output on an Elinchrom Ranger.

Be sure you don’t miss this informative post if you’re interested in high speed sync without clipping. Don’t forget to check out the great imagery Bol is capturing when not educating shooters on how to do the same by visiting his site.

PocketWizard and Red Bull Sports Photographers

Press Release

PocketWizard Products Provide the Latest in Wireless Flash Technology to Red Bull Sports Photographers

Photographers and images to be regularly featured on PocketWizard.com, the PocketWizard Blog and the Red Bull Content Pool

So. Burlington, VT – August 18, 2011 – LPA Design, maker of PocketWizard radios, the world leader in wireless control and synchronization of cameras, flash lighting and light meters, announces today they will provide the latest PocketWizard wireless flash products featuring HyperSync technology to professional photographers working for Red Bull’s worldwide marketing campaigns.

Matthias Dandois in action at the Marina Barrage, Singapore, 7th August 2011

Red Bull has consistently paired top athletes with savvy photographers to generate great action sports photography and then made those images available to international media through the Red Bull Content Pool. And, reliable PocketWizard radios are already used for many of the images these photographers produce, for both remote camera and off-camera lighting. Now, using the PocketWizard MiniTT1, FlexTT5, and AC3 ZoneController and the latest PocketWizard wireless triggering systems technology, HyperSync Automation, these photographers will be able to produce never-before-possible images to establish even higher standards in action sports photography.

“LPA Design (manufacturer of PocketWizard products) was excited when Red Bull approached us to work cooperatively with their top Photofiles’ Photographers from around the world to make sure they have the best gear possible to continue producing the best in action sports photography,” said Dave Schmidt, LPA Designs VP of Marketing. “Working with Red Bull and their Photofiles’ photographers is a perfect match for PocketWizard radios as we expand our global reach. We can’t wait to see the images these photographers create using our latest hardware, software and system solutions to push the boundaries of sports photography with proprietary features like HyperSyncTM.”

Markus Berger, Manager of Red Bull’s Photofiles concurs, “Our photographers need to use the best gear available to capture images that really define the cutting edge sports. Using PocketWizard radios was something most of them already did. Now we’re just making sure they have the latest products available even as new capabilities are developed.”

These photographers and their images will be a regular feature on PocketWizard.com and the PocketWizard blog as well as featured in Red Bull’s behind-the-scenes videos. All the images in the Red Bull Content Pool as well as stories behind the photos and more can be found at www.redbull-photofiles.com.