Project52 week two {Flashin}

 This week for my project 52 I focused on learning more about off Camera Flash

For Christmas my lovely hubby had bought me a light stand and umbrella so I could finally really get my flash off my camera-- It's been a bit overwhelming honestly- I haven't always known if I've liked ocf style pictures but the more I learn and the more options it opens up for me in these bleak winters here - I am beginning to love it, now I just have to get good at it and understand it- which I have along ways to go :)

Bring in my lovely models my hubby and nephew {actually the only ones I could get to sit still and let me practice with them- take picture figure out the settings try again, picture, picture picture :)}

Soft umbrella lighting-- nothing really fancy here I just set it up at a 45 degree angle and he was actually sitting just in our study mid day- dim lighting- I had made him move his chair away from the wall so I could get a bit more blur and control over the darkness of the wall. 

85mm  f3.2  iso500 SS1/100 {flash 580exii 1/4 power}

 Shoot through umbrella at a 45 angle- I just had a normal painted white wall in our house and had him about 6 feet from it for the background. It was getting pretty dark the sun had already set and I had to have the room lights flicked on and off so I could get my focus to set.

85mm  f6.3  iso200 SS1/125 {flash 580exii don't remember the power setting}

"The boys" wouldn't agree to be my slaves/models unless I let them have some props that they wanted in the photos :) So Guns and dramatic lighting it was.

 These one's I shot with just my flash bare{no umbrella} so I could get the hard lighting and exposed almost for black on the background- we were still just using a painted white wall in our house as the background.

85mm  f4.5  iso250 SS1/160 {flash 580exii 1/8 power}

This one I did have to darken the right side back wall in photoshop because I had alot of spill lightage hit from the flash- but dave liked this one -someone made the comment about him nerding up the shot with his star wars shirt which just made me laugh-- I didn't style the shots- and this is so just my hubby Dave- Nerd shirt, beard he wants to grow out like one on duck dynasty{ya he might get shaved one night by a wife sick of it :) } and a huge amount of varied interests in life{computers, hunting, fishing, building, cars} I very much do love the man and love that after 9yrs of marriage he still treats me like a princess and makes my legs turn to jello when he's romantic :) oh ya anyways back to about the picture and flash :)

85mm  f7.1  iso250  SS1/125 {flash 580exii 1/64 power}

This one I was struggling to get my light at the right power and to hit at the right angle to not have such a hard shadow on his face but ya by this point my models were getting a bit restless :) So much to learn still but it was a pretty fun evening and getting to shoot when it's dark and no natural light to be seen was pretty cool.

85mm  f5.6  iso250 SS1/160 {flash 580exii 1/32 power I think I wasn't positive on this one}

Pretty much I'm trying to teach myself {what's new there right :) } and the Strobist has been my biggest help in trying to learn about OCF-  I have to read stuff about ten million times before I feel like I am understanding the concept and than I get out my camera and it's read it again- I've realized I am a big visual learner and need diagrams and pictures to explain every concept but we are getting there and I'm excited to find some more willing models and practice some more- possibly some nice evening sky shots when it's not -20 outside still {BURRRR!!}

Hopefully your staying warm wherever you are at!