Rob Provencher - Shooting on Location with Multiple Strobes

I presented a location lighting and image production workshop recently in the Dominican Republic. One of the other presenters, Rob Provencier, a long time friend and associate was able to take time away from the other distractions and sit in on the demos... It would appear that he had a good time (!) and took some ideas home with him, as the following is an exerpt from the full tutorial he is prepping for his Photographers Forum - NOBS PhotoSuccess.

Read on and enjoy some very cool images that he's been able to share ! - CM

All Photography by Rob Provencher ©2006

You can't Bs a No Bs'er - by Rob Provencher CPA

I've been to a lot of photography seminars. Most good, some bad, some stellar. Some were bad because the presenter was full of it. Either themselves or just plain ol' BS. They are easy to spot, most times their work tells the tale.

A good seminar will go a long way if we do more than just watch, listen and expect to be entertained. In fact the return on time and money invested can be worth a thousand fold or more if we approach it with the right attitude. A stellar seminar will go even further. I am about to tell you about one such experience.

But first, a little about me. My first photographic seminar was a long time ago- about 1986. I was young and naive and brimming with ambition. The presenter was a soon-to-be well known, up and coming wedding photographer named Steve Rudd. Many of you would know the name. This first exposure to photographic seminars absolutely blew me away. I had no idea that such a thing existed. I was hooked.

Of course Steve's work and his enthusiasm made all the difference. Since then I have been to hundreds, maybe thousands of seminars and workshops. All kinds but mostly photography related.

I did see Craig back about 6 years ago when I first got into digital and Craig was presenting on digital, but 90% of it went over my head. Craig was ahead of his time. I like learning from people who think way ahead of the pack. It's a challenge trying to keep up with them, and you get to learn and hopefully master some leading edge techniques. Craig's is one of those leaders. And, he has what I consider to a vital prerequisite - awesome kick-butt images and an eagerness to share his skills. Some photographers never learn. They do things a certain way and stick with what works. Shame. So sad. Not Craig.

So it was with an open mind and open eyes & ears that I went into the full day workshop that Craig presented at the Rob Hoffman & Mark Hamilton Caribbean Experience in The Dominican Republic back in April. I, along with James Hodgins (James and I are the founders of www.NoBsPhoto Success.com), were also presenting at this event.

It's an awful place to be learning and teach. What with all the sun, beaches, bikinis, food and music, how can you possible focus and pay attention? But pay attention I did. And I hounded Craig with an endless barrage of annoying rookie questions ( He avoids me now whenever he sees me walking down the hall at whatever event we happen to be both attending !! ).

You'd think with my 27 plus years experience in photography I'd know what he was talking about, and wouldn't need to ask any questions, but what he was teaching at first seemed confusing... But it was goooood. And it became very valuable when I applied it and started, just started to gain some sense of mastery. Now he's created a monster. I can't stop. Every session I have I try to use those techniques and learn to apply them so they take what I do with my photography up a few notches. And you know what? It's working. I am having a blast !! That's what I love about photography. You get to constantly be challenged and invigorated. Those photographers who get stuck in a rut are the same ones who never grow and when they retire they quit shooting. Not me. I'm having way too much fun... So what knowledge was it Craig was trying to impart upon us and impress upon our sun-baked, pina-colada-logged brains that day? Well, he did discuss some of the basics. I always like to hear about that stuff. It's like karate. Always back to basics. Every time I hear them I get a little bit better. Especially when someone like Craig puts his own spin on it.

The gist of Craig's presentation was his unusual and off-beat use of flashes with outdoor lighting. Craig has created a system that creates images above and beyond anything I've ever seen. His images are the kind that elicit that internal query: "How does he do that?". This stuff is cool. Combine it with his ultra-cool photoshop actions and you've got a winning combination that should, if you do this right, leave your competition wondering "how does he/she do that?", and your clients should and will be impressed with what you can do for them. And they will pay you, over and over. Innovation sells.

Okay, enough. Let's get to the good stuff. Here's what I've learned. Note from the attached images showing the lighting layout. As you can see there are two Nikon 880s. There is one on-camera as well. These flashes are amazing and what I've done here is a blatant rip-off from Craig's technique. Hey, he's teaching the stuff, and I'm willing to learn. Nothing wrong with duplicating what he's doing. In time I will, and have been modifying it to my own unique style. But I am showing you what he showed me- minus the sun, beaches, cigars and rum.

			The off-camera flashes are both set from the master flash (on camera). These Nikon flashes are amazing. You get to set one as master and the others as remote, and from the master flash you control the output. The camera is set to aperature priority TTL. This is essential and is the heart of the magic in all this. The two off-camera flashes are exposure compensated to plus one stop. The camera flash is adjusted to minus two stops. It acts as a very weak fill light. The camera's exposure compensation is set to minus one stop.
Did you get all that? If not, read it again until the pain goes away and you do get it... That's part of the learning process. It hurt my head just writing it !
The idea is simple, and it works. My Nikon D2X does an amazing job in all this. The ambient light will be under by one stop. The fill will be very subtle and also creates a slight twinkle in the eye- catchlights. The two remote flashes will be properly exposed since they are adjusted to one stop over (remember, the camera is minus one stop, which will under expose the ambient by one stop and the flashes by one- so, you need to make up for this with the external flashes.) The effect is an amazing blending of ambient light and flash, all inter-mingling and working in perfect harmony to create some real funky cool results. Try doing that cousin Vinny or aunt Marge at the next wedding I see you at? Even though you have some serious gear, and yes, you may own photoshop, these make not a photographer. It's how you bring light together by "seeing" and using composition with the subject to create high impact images.

* You will have to watch the free photoshop tutorial I've created for you further below...
Enjoy!

- Rob Provencher

Next Steps - Creative Image Enhancements Made Easy ! - Click for Movie Tutorial ... !

Related Links:

NOBS Forum Cast and Crew - More Info

Other Links:

Surfer Girl Location Lighting and Retouching Tricks

Working with Adobe Bridge and Adobe Camera Raw

Apple Aperture Review


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All Images & Text this page courtsey of Rob Provencher CPA - Copyright 2006