Flash Works!

I spent the day at Phlash Worx studio in Warwick, learning about different studio lighting setups, thanks to the very amenable Trevor Davies, ably supported by Stephanie Branch, who sorted out all the food. In another life, she is a makeup artist.

This was the first time I have ever been anywhere where all the biscuits and cakes on offer were gluten free. Of the four attending the workshop, I was coeliac, and Mark was gluten intolerant, so the other two attendees had to eat the gluten free stuff too! But they got regular sandwiches for lunch whereas Mark and I had healthy salads and fruit. The rocket got stuck in my denture!

The most important thing of course was that this course is the one about setting up studio lights that I have been looking for. Trevor explained four basic setups with a single light: butterfly, loop, Rembrandt and Split. Essentially, all other lighting combos are built on these concepts.

Trevor introduced us to the lights and how the dials and buttons should be used. We then took turns to set up the lighting style, with Trevor turning the dials at the outset so that we had to adjust the lights according to our light meter readings. I can now use a light meter with confidence!

After lunch, we practiced using modifiers to adapt the lighting and learned how to set up the three light arrangement for portrait photography. This included the lighting for keeping a white background white and alternatives that darkened the background.

A lot to take in. Thank goodness Steph gave me a spare notebook for writing it all down. I was effusive in my thanks. Our model, Alex, was super, as you should be able to tell from the photo.

If you want to learn the basics of studio lighting, you can't go wrong taking this course.

A wonderful sunset on my drive home which I could glimpse only occasionally. The whole of the western sky went red and pink. Cooked pork loin chops for dinner. I've exhorted Len not to buy loin chops in future. They're dry and tasteless. Would much rather have belly pork.

Len had joined George at King Power Stadium for the Leicester City vs Manchester United match. Perhaps the less said about that, the better.