The magical world of light and shadow created by flash.

Lead: "if you keep moving forward, you don't have to worry about being surpassed by others!" From shooting photographers outside to becoming a professional photographer with his own studio, Zhang Mark believes that in the face of the ever-changing photography market, continuous learning is the driving force for progress; Whether you borrow a mirror from nature or attend a class, it is the happiest thing to be able to create a perfect vision accurately in your mind with all the light.

Since the photography of the magical light and shadow world created by flash is an art of painting with light, it is naturally the starting point for most people to take pictures outdoors. From early morning, noon to dusk, as long as God is kind, God has helped us to light up. As long as we find the right scenery, we can take pictures with peace of mind. Moreover, sunlight is continuous and stable. Generally speaking, you can take good photos by paying more attention to composition and contrast. However, after all, Sun is not a lighting engineer who gets our salary. Neither obedient nor restrained. The angle of the light source cannot be arbitrary, and the light intensity cannot be controlled. As long as the contrast is large, no matter how beautiful the scene is, the bright part will explode and the dark part will be black. Therefore, if you want to make your own photography by going up one flight of stairs, you should not only "capture" the light, but also learn the skills of "controlling" the light, and even "create" the light environment you want? That is, entering the studio to take pictures.

In the shed, light should find its own way.

"When it comes to taking pictures in the studio, most photographers are scared. After all, this is a completely different world from shooting outside. Zhang hen said, "When shooting outdoors, as long as the weather permits, choose the right time and scene and make a good composition, you can take good photos with the help of sunlight. "But in the shed, we should not only find a way to light the lamp ourselves, but also decorate the scene ourselves. In addition, when shooting with flash or shed light, most of them don't use continuous light source, so before lighting, you can't confirm the actual lighting effect with your own eyes, so you can only practice in your mind. The problem is that our views on Dachuan are actually different, so everyone will feel scared or scared! 」

From outdoor shooting to inside the shed, Mark feels that the principle of outdoor shooting is very similar to that of outdoor shooting, except that the lighting has to be done by himself. But the principles of these lights are actually related to the natural environment, and many skills come from observation and constant practice in daily life. It is not difficult to shoot in a simple shed, but it requires the accumulation of experience; Once the light foundation is laid step by step, the complicated multi-lamp lighting is no longer a problem.

Photography always comes from profound observation.

When it comes to lighting, Mark thinks that the most important thing is not whether to use flashing lights or shed lights, which lights are more powerful or which brands are more durable, or just the technical problem of how to use lamps for accessories, but the observation of natural light environment at ordinary times. "A lot of wonderful lights actually come from imitating nature! Mark said that most of the day, the sun shines from above, and our visual memory is also established in such a light environment; Therefore, if we set the lamp holder too low when lighting in the studio, it will violate our established impression of light and produce an unspeakable sense of disobedience. This is one of the most common problems that ordinary people encounter when they start lighting: the position of the lamp holder is too low.

Mark found that when many beginners of flash/shed light just got the equipment, their first reaction was to put on the cover, connect the power supply, press the shutter immediately, and then they couldn't wait to look at the photos they had just taken, expecting the results. Like what? How come it's not as effective as those photos on the Internet or in newspapers and magazines? It looks strange, but I don't know where it is.

"If we don't want to create special effects, generally speaking, we will put the lamp holder above the model's head and hit it from top to bottom. Mark said, "but many people are in a hurry to take pictures after putting the lamp on the tripod, so they don't notice the height of the lamp." The solution is actually very simple, that is, just pull the lamp higher.

Lighting is actually a display of personality. Even with the same lighting method, everyone takes different photos. The most difficult thing to learn to polish is actually the invisible place.

Close relationship between studio and lamps

When talking about the height of the lamp and recalling all kinds of blood and tears that cost a lot of money before, Mark can't help but think of the choice of studio and photographic equipment.

"First of all, the studio must be high enough. Mark explained that although the average person's height is below 1.9 meters, considering the installation of lighting, the studio often needs to have a height of 3 meters. If you don't pay attention to the ceiling height at the beginning of site selection, you will be limited in lighting. But what if the studio is just not that high? Is it necessary to restrict tall models from entering? The point is actually: buy a lamp with a small wattage! Mark said with a smile, if the ceiling height is less than three meters and the number of floors is less than five, it is best to buy 300 to 400 watts of lamps, and it is even better if you can buy 200 watts; In this way, the aperture control value is large when shooting.

The so-called aperture control value is the range of aperture values that can be used. In the studio, if the lighting imitates natural light, it is best to use a large aperture below f/4. On the one hand, if you always shoot with a small aperture in the studio, it is not much different from the photos of Quan Jingshen taken by a small DC; On the other hand, generally, when we shoot indoors with natural light, unless there are three large windows at the scene, the amount of light entering cannot reach the aperture value below f/4 at all.

"So, indoor scenery to imitate natural light shooting, of course, from the big aperture! Mark analyzed that since a large aperture should be used, the output of the lamp should naturally not be too large; Moreover, if the studio is not a black shed or the number of terraces is too small, it is easy to form too strong reflected light, so in a narrow studio, the smaller the light output, the better. If the shooting space is more than five pings and the ceiling is more than three meters, Mark suggests that you buy a lamp with 600 watts or more as much as possible to make up for the lack of reflected light. As for the number of lights, considering everyone's limited financial ability, Mark suggested that everyone should prepare at least three lights (including external flashlights), preferably four. In my own experience, at most three pieces are useful. If you want to use background paper as lighting, it may be more difficult to make up the light at each point. Mark said, in fact, the more lights, the better, but if the purse is not deep enough, it is best to buy four, and three are necessary.

The Secret Relationship between ISO and Flash Output

Speaking of lamp output, Mark wants to share another secret to get high output effect without spending money: flexible use of high ISO value.

In fact, everyone who uses an external flash knows that the GN value of the flash is set to ISO 100, so if you shoot with ISO200, the GN value of the flash will be multiplied by two, and so on; Therefore, as long as your camera performs well under high ISO, you don't need to spend a lot of money to buy a high GN flash. So is the shed lamp. If you shoot with ISO200, a 400-watt shed lamp will immediately become an 800-watt shed lamp. When you switch to ISO400, its strength will be as high as 1600 watts, almost the same as that of a small electric bucket lamp? The price difference is much!

The secret of photography progress: the more you learn, the faster you learn.

Mark is not from the relevant department. At the beginning of his photography career, he didn't start as a photography assistant. All the knowledge about photography comes from self-study, so he attaches great importance to continuous learning.

"I have always believed that free is not the best, so as long as I can spend money to study, I will definitely spend money to study! Mark said, especially after the establishment of the studio, my identity changed from a creator to an operator, so I also encouraged my assistants to go out to class and subsidize their tuition.

Mark never cares whether the lecturer is famous in the class. As long as the topic is interesting and the lecturer has the strength, he will listen. "For me, a class doesn't need to go back every minute, as long as I learn a useful concept, it's worth it! He analyzed that even if a class costs 500 yuan, 1000 yuan, if you really learn something, it is very cost-effective to shoot for an hour. Moreover, "learning has a multiplier effect. The more you learn, the faster you learn! Mark compared his learning process. He found that when he came into contact with photography, his learning speed was very slow, because what the teacher said was not necessarily understandable, and many words with a little knowledge might be forgotten after listening. But with the accumulation of experience, he can often avoid analogy in class now, and even find his blind spot from what the lecturer takes casually. "Every photographer has his own habits and strengths. What is not very important to one person may be the part that another person needs most, so I always pay attention to the class. Mark said that in addition to learning by himself, he also asked to teach by himself; After the teaching assistants finish their classes, they should hold them regularly? Seminar? Share with each other. This is the learning method he learned in medical college.

"In the past, in the laboratory, the teacher always asked us to find papers related to our own research to do post-reading reports, and it was the same when we came to Academia Sinica; Even if there are no foreigners present, we are required to publish in English. Mark said, "I felt very hard at that time, because preparing for the seminar would not only disrupt the progress of the experiment, but sometimes I even couldn't sleep." But in retrospect, it was a good opportunity to make sure that the whole lab members knew what they had learned. And if you don't need to report it, you don't need to use your own words. A lot of times we just think we understand. 」

The true meaning of teaching and learning.

After the recent publication of this book, many friends asked Mark, aren't you worried that you will have no food after all your "earning skills" are learned by others? "If a teacher teaches his students, they will certainly learn something. Will there still be education problems in this world? " Mark smiled and said, "When you finish reading a book, you will turn on the light. Such people are not our opponents at all, but geniuses above us! It would be my honor if I could let a genius inspire photography. Mark not only didn't care to share his ideas and skills as a professional photographer in recent years, but also found that he not only had a deeper reflection and experience on photography because of his writing, but also noticed many details that he hadn't noticed in the past, and his photography technology improved.

"When I first wanted to publish a book, I hoped that readers would learn lighting skills step by step from lighting correction through the comparison of failure and success cases; As a result, in the process of writing the wrong technique, I saw clearly the problem of taking pictures in the past and was able to correct myself. This was an unexpected gain. " Mark said. "After I was busy publishing a book, I found that the photos I took were closer to the complete idea, which is the best thing! 」

Only by being strict with yourself can we surpass others.

In order to improve his photography, Mark thinks that what happened after taking pictures is more important than taking pictures now, among which choosing pictures is the most important. "Be strict with yourself when choosing a map. No matter how many pictures I took today, I asked myself not to pick more than 20, only less and no more. In order to meet this requirement, when several similar photos are put together, Mark always asks himself to choose only one. Over time, he not only observed the details more accurately, but also mastered the accuracy of taking pictures, especially the control of contrast.

"In fact, for taking pictures, many times we have to control the contrast. After all, we need different contrast under different lighting conditions and shooting requirements. Mark said that whether adding a sub-light, changing the position of the light source, placing two reflectors or adjusting the output, the purpose is the same: reducing the contrast of images that need sweetness or improving the contrast of images that show sexy feeling. Whether it is indoor, outdoor, or natural light mixed with artificial light, the principle is actually the same. " The more precise the control is, the closer it is to the visual impression brought by the change of natural light and shadow, and the better the effect is. 」

In addition to picking pictures, Mark thinks it is more important to think about what he is shooting. "Why should I take this photo? What does this photo mean? This is more important. He pointed out that ordinary people often take pictures from the big head of the standard mirror; After a while, you will enter the wide-angle lens, because a wide field of vision can bring new excitement; Then it may develop to a large aperture lens, because a blurred lens can bring new excitement; After that, I will go to the medium telephoto lens or enter the world of flash. But no matter what equipment is used to shoot, the key is that what a photo wants to express is not clear. Of course, a photo is interpreted differently in everyone's eyes. What a photographer can do is to make the "thorn point" of each photo clearer through introspection, reflection and practice again and again.

Of course, Mark knows very well that a good work is not only the success of a photographer, but also the result of many people's efforts. "The reality is that the higher the cost of a good advertising photo, the better the final visual effect, which is an indisputable fact. Mark said that an advertising photography case with a budget of 2 million only paid the photographer 50 to/kloc-0.0 million yuan, of which 500 to 600 thousand yuan was spent on clothing modeling, and the photographer was only the person who recorded the final result.

Once the photographer takes all the success on himself, it is not only a disrespect for the partners who work together, but also the beginning of stopping learning. Learning is the driving force for progress. "It's no use worrying about being overtaken by others or learning to walk away. Only by continuous learning can we keep moving forward. Mark said that as a SOHO family, the most important thing is self-time management ability? Not only do you have to ask yourself to complete all the shooting work within a certain period of time and hand it over to customers, but you also have to be self-disciplined in self-study. When it comes to improving photography, we should not only shoot more, but also watch more.

Mark said that shooting is more of an exercise in ability. As for reading more, we should not only look at our own works, but also look at other people's works. When you see good skills, you must learn to pat them and turn them into your own things, so as to spur yourself to make continuous progress. He thinks it is more important to face the negative emotions such as fear or disgust caused by reading other people's works. The more you hate or fear a person's job, it must be that he has something you don't. After five years of exploring the road of photography, Mark found that these negative emotions are not only unnecessary, but also make people stand still and fall into the dilemma of self-repetition, which is harmful to themselves. Now he learns to appreciate everyone's merits, and he can relax and shoot more easily.

Mark feels really happy to learn photography now. There are many books and many courses. With the rapid progress of science and technology, what digital cameras can do now was unimaginable only five years ago. In addition to photography creation, as an operator, Mark stressed that to be a boss, you must know more than others and bear more burdens. Now he feels that there is still a lot of room for improvement: for example, learn more digital darkroom and post-production skills, practice mastering more complicated outdoor flash shooting environment, and make each photo closer to his own ideas. "Photography is the result of various skills, and I still want to learn! 」