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I am just starting out
doing mostly children pictures but some adults as well.
My question is about the color gels. Exactly what is the
technique for using the color gels? I have seen pictures
with these used and think that it would be a great
addition to my work.
Karrie
Hi Karrie
The technique is simple. Put gels over your strobes and
use them. You will need gel holders that attach to your
strobe heads. You then attach the gel to the holder. You
can use welding clamps the attach the gel directly or the
better way is to cut out some cardboard squares the size
of the gel holder with a hole in the center and attach
pieces of gel that are the same size as the cardboard.
You can attach the gel with black tape that is a lot like
masking tape, just black. Get it at an art supply store.
Don’t use duct tape or gaffers tape. The adhesive is
too soft and will melt with heat and make things rather
sticky.
That's it! You must make decisions as to where you want
certain colors to be. You will probably find that a warm
amber is more attractive as a hair light than green. Blue
makes a great compliment to amber as a background color.
You learn simple by looking at other photographers work
and see what you like and what you don't like. It's also
important to be creative on your own and invent new color
combinations and ways to use them as accent lights for
the subject and the background.
You can take meter readings of colored light just like
you can white light but beware that depending on the
accuracy of your flash meter, not all colors will read
accurately. This is another reason why I so strongly
recommend the Minolta Flash Meter (not the lesser
expensive auto meter). The Minolta Flash Meters color
sensitivity is generally better than other meters
according to a Minolta representative. I have never had
an experience where the reading seemed hugely inaccurate.
I feel pretty good trusting the meter.
We now have the
LightingMagic
Gel Kit
Click on the gels
for more info |
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