A quick and easy solution for any photographer to have studio quality lighting on the go.
One of the most important aspects of photography is lighting. Lighting is key to a picture because it helps in creating dimension and emotion. Even without lighting, photographers can achieve and take amazing pictures.
On my recent photography workshop in Victor, Idaho, we learned a technique that allows any photographer to get studio quality lighting on the go. Whether your a product or portrait photographer, this lighting technique is perfect for any mobile photographer.
Speedlights have become one of my main go to items in my photography bag. The power that you get from a speedlight is unmatched when you compare and consider the portability factor.
Speedlights are great for a mobile photographer because they can be mounted on stands, tripods, or even be hand held. Typically whenever I like to shoot, I prefer to have a lighting assistant as I am able to get better lighting from different, obscure angles.
However, having a lighting assistant isn’t always possible. Plus, I’m not a big fan of having a speedlight mounted on a fixed stand. When I shoot with a speedlight, I love to be able to change the position between each shot, and a stand makes it hard for me to do that when I’m alone.
If you’re a mobile photographer, always on the go, there’s an easy solution for you. My friend, mentor, and professor, Caryn Esplin taught us the magic of MTS: Mobile Triangle Snoot.
It’s important to mention that MTS is not meant to have a black background. MTS is meant to have shadows and highlights that allow the subject to be exposed while the background is tastefully exposed. Here’s an example of a product shot that I was able to capture utilizing the MTS method.
The best thing about MTS is it looks like you’re not even using an off camera flash. In this case, the reflection you can see on the front of the bottle is from the windows – not from the snooted speedlight. By shooting the speedlight we direct the light in combination with its power setting.
To wrap this post up, take a look at these two portraits I took of Caryn Esplin herself. The thing I absolutely love about the MTS technique is that it looks like I didn’t even use a speedlight, however, you can tell because of the great round catchlight in her eye!
For more lighting techniques for the mobile photographer, take a look at Brian Hirschy’s blog post: Mobile Lighting for Travel Photography.
