Fill Flash--Bring your Own Sun! (Part One)

Assassin Bug, Peruvian Amazon

Photographing from below can increase the sense of drama, especially if the subject is a predator, such as this assassin bug. If done well, it gives the viewer the feeling of being prey.

One of the technical problems, however, may be that light still falls from above, and the lower parts of the subject may be in shadow.

Full flash will light the subject, certainly, but then you have a harsh light, with the potential for those horrible (opinionated!) black backgrounds. A reflector might work, if your subject is dead, sleeping, or very passive.

Solution: Fill flash! Fill flash, when adjusted properly, supplies just enough light to "fill" those areas of darkness just enough to show the detail you want, without being overpowering.

One of the things that I appreciate most about digital photography is the immediate feedback that I get by looking at the LCD immediately after shooting. I can tell right away whether my lighting is effective or not, and make the appropriate adjustments. In the next several blogs, I will share my own techniques for fill-flash.

Welcome Back!!!

Variable Clown Treefrog (Hyla triangulum) on water hyacinth


Well, I'm back (and so are you, if you're reading this...). I'm back from a wonderful week in that paradise for macro photographers, the Amazon Rainforest located along the portion of the Amazon river that runs through Peru.

Those of you who know me are aware that I have been down there many times in the past, but each trip is different, each trip reaps a harvest of varied experiences and photographs.

Over the next several weeks/months, I would like to share some of the things I learned and saw over that magical period. Equipment and ideas that worked, some that didn't. Images that I felt were successful, ones that disappointed...

If you click on the title line ("WELCOME BACK"), you will be transported to my archive from the trip. As usual, comments and questions are welcomed, and in fact, eagerly anticipated!