I'm Thinking Photography For Christmas...

[Kayla Lamoreaux]

One of the bright sides of this crazy economy are some great deals! In my email this morning I found one from Westcott that I had to share -

For those of you that love photography, you will know how cool this is. Strobe lighting is what the pros use in their studios - it really makes all the difference in having a photo look professional. The educational kit from Westcott is already a great deal because it comes with equipment and DVD training, helping you understand how to use the lighting in different situations.

The latest special also adds in soft boxes - if you are wondering WHY you would want a softbox... Window lighting is some of the best lighting you can use in photography. Place your subject so that the light is to their side and you can get amazing images. The only problem with this is that the natural light from the sun is changing direction all day - so depending on the time of day that you sit your subject next to that window, you will get all sorts of different results.

With a softbox you can get the same natural light from different directions and never have to worry about what time of day it is. Forget scheduling your photography around the sun - you can have what you want when your kids (or your friends' children) are the happiest!

The gels added to the Strobelite Plust 2-Lite Box Kit are a very nice plus. Photographers use barn doors to control the amount and direction of light. While I would work with soft boxes before barn doors and gels, they are definitely something that will add a lot to your photography. Using the gels can add a completely different feel to your photos - they are especially fun when recreating retro vintage looks.

The educational kit with the strobe lights alone can make a huge difference - here is a shot taken before lighting (all that was used was my on-camera flash) -

After Lighting -

Some more fun shots from the same day...

I would have paid more than $500 to get the digital negatives to my favorite shots from this sitting (if the photographer would give me the negatives at all). I also would have had to work around the photographer's schedule and not had as easy or carefree a time playing with my kids in front of the camera.

These results are just with the basic kit. On my personal Christmas list? The soft boxes - I took a class recently and can't wait to play with a 50" bank of lights. Hoping Santa will come early (dh reads my blog) so that I can use them for the annual Christmas Card photo! Time will tell!

Speaking of holiday cards - are you thinking about yours yet? Last year I went all digital and definitely heard about it from family members who are offline. This year I hope to find a happy medium between digital and traditional printed cards...

How about you? Are you taking your own holiday card photos? Do you have a special location lined up? A favorite photographer? A digital design for the card?

Do tell!

[Kayla Lamoreaux]

I actually set this up in my daughter's bedroom and took the photos in the evening so the light wasn't a factor. You can actually do this anywhere where you don't have direct light from a window - the lighting covers any ambient light. The education DVD is fabulous and really helps you know how and where to setup.

[Brooke - in Oregon]

Where do you set up your equipment? It seems like you would need a room without windows or maybe a garage?