I was working on some new demos for the Canon EOS Immersion Seminars & Workshops tour and decided to use this image of a strawberry frozen in mid-splash to demonstrate how Canon Speedlites can be used to stop-action.
This was a very simple set-up requiring just a DSLR and lens, two flashes, a remote cord, and a few props. In the image above, the two bottom photos show the materials I used to create the shot on top.
In my set-up I used the following:
Canon EOS 7D DSLR
Canon 100mm f/2.8L macro lens
Canon Speedlite 430 EX II
Canon Speedlite 320 EX
Remote release cord
Delkin Fat Gecko Mini camera mount
Glass kitchen cannister
White foamcore held up with binder clips
Ziploc type bags
Fresh strawberries
First, I set up the cannister, foamcore backdrop and camera to determine the ideal camera-to-subject distance.
Then, I set up the two flashes. The 430 EX II was used to light the backdrop from the left and the 320 EX was set up on the right to illuminate the strawberry. I set the flashes on Manual to ensure that the ETTL wouldn’t get fooled by the reflectivity of the white background and the water, and to ensure that I got consistent exposures every time. The integrated pop-up flash on the Canon EOS 7D was configured as a Master only. Thus, it fired the two remote flashes but did not add any light to the shot. The Ziploc bags were then used to encase the Speedlites to protect them from splashing water.
With some quick test shots I nailed the exposure down to 1/200 sec @ f/9 at ISO 400. After that it was simply a matter of timing my shutter release to capture the strawberry just after it entered the water. It took some trial and error, but eventually I was able to consistently fire at just the right moment. The biggest challenge was that I was unable to control how the strawberry would react once it hit the water. It came down to sheer numbers, but the best results came from using strawberries with longer stems that provided a more consistent release as opposed to strawberries that were held from their sides…
I chose strawberries because of their dramatic red color, but I plan on trying this technique again with lemon and orange slices, bell peppers, and other colorful fruits and vegetables…
Three Days in Chicago
I spent a few days in Chicago earlier this month traveling with the Canon EOS Immersion Seminars & Workshops and was actually able to get out and capture a few photos.
A rare treat for me on these gigs…
Although I was limited by only how far my feet would carry me, there is a lot of opportunities in the greater Chicago downtown area. Especially fruitful were the areas along the Chicago River and Millennium Park along Michigan Ave.
“Cloud Gate” is the iconic sculpture in the park that’s a seamless, chrome covered art piece that reflects everything around it. It’s a spectacular and popular attraction and I couldn’t seem to stop photographing it. In fact, I took over 4500 photos of it and other landmarks around the city that day and created “Chicago Rush” a short time-lapse video available on Vimeo and YouTube.
Aileen and the Speedlights
From the Canon EOS Immersion Seminar in Chicago…
Question: ”How many Canon Speedlites can be assigned to a single Group when shooting wireless remotes?”
Answer: ”Let’s see… How ‘bout we do a little experiment to find out. Everyone dig out your Speedlites and set them up to Slave - Channel 1 - Group A. Ready, Aileen? Smile..”
<POP>
“Check it out, they ALL went off.”
[Raucous cheering, applause, and a standing ovation. …Well, some light applause anyway.]
- There is NO limit to how many Canon Speedlites can be assigned to a single wireless Group. As long as they are in line of sight of the Master Speedlite emitting an optical signal (as opposed to the new radio-based system in the Canon Speedlite 600 EX RT) they will ALL fire..
Three Days in New Orleans
I was in New Orleans for the first stop of the Canon EOS Immersion Seminars & Workshops tour and managed to get out into the city for a few hours each evening to enjoy some of the Mardi Gras festivities. The food was fantastic… We ate at Mulate’s, Drago’s, and finally Mojitos; where the amazing Aruba Scallops with white chocolate chipolte sauce were surpassed only by the blazing rhythms of the Asheson Latin Band…
Later we made the required pilgrimage to Bourbon Street where live music was blaring from nearly every corner. We stopped in one local corner joint to listen to some traditional Dixieland jazz for an hour and soaked up the atmosphere, sights, and sounds of old New Orleans while imbibing in our cocktails.
Checked out a local voo-doo store, scored some beads, and even stopped into Pat O’Brians to try the famous Hurricane cocktail…
Overheard at Halftime…
“Who’s Madonna?”
“She’s Lady Gaga for old people…”
The Chief Seattle Boy Scout Council just released their latest video “What I Learned at Camp” and our guys in Troop 571 from Sammamish, WA are featured quite prominently. That’s them in the title sequence marching to dinner one evening… We contributed about half of the video footage from our week at Camp Pigott last July using the scout’s Flip cameras and my Canon EOS 5D Mark II. My son Eric had a few cameos and even contributed some voice-over narration at the :57 mark.
The Gettysburg Address
If there was Facebook in the 1860s….
Went exploring late yesterday and got some wonderful images deep inside the Fictus Ice Caverns here in Sammamish, WA. It was very easy access and the temperature was actually quite warm inside. About 68 degrees, as warm as my living room at home! The light was exquisite and the colors were a wonderous deep blue. About the same hue as a Roscoe #80 blue filter…
Since the caverns in a constant state of change, I hope to make more visits before they disappear in the spring thaw.
Aptly named the Fictus Ice Caverns see how to get there below…
As Cold As Ice
Dreary February weekdays are always a photographic challenge. Especially here in the Pacific Northwest where the sun makes an appearance about once every three weeks. I’m not claiming that good images can only be created on bright, warm days; it’s just a challenge to find something photogenic everyday. And if you want color, well, that just increases the difficulty expotentially.
Sometimes you just have to ‘think outside the box’ and, in this case, inside the bag. I tend to shoot a lot of isolated macro photos this time of year and was goofing around shooting stuff around the kitchen when I noticed how a slightly out of focus image of a white shopping bag resembles ice. After some test shots with my Canon PowerShot G12, I switched to the Canon EOS 5D Mark II with an original Lensbaby.
The set-up was simple.
Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Original Lensbaby lens
2- white foamcore boards
1- white plastic shopping bag
Roscoe #80 Blue gels
A single tungsten floor lamp
I set up the foamcore as a mini-studio and then placed the shopping bag in the center shaping it into a miniature cavern. I then covered the bag with the blue filters and positioned the lens at the entrance focusing towards the back. The 5D was set to Av to accomodate the Lensbaby aperture, and set to Tungsten white balance for some extra blue tonality.
After that, it was mostly trial and error until I achieved the look and exposure that produced the desired effect.
![Aileen and the Speedlights
From the Canon EOS Immersion Seminar in Chicago…
Question: ”How many Canon Speedlites can be assigned to a single Group when shooting wireless remotes?”
Answer: ”Let’s see… How ‘bout we do a little experiment to find out. Everyone dig out your Speedlites and set them up to Slave - Channel 1 - Group A. Ready, Aileen? Smile..”
<POP>
“Check it out, they ALL went off.”
[Raucous cheering, applause, and a standing ovation. …Well, some light applause anyway.]
- There is NO limit to how many Canon Speedlites can be assigned to a single wireless Group. As long as they are in line of sight of the Master Speedlite emitting an optical signal (as opposed to the new radio-based system in the Canon Speedlite 600 EX RT) they will ALL fire..](http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m1imrejOXI1rod14ho1_1280.jpg)
