Hi everyone,

In advance of the Christmas holidays I’ve been trying out an off-camera flash setup using whatever bits and pieces that I had rattling around in a drawer. I dug out a flash bracket, and my JJC pistol grip. I unscrewed the cold shoe from the bracket and screwed it to the top of the pistol grip and, as the grip has a tripod bush in the base I was then able to screw it onto the bracket. The grip also has a trigger which, when connected to the camera’s remote port by cable allows the camera to be fired from the grip. The Godox TT350o flash is fired by the Godox X1To radio flash trigger mounted on the camera so as to keep the cabling to a minimum. I could also dispense with the flash gear and fit one of my small Godox LED36 video lights to the grip instead.

I tried this arrangement out by taking some portrait shots of my wife and I’m very pleased with the results and the way the gear handles in use. She absolutely detests having her picture taken but she reluctantly agreed so as I could test out the gear as she wants some new shots of the grandkids in particular and she would hang, draw and quarter me or possibly worse 🙂 if I posted them online. In fact I never publish private family shots online anywhere especially so of the grandkids. Somewhat of a sad commentary on the world we live in perhaps, too many unsavoury characters out there in my opinion. But many years ago I used to do quite a bit of portraiture and model photography before my photographic interests changed from photographing people to mostly landscapes.

I’ve since added a small quick release plate arrangement mounted between the bottom of the grip and the bracket so that I can quickly attach and detach the grip and use the flash handheld.

PS. I awoke this morning very early whilst it was still dark and couldn’t get back to sleep so I made myself a nice cup of tea and thought I’d take a few test “shots in the dark” inside the house to try something out so I additionally fitted one of my small dimmable Godox LED36 video lights to my flash bounce grip arrangement. It worked very well as a focus assist light source. Dimmed down to a setting of my choice the light from the LED unit was overwhelmed by my choice of flash output it was really just there to see what I was doing stumbling around in the darkness and to stop me from tripping over and breaking my neck however when on full brightness it is pretty bright and the light source temperatures didn’t clash. I think that it would also make a nice modelling light, catch light, fill light etc. or just an alternative light source to throw in the mix and its very small and light so I can accommodate it in my choice of bag. Like the flash and trigger units it also runs on 2 AA batteries which is convenient.

Kind regards

Leigh

Hi everyone,

I’ve been busying myself recently by posting mostly about photographic gear whilst the main road has remained closed to public transport for more than a week due to the flooding following Storm Ciaran and I’ve been unable to get out and get any new shots or pretty much anything else for that matter, I’m going a bit stir-crazy but should be able to get out somewhere soon.

I got one of these small flash soft box diffusers with an elasticated fitting and part silvered inside specifically for my Godox Lux Junior flash. As the Lux Junior is a direct manual flash it can be a bit too stark with harsh shadows when mounted directly on the camera unless that’s the look one’s looking for. With the diffuser fitted I think that one would probably need to compensate for the loss of light by increasing the output power by one or two stops equivalent or, if not possible, by increasing the ISO setting by the same degree. The diffuser would also fit my Godox TT350 flash or I guess pretty much any other flash gun, but the 350 unit has a bounce head, bounce card and attachable diffuser so it’s probably not required so much as with the smaller unit. You can get these diffusers “as cheap as chips” at circa £5 UK on E-bay etc. and they don’t take up much space as you can see in the pictures below, side by side with and fitted to the Lux Junior. I’ve tried out other types of diffuser in the past which have all proven to be either too flimsy and/or too bulky so this one looks like a better bet. I suppose if all else fails I could always draw a nose and two eyes on it and use it as a glove puppet to keep our youngest baby granddaughter amused for a while. 🙂

All the best,

Leigh

Hi everyone,

I like to organise my camera gear into kits to suit my different needs. When thinking about a choice of the camera and lenses to take with me size and particularly the weight has ever increasingly become of paramount importance to me. The longer and more frequently that I have to carry the gear the lighter I want the load to be. Another factor that determines my choice is of course the type of subject. Generally, with the possible exception of travelling, I know pretty much what to expect and what I will need with me to give a good all round balance of focal lengths. They say “always expect the unexpected” but I do not want to carry the kitchen sink around with me all day on the vague off chance that I might require a certain bit of gear so, based on experience I pretty much know that my choice of gear for a day out or short stay will differ compared to a lengthier trip. Whether I’m going to shoot lots of landscape shots or maybe a selection of different subjects or a few family portraits shots. With all of this in mind I’ve put together four kit choices. There is a certain amount of overlap between the kits but I know which focal lengths I want with me and I’ve aimed to keep things down to a minimum whilst retaining a good degree of flexibility for shooting in different light conditions.

1. This kit is the lightest and most compact and contains my Olympus E-PL8 camera + EVF-4 electronic viewfinder and 12-32mm Lumix, 20mm f/1.7 Lumix (in the pouch) and 45mm f/1.8 Olympus lenses. So a small zoom and a couple of fast prime lenses. Great for a day out or a short trip, family shots etc..

2. This kit contain my Olympus PEN-F camera, Lumix 14-42mm II and Olympus 17mm f/1.8 (in a soft pouch) and my new Godox Lux Junior flash. Again good for a short trip or day out with the addition of a flash gun. This time one zoom lens and a fast prime lens.

3. A weather-sealed kit for travelling comprising of my Olympus E-M5 II camera and Lumix 12-60mm lens with small Olympus on-camera bounce capable flash . I used this combination several times in the past when travelling abroad and it provides me with the focal length range I require whilst keeping the weight manageable. The thing in the red pouch is a camera rain cover.

4. Another weather-sealed camera/lens combination, my Olympus E-M1 I and Olympus 12-45mm f/4 lens and Godox TT350 flash gun in the red pouch. The small Olympus on camera flash could optically trigger the larger flash if so wished. The heaviest, but still manageable, of the kits, The “Full Monty” 🙂

Kind regards

Leigh