We moved to a new neighborhood this past summer and so I’ve been discovering the expanse of trails that wind through hilly forests just a few blocks away. It’s like having my own outdoor studio right near the house!
Did some trail running photography over there this weekend and snagged this shot at the end of our session. I used the Nikon D700 with my go-to portrait lens, the Nikon 85mm f1.8D. Light was from a single SB-800 Speedlight that was placed inside a Photoflex Octodome NXT off to the side and triggered the from the camera’s pop-up flash.
To me, this shot is a great illustration of why it’s worth the energy and a little bit of extra gear to take a small strobist lighting rig with me no matter where I go. We were inside the forest here, and while the shaded overcast evened up the ambient light some and prevented any overly dark shadows on her face, without the flash, it would have just lost the catchlights, the definition and the “pop” that really bring this image to life.
Strobes do make a difference, and they don’t have to slow you down.
[…] Alaska. (Click the image to see it bigger.) In some ways, they’re in the same line as my Trail Runner Portrait from the other day; both shoots employ the subtle use of off-camera flash to boost the life and pop […]