Permanent Tourist

The personal website of Mark Howells-Mead

Post series Strobist

Strobist” is a term coined by American photographer David Hobby, who was one of the first bloggers to hit the mainstream and help his readers learn more about the use of artificial lighting techniques on a budget.

  • Stephanie

    Subtle lighting

    A new colleague joined our team at the day job this week, so as usual, I was called into service to take portrait shots for our team’s blog and website.

  • Complementary

    Jo poses for an unusual night-time portrait in Spiez.

  • My friend Beat Glauser, discussing photographic geekery late one evening at my home.

  • After seeing a few shots around the internet in a certain darkened, de-saturated style, I asked around to see if anyone was familiar with the post-processing technique which is used to create it.

  • Photos from last Sunday, when a colleague from work and his girlfriend took up my offer and joined me for a free photoshoot.

  • The date for the next Swiss Strobist photographic meetup in Lausanne (Switzerland) has been selected.

  • Regular visitors and fans of my photography will be delighted to hear that I have added another level of pricing to my price listings: free!

  • By whittling down pictures while you are still shooting, or when you are trying to assess their merits on a tiny little screen, you always run the risk of deleting a shot which later turns out to be one you really like.

  • This is the kind of shot that I hope to achieve more by continuing to work with CHOO CHOO in future. They’re a great bunch, not just musically but also fun and motivated; being around them infuses everyone with energy, once they get going! No setup at all on this shot: just a grab as…

  • Càirdeas

    Through Jo’s contact with the Whisky Experience, with whom she is working, we arranged a photoshoot for Scottish folk music band Càirdeas this weekend at the Hotel Schweizerhof in Lucerne. The guys come over from Scotland on a regular basis to play gigs at places like the Pickwick chain of British pubs and at whisky…

  • Through contact with event organiser “The Whisky Experience”, I arranged a photoshoot for Scottish folk music band Càirdeas at the Hotel Schweizerhof in Lucerne. The guys come over from Scotland on a regular basis to play gigs at places like the Pickwick chain of British pubs and at whisky tasting events. The staff of the…

  • Week 13 of 52

    A complete accident which worked out well. Slightly out of focus, misaligned, and the second flash didn’t fire because I was blocking the optical sensor. I like it, though. Strobist info: 1 speedlight on 1/16 power off-camera left (high). Background illuminated by feathered spill from the single light. Sepia toning and vignette courtesy of Adobe…

  • David Hobby at CERN

    The “Strobist” himself, David Hobby, was in Geneva this week and held a seminar in one of the gloriously 70s-style lecture theatres at CERN.

  • To plan Strobist days for 2009 and to re-invigorate interest in the subject and community, we’ve launched a new blog and email newsletter. Pop over and check it out, join in and send me any information you have which we can use on the site, from tips and equipment to ideas for pictures and locations.…

  • A work colleague, backlit by the sun coming in through the window, flash laid on keyboard and bounced from laptop screen at 1/8 power to give f 2.8 at ISO 100. Fill-in flash from camera right at 1/1 power (losing 2 stops due to diffusion). And a little bit of dark vignette added during post-processing…

  • Manuel and Karolina

    Taking portraits is always a great opportunity and I enjoyed taking photos of Manuel and his wife Carolina this past weekend.

  • Kate’s Visit

    Loads of lovely photos online from when my friend Kate was visiting us in Switzerland.

  • Thanks so much to everyone who turned out yesterday on the ETH campus in Zürich, for a great afternoon’s photography, teaching and learning how to effectively use off-camera flash and achieve both dramatic and interesting portraits. A surprisingly and gratifyingly high number of photographers attended – almost 20 in the group, if I remember correctly…

  • We’re planning a day/afternoon of photography on the ETH Campus at Hönggerberg in Zürich, on Sunday 21st September. We’re planning on separating into a couple of groups, with one or more experienced strobist photographer/s with a group of people eager to learn. We’ll set up a couple of shots, explain the lighting setup and then…

  • This is a rapidly conceived and executed shot, as a big storm headed in from the Simmen valley from western Switzerland. I saw the distant clouds being illuminated by lightning (which accounts for the varied colouring in the clouds) so I grabbed a tripod and framed my shot from our living room window, setting exposure…

  • This Lladró statue, designed by Francisco Català, was a gift from my parents and fits well with my photographic tendencies. It is also a great test piece for studio photography, so when I was looking to test flash technique this evening (in particular, soft lighting) it was immediately brought out. The statue is around 13″…