Posts about Swiss 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. I first became interested in the subject in 2008, after a lifetime of being fairly incompetent at using on-camera flash and hence avoiding its use whenever possible.

Since beginning to learn more about the techniques involved, I quickly gained new friends with similar interests in the Swiss photographic community. Interest gained pace remarkably quickly in Switzerland, in line with the rest of the photographic world. Since 2008, I’ve been organizing semi-regular practical days and workshops, both on location and in the studio, at which I not only experiment myself with technique, but also help other, less experienced photographers to improve their own photographs.

(Note: David kindly gave me permission to use the term “Swiss Strobist” for the Swiss community which practices this technique. Our group has nothing to do with David or his business.)

Bist du deutschsprachiger «Strobist», ist diese Wiki-Seite sehr interessant und hilfreich.

I return to the studio this weekend, to use full studio lighting for the first time in many years and share experience and ideas with a number of colleagues from the Swiss Strobist group.

Second image from a shoot in Bern, inspired by 1980 classic horror film “The Shining”.

A technical review and explanation of the Helios 5 in 1 reflector/diffuser combination, which I added to my collection of equipment this week.

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Sometimes, an image stands alone, with no need for description.

After trying out the lighting technique I mentioned yesterday, of a large diffused light source right above the subject, I wanted to apply the technique to an outdoor location. When we set up the shots under cover in Interlaken (but outside), the first problem was that there were no suitably white walls to hand. If you ever find yourself in this situation, there’s an easy solution: simply expose your shot for the person you’re photographing and then over-expose the background of the shot by at least three stops.

A gallery of photographs from the Strobist portrait day at the EPFL in Lausanne, Switzerland.

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Continuing on the theme of photographic ideas, here’s another image from a photo session in Zürich a couple of weeks ago, in which lighting played a key part in the shoot. The idea was born when I came across the unusual road markings in the middle of a four-way junction.

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

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

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 […]

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 […]