Strobist- how to light a swimming portrait

[34TR3m]

did your bottom flash survive the water?^^

[DNPhotography215]

man i'd be careful with that flash from under it almost looks like a goner.

[TheHakim03]

ha ha ha, how much you pay for the chubby .... I love his splash ha ha ha

good job

[kkkbbbs]

Video of your amazing .. We want more

I like this video

[smokyjee]

Thanks!!!

[noobie1890]

When Iook at these I think to myself "Boy I suck!"

[r0mm3l]

thanks for sharing this :o)

[davidabr1964]

Hey Thanks for sharing!.

[TangoJulietPhoto]

What power settings were you using on the Strobes? Were they zoomed to a specific focal length? I've got a Senior Swimmer and would love to do some similar shots.

[strobistthomas]

really cool setup and pictures! just have one (dumb) question...why does the surroundings get so black, there is quite a bit of ambient light here...

i am a swimcoach and a photographer, and want to try this with my swimmers.

thanks for a great video!

[OliverNewport]

@strobistthomas The camera is using a high shutter speed. To capture those splashes so clearly, a shutter speed of over 200+ would probably need to be used.

Of course this depends on how bright the strobes are, and what the aperture size and ISO is set to,

[denmark8645]

@strobistthomas imagine that there is no flash and set the settings for the back ground to expose it so that the final image is that dark. take the shot and when you get it to where the photo is exposed nice and dark you are set. keep in mind you must use a high shutter speed so that you can get that crisp stillness of the water in mid motion. using a high shutter speed will make the exposure dark like you want it. then turn on your flash and experiment with the power.

[denmark8645]

@strobistthomas set camera to manual mode. your flash sync speed will probably only go to 1/250. so now use your ISO setting, aperture to get the darker exposure. in some case you made need a neutral density filter if ambient light is to bright. i would recommend a polarizing filter to cut down on glare off of water. experiment and have fun!

[Mexico911]

LMAO i love the chubby kid staging the ripples in the water. He's a good kid, taking one for the team :)

[jaggtmolina]

@Mexico911 LOL "taking one for the team" !!

[Edititngtutorials]

@Mexico911 Loolll that is sooo jokes

[moonofsaudi]

Absolutely stunning.

[cts83]

Excellent, really gave me some great ideas.

[thecrazygardener]

Nice work :)

[jvorsterman]

Nice video. We did a similar shoot a couple of months ago.

[mrtrixterathotmail]

Great video clip. Love it!