Creating Dynamic Portraits with Speedlites 

"The tool can never get in the way of the job". We couldn't agree more Sal!

If all you got out of this was finding out what MagMod is, it was well worth the time. Thank you to the presenter for giving his time and sharing his experience. Everyone has a different style and I appreciate how he said he doesn't judge other people's work. He is from New York and they have a unique way of talking. I watched this a couple times to get more out of it. It's too bad that others here who had much negativity didn't have anything better to do than to watch something they didn't like and then to take the time to comment. But that's the world we live in today; sadly. Thank you for the video.

I love Sal Cincotta. I'm a huge fan. I own a few of his workshops and I've been a subscriber to his monthly magazine Behind The Shutter since it's launch a few years ago. Mr. Cincotta is a note worthy instructor with a plethora of knowledge in business that can be applied to any type of business, not just photography. His photography skills are exceptional. Specializing in weddings and his wide angle style of shooting results in sophisticated, unique and illustrious photographs. I sincerely look up to him and hope that I'll have the honor of meeting him someday.

I actually enjoy and appreciate hearing the biz insights Sal presents here. It's just as important as the technique. Thanks Sal, for the insights!

Thumbs up from me. I like that he talks about making a business successful, and making money. As artists we often are lacking in business acumen. I know some people complained he talked too much about his business at the beginning, but I enjoyed hearing about his success. It shows it can happen! I especially appreciated his speedlite breakdown for sample shots. One of the best videos I have found on how to use off camera flash with real world application. Photographers who know how to light stand out from the crowd.

Your videos are top notch. Very direct, down to earth, don't pull punches and you are a working pro! So, you actually use the products and have hands on experience and insight into what you are talking about. Not just theoretical knowledge. I'm a new pro (just retired), weddings, photojournalism and have realized in order to set yourself apart from your colleagues and competition, you've got to have a look to your images that's a step above. You can only do this with lighting. My challenge has been to choose lighting - strobes, speed lights, weight, portability, cost etc. with a multitude of choices and opinions. Most important to me is weight and portability. What I'm finding is that speed lights can do about 90-95% of everything you need and they're portable. Having to walk a half mile on a sandy path to the beach is a challenge depending on how much weight and bulk you have to carry with a temperature approaching 100 degrees. Especially if you are alone with no assistant. The shots you took for the Hilton Hotel were amazing (another video).Thanks for all you are doing to help people.

I don't get the "hes full of himself comments "...He's confident and successful. He is showing how you can get results that sell. The bar shot tells it all...At first it was boring and dull...With a couple of speedlights, some gells and some imagination...The end results were stunning...Thanks B&H and Sal...

Excellent and very informative class on the use of speedlites. Sal is a very engaging presenter and explains his set ups in an extremely concise and simple manner. 10/10

Man haters are going to hate and keyboard commanders are going to attack. If you don't like it skip along. Great video Sal, here we are in almost 2021 and a lot of this is still relevant. I got the 600 EX and the STE3 RT when it first came out and I just jump over to the A1X, what a beast of a speedlight. Got a lot out of this, thanks for all that you do.

I love this guys personality. Confident knowledgable and to the point. I would love to meet @BehindTheShutter Sal.

Excellent content. I'm not a pro photographer but I found the video very useful. As an amateur I'm always struggling to take decently lit portraits of family outdoors. Indoors I can bounce on the walls and get a beautiful diffused light. My friends were impressed by my indoor portraits and asked me to take some outdoors OOPS. I messed up the shots a lot and was fixing them in post. Challenge in shooting friends and family is - they choose the pose, time and the place when they want their photos taken - most times it is on a midday sun - and I get a max of 2-3 shots before without boring them. Oh I can't have a setup like an umbrella on a light stand that would draw a lot of public attention that would make them too uncomfortable. I almost gave up on the idea of using speedlights for portraits outdoors because I thought every pro uses these gigantic modifiers and strobes to produce these dramatic effects. Looks like there are lots of options available with these speed lights. I just need to figure out a way to get some inflash diffuser (like rogue) and a way to get the flash off camera when going out with friends and family. Thank you sir and I'm really glad I found your video. Excellent presentation.

Start this video at 22:00 to skip 22 minutes of this guys background. Start this video at 24:40 to hear the first serious mention of a Speedlight! 25:30 - Dealing with Recycle time 26:30 - What's in the bag 27:50 - MagMod Flash Diffusers & Light Modifiers for Speedlites 30:40 - Corporate Shoot 33:00 - Building the Environment 40:00 - Building the Environment - Union Station 45:45 - Corporate / Portrait Headshots - Lighting 54:30 - Corporate Headshots - Making Money 55:55 - Masculine Headshots 1:00:15 - Wedding / Engagement Shoots 1:02:25 - Exposure Triangle Quiz 1:05:25 - What Clients Want - Use lighting to make more than just a snapshot 1:08:50 - Shoot ETTL - Here's Why You can thank me later ...

Sal is such a good photographer, he organized a photo contest and won in 4 categories! What a guy...;)

Very clearly explained, simplifying methods, inspiring making money! Well done Sal!

I recently purchased the Nissin Air 1 and (2) Air R receivers. Your video was so informative and has opened up a world of possibilities with my photography. I loved the information on exposure, relation of exposure to flash, and the examples of photos provided. Thank you so much for sharing! Your work is amazing btw.

Sal, good job mate and lots of encouragement to a new kid on the block like me. Really liked your presentation and humour.

Approximately 32:00 he stops talking about himself and gets to Speedlites.

Thanks B&H for another great insight into the workings of a great photographer. So many nuggets of practical and insightful info to improve my photography.

Thank you for an excellent talk from a real working photographer. Tons of great tips and equipment recos

I got 2 points from this session: use Speedlight over a reflector to get a bounce light. And hold Speedlight vertically for that wedding image. First "25" minutes you can easily skip and use the right arrow key (on keyboard) to scan at a faster speed. But I learned 2 points thanks for that.

Outstanding video! Excellent teacher and tons of great data

I don't care for the MagMod system and prefer using Rogue's collection of flash modifiers. The MagMod system is definitely cool, and it's super simple to change modifiers, but the MagGrips add so much bulk and weight to the top of the Speedlite, and are a PITA to take on an off, that they make packing multiple Speedlites difficult, and you can forget about using the Speedlite case. You can see how much extra room they require in the photo of his gear (29:54). The Rogue system, which is nearly as easy to take on and off the speedlite, packs completely flat. Even if you leave the Rogue Gel-Band on the Speedlite, they still fit in their case and pack the same in your bag.

Hey Sal. Excellent as always; straight to the point.

Holy crap! Veeery good vid! Thanks for sharing a lot of great classes! Greatings from Norway!

Hi Sal, thanks for your response on how to deal with people wearing glasses when using flash. It's always a challenge but I'm a believer in using speedlights to make more interesting and dramatic images, so I'll try what you say. Cheers!

I agree with previous comments, pretty full of himself. I did see his video on Creative live on marketing etc.-awesome information. But I just spent an hour watching this, and didn't come away with too much on actual "Creating Dynamic Portraits".

The rest is very good instruction on lighting. He knows his equipment and lighting.

Went straight out and brought the MagMod Wedding Starter kit. Amazing.

Hey Sal!!!! I`m a big fan since Your first Creative live appearance when You spoke about the seniors :D When You`re talking about that ISO 3200, f4 and shutter 1/200. If these are the settings for correct exposure why would You say they are wrong or why change them? You can change them but if shooting with the 70-200 then dropping ISO to 1600 and doing one stop on time to 1/100 will make the image blurry on the long end on 200mm if You`re not holding the camera steady. Let`s say instead of that You would change the aperture f 2.8. Again, You might want to shoot at f 4 since it may be a group shot so 2.8 is a no no unless using 16-35 standing a bit further. Or maybe I`m completely missing the point and You were just checking Your team`s knowledge of f stops and how to go up or down and still maintain the correct exposure. I hope to meet You one day. God bless!!!

Excellent presentation well paced and valuable information.

I love how he takes the extra second to explaing the why behind his decision. I would love to go to one of his workshops someday. I have a pretty good handle on what im doing however, you can never learn too much.

Amazing video! Loved it. We dont have time for bullshit. Just give us what you know! Love the website! The picture looking down onto the woman with her white dress laid out in a circle gave me goosebumps. Respectz!

This guy should be a high school football coach, hes so intense lol. Good video.

Honest,informative and interesting.Cheers.

It's somehow reassuring that an ex-Microsoft employee struggles as much with PowerPoint as the rest of us

Love your style of teaching...question??? When you are metering outside and raising up your aperture to stay under 250 SS are then not concerned about controlling depth of field or blurring out the background? What if the background of a subject like shown in your wedding couple on the baseball field was not so great and you wanted to blur it out a bit but it was super bright outside?

Like always, very entertaining lesson and precious adivces. I'd love to share a work with you one day Sal !

Very enjoyable. However I would at times prefer a slightly warmer or coloured light from the speedlights and perhaps slightly less power. But if the customers love it, they love it.

great video!!

How much of this is Sal telling us how great he is?

Fantastic.

Great educational perspective

Very helpful. Thanks B and H

Thank you very much sir this was very helpful!

Great video, thanks!

just awesome!

That was a great presentation. How do you best deal with subjects that wear eyeglasses?

Excellent lecture! Lots of food for thoughts there, coming from an amateur.

Thank you

Maybe you have recs for a good snoot and grid and spot modifiers for my speed lites? I use RT600`s.

That was great!

20 minutes in and he's still bragging about his company and nothing at all about speedlites.

lol this dude is really bullish but I like it. get to the point and get out of there.

with that program you edit those movements in the photos, please

awesome video

masterclass👍

50:53...one speedlight and an octobox. How do you get the rimlight on both sides of her? Curious...

skip the first 30 minutes, its just a sales pitch for his studio

Weren't many of these taken with the Profoto flashes, i.e. the great wall of China?

The interesting starts at 1:06:18

what are those things mounted on the head of the speedlight?

Waiting for this guy to tell us he's on a mission of mercy from Mitch and Murray

Excellent

quelle énergie ! ce mec est génial.

The slideshow he showed at the start of this class was so bad... bad bad bad. I understand they also do video, well, then how hard is to edit a good slideshow? The images are nice but that slideshow just... no.

Hilton Hotels has no budget??

First off I would like to say I completely get what he is saying...I agree and understand what he is saying...second I have to say this is why I have NEVER shot in a professional setting. Not saying it's wrong just not my thing. Do what makes you happy!!

what software was used to create his slide show?

I can imagine this business suffered badly during COVID.

can you control light spill with grids?

Hablando de lo que ha hecho y no habla como lo ha hecho. Me imagino que el 100% de sus fotos son hechas en la computadora. Las fotos que vi en la intro no las hace una camara, Sin la intervencion de la computadora serian fotos del monton. Como latino estoy orgulloso del fotógrafo Jesus Padilla, En su presentacion en B & H demostro que se puede hacer buenas fotos desde la camara. Jesus Padilla explica como hizo las fotos y muestra en vivo la camara, los resultados son increibles, estos fotografos que hablan y hablan y no muestran nada desde la camara, retocan las fotos horas y horas. No estoy en contra de los programas como lightroom o photoshop lo que estoy en contra es indicar como tomaron las fotos y la realidad es que las hizo su asistente experto en lightroom u otros programas digitales. Gracias y perdonen mi sinceridad. Saludos desde Puerto Rico.

slide show bit rubbish I'd agree,but great talk,great info,thank you :)

I m planning to Upgrade Photography kit and my Studio Equipment... I have Currently Nikon D90, D200,D750 cameras along with 2.8 nikon 18.55mm, 70.300mm, 50mm prime as well as i have ELINCHROM fx 400r1 lights .I want to shoot Indoor & outdoor portraits , Fashion , newborn baby ,wedding, Product shoots & Events Photos so that Please Suggest me New Canon Camera kit with different lenses , Speed lights and studio light. PLEASE HELP ME !!!! to set up my photography studio

Skip the first 22 minutes, longest self introduction ever.

I have to be honest, the intro slideshow too long which makes it become boring afterwards... but good contents,anyway

I wish i had a team of people to do photography .........

great video... just terribly wrong about the last part where you talk about HSS tho, looks like you dont have a clue what to do with it... the reason you wanna use HSS is that you can go up to 1/8000 sec shutter speed, and therefor can have bigger aparture, and with that create more bokeh or more shallow depth of field if you want... for the battery drain, well, get a bigger battery pack or something:)

Whoever edited this video was on drugs... There are cutoffs mid-sentence and I'm only 2:20 mins in...

what in the world??? i thought this was supposed to be about speedlites. next!

Super !!!

Sorry but Chicago engagement session shot doesn't work for me. The guy's face doesn't look natural considering the strong back light. Other than that, I really enjoyed this video. I like your style.

Sorry but this guy is too full of himself to watch. I am surprised he could get his head through the door. Give me Gary Fong any day over this guy.

and you left corporate...? you sure?

The real value about speedlights start at 24:40 before that it's pretty much self promotion and wedding photography related stuff (boring!)

Great!

This guy acts like taking a HS portrait is as serious as a heart attack lol.

1:13:01 in ha ha, "keeps assistants hand in the sky as it's easier to edit than buildings" good god, take two shots and mask the assistant out in PS

And then THREE SOLID MINUTES of slideshow advertisements... not teaching tools.

What's the deal with hating on natural light photography? He must not know how to use natural light.

Is it just me, but for me this right image of girl on 58.53 looks even more flat than natural light image. I wouldn't say it is better than previous. As I have seen B&H episode: "In Camera Artistry: Using Any Light Source" with Jerry Ghionis, I have to say I am unimpressed with Sal Cincottas images. But this is just my taste and I have to admit he is still better than me.

This guy confuses words with information. Quantity vs quality.

Geez this guys loves himself. There is some good stuff but listening to him brag and boast is unbearable.

metering with incident meter has nothing to do with the subjects skin color, he is way off!

Natural light photography is BS.... he went SAVAGE haha

Wow did he waste 35 minutes? He's outgrown himself.

I feel like this video could be condensed to about 20 minutes. Edit out all the sales-speak about himself, pitching his businesses and expensive studio and how big he's become, and other random gibberish in-between, you could end up with a video with decent information you could use.

pfff... Please start your course!

...... i would fail your test ........ but i will still get the job done ..........

yeah, train your assistant instead of firing them because you aren't that good a communicator. You talk a mile a minute but communicate at a very slow rate. use less words and choose them more carefully. See Dedo light owner's videos. He says more faster in 1/20th the amount of words you use.

"if you've got an assistant who's like, you give a reflector to and's just standing there like this... and they hold the reflector... fire that assistant 'cause that's not a very good assistant. Light doesn't come from down here, this isn't where light comes from - it comes from up here. Okay?" Well... maybe... maybe not. Pity the assistant. I know some people find this terse style of communication effective - using words like bullets in a machine gun to force a point across and give a sense of overwhelming confidence. I don't. This guy must be paid by the word because he attempts to shout as many words as possible in the available time (which is in good part, self-promotion). Obviously, it's difficult to cover such a vast topic as 'light' in 1:15:52. However, there are much better presentations about using speedlites, for beginners, in other B&H videos, so you can use them to help '...differentiate yourself from your competition". And no, you do not need to start with 6-8-10 speedlites to understand how you can incorporate them successfully into your workflow - or even to get incredible results. In fact, a compatible manual flash is a great place to start - cheaply. At the start, it will surprise you. Other videos will go into all the options, not just the latest and greatest. I have tried several 'radio' triggers and have settled on the Phottix Odin system which has been flawless. Buy up a stack of older 430, 580 ex flashes for low-er $ and you can realize any (just about) vision. The Odin is also able to control banks of flashes from a central controller. Learning how speedlites work can be complicated by the very flash technologies designed to make them 'simpler' to use (ETTL, HSS etc). Going into manual is a good way to start, just like manual mode on the camera is the best way to learn how the camera works. Once you understand, then use those 'auto' functions to complement your workflow. Granted, to light large interiors (or groups) can take several speedlites (he's not wrong), but that's probably not the best place to start for "...basics of speedlites". Search for 'one-light' or look for (this) Richard Harrington (ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-qwiespCItzA.html) is worth checking out. Use your vision to go from there....