Karl Features in This WIRED Article on Lighting Like a Pro
WIRED recently asked Karl for his thoughts on the importance of lighting in photography and filmmaking.
Photography vs CGI: Test Your Image Perception Skills!
Welcome to our Photography vs CGI quiz! Are you a keen observer? This quiz is designed for photographers and 3D CGI enthusiasts eager to test their image perception skills.
Karl Taylor Light Cone
The Light Cone enables anyone to snap professional looking product photos. No skills or expensive kit needed. Perfect for eCommerce or catalog businesses.
Deep Umbrella 160 | Studio Lighting Essentials
How does this low-cost modifier stack up against more expensive alternatives?
30 x 120 Stripbox | Studio Lighting Essentials
Find out why Karl loves this modifier so much.
Silver Umbrella | Studio Lighting Essentials
The humble silver reflective umbrella is often dismissed as a budget, no-frills modifier that’s less effective than a beauty dish.
Handy Photography Lighting Hacks: Different Modifiers, Similar Effects
Here’s a host of lighting hacks that will help you achieve professional-quality results on an amateur’s budget.
Beauty Dish Photography | Studio Lighting Essentials
Find out how the beauty dish works, how to use it, what it costs, and more.
Deep Focus 110 Umbrella | Studio Lighting Essentials
Let’s take a closer look at the deep umbrella, how it works, how it stacks up against other popular modifiers, and whether or not it gives you as much value for money as it appears to.
Replicate ‘Satellite Staro’ Lighting in Your Photography
Uncover the secrets of professional studio photography with our guide on replicating the captivating lighting effects of the Satellite Staro modifier. Learn how to emulate its filmic aesthetic using alternative tools and unleash your creativity in every shot. Explore techniques, comparisons, and budget-friendly solutions to elevate your photography game.
Honeycomb Grids – Like a Secret Weapon for Pro Photographers
Free Studio Lighting Tutorial exploring honeycomb grids – a versatile yet often misunderstood photography lighting accessory.
Snoot Lighting for Photography
Shine a spotlight on the Snoot lighting modifier. A modest yet mighty tool in the world of studio photography. Be warned, this modifier can rapidly inflict pain. Learn Why!
Speedlights vs Studio Flash for Small Product Photography
Recently I did a live show where I photographed a pair of earphones. The main purpose of the show was to demonstrate how to photograph earphones based on our fourth photography brief assignment, but there was another lesson I wanted members to take from the shoot: that it’s not about the brand or type of lights you use, but more about your knowledge and understanding of light.
Ring Flash Photography
It was popular in the ’80s and ’90s for fashion and macro photography, as well as in forensic photography. The ring flash can be used to fill in shadows and reduce lighting density in animal portraits. It produces high contrast and a halo-like glow around the subject.
The best budget modifier for portraiture
I’ve tested, rented and owned a lot of different modifiers over the course of my career, but what would be my choice of modifier for beauty, fashion and portrait work if I only had £50 or £100 to spend? Recently I tested a large number of modifiers for a new tool we’re creating, including an independent brand modifier that cost less than £50 ($70). Surprisingly, this modifier gave great results that were comparable to the Octabox 150 and it’s even easier to transport!
One Light Product Photography
Learn how to achieve professional lipstick photography using just one light. Discover techniques to handle shiny surfaces, control backgrounds, and create impressive lighting effects.
Product lighting techniques using minimal equipment
Not having enough lights can make product photography challenging, to say the least, but the good news is that there are a few ways you can overcome this problem. I recently shot an antique-style image of a saddle where I showed two other ways you can light creatively even if you only have a couple of lights.
Add Glow to Your Bottle Product Photos
Discover the secrets behind creating a stunning perfume bottle photo. Learn how to determine the perfect cutout shape and achieve the right lighting to make the bottle glow.
The Power of Shadows in Portrait Photography
Like all pro photographers, I’m obsessed with light. But I also love to harness the power of darkness and shadow – especially when I want to create dramatic portraits.
Mastering Light and Shadow for better portrait photography
Learn professional portrait techniques for transforming emotions through Lighting Mastery
Product Photography with Speedlights
They’re not perfect, but speedlights (AKA off-camera flash units) can be extremely useful when you’re shooting products.
5 Pro-Tips That Will Take Your Product Photos to The Next Level
Unlock the secrets to stunning product photography with expert tips from Karl Taylor at VisualEducation.com. Discover how to enhance your skills with insights on studying products, mastering gradient lighting, shooting tethered, achieving pure white backgrounds, and creating captivating liquid glows. Elevate your photography game and impress your clients with professional-quality shots.
Parabolic Reflector Comparison and Budget Modifier Hack
Parabolic reflectors are one of my favourite modifiers, but due to the price of them many photographers often try to find more economic solutions compared to some of the top brands. But how do the more budget options actually perform compared to the top brands? I did a direct comparison between two different brands of parabolic modifiers and also tried a hack to try and make a cheap parabolic softbox modifier work more effectively.
Studio Lighting Setups Using 2 Lights
There’s a lot you can do with just two studio lights — trust me, I’ve shot everything from bottle product photography to fashion photography using just two lights. I’ve put together two different examples of two-light setups for portrait photography, product photography, and fashion photography and I’m also going to explain how you could use similar setups to these for your own photography.
Are LED Photography Lights Better Than Traditional Studio Flash Lights?
LED lighting has come a long way in recent years and grown in popularity, so why do most professional photographers, including myself, still prefer studio flash (strobe) lighting? To help you understand the two kinds of lighting systems and, more importantly, which is better I’m going to explain the differences between them, the pros and cons of each, and where each is best applied.
Parabolic Softbox vs Octabox: Lighting Comparison
Photography can be an expensive hobby, and the last thing you want is to waste your money on something that’s little more than a marketing gimmick. One of the greatest marketing gimmicks with see at the moment is parabolic softboxes, and in a recent Youtube video I did a side-by-side comparison with a popular portrait lighting modifier — a large octabox — to test the results for myself. Read on to discover…
Case Study: Speedlight Product Photography
Shooting professional product photography using speedlites isn’t necessarily the easiest way to go about it but it can be done, as I showed in a recent Youtube video where I photographed a clear glass bottle using just three speedlites.
A Guide to Creating White Backgrounds for Product Photography
Creating a plain white background for a product shot or e-commerce shoot sounds simple, and when you know how it is! Whether you’re shooting packshot photography for an e-commerce website or are looking to refine your technique for commercial photography projects, I’m going to explain the important considerations and necessary equipment…
Case Study: Natural Light Product Photography
When you apply the knowledge of light, you can achieve professional photography results with little to no equipment. In this article I explain how I managed to create a close replica of a previous wine bottle studio shot using nothing more than natural light from a window, some diffusion material, a reflector, and two iPhones.
Mistakes to Avoid When Using Studio Lighting
I’ve been a photography educator for more than 12 years now, so I’ve seen pretty much everything when it comes to common mistakes relating to first-time studio lighting users. From relying on a light meter to shying away from understanding the physics of light, here are nine mistakes you should try to avoid when using studio flash or strobe lighting.
A Guide to Understanding Studio Lighting
In this guide to studio lighting you’ll learn the difference between continuous light and flash; different power systems like monobloc lights or power packs; flash power and how to adjust it; how flashes are triggered; and much more.
Everything You Need to Know About Umbrella Lighting
In any photography studio — amateur and professional alike — you’ll probably find at least one or two umbrellas. These lightweight and affordable modifiers can be used to achieve a number of different results, which is part of the reason they’re so widely used.
Portrait Lighting Ideas: Creative 4-Light Setups
If you’re looking for creative portrait lighting ideas, I’ve collected some of our favourites from our portrait photography course to show you how to get creative results using four lights.
Portrait Photography Lighting Ideas: 3 Creative Ways to Use 3 Lights
From soft, angelic lighting to darker, more contoured lighting, there’s no end to how creative you can be using three lights for portrait photography. If you’re looking for some creative three light portrait ideas, I’ve put together three different setups you can add to your arsenal. These setups use only basic modifiers and show effective techniques that can help add three dimensionality to an image.
Portrait Lighting Setups: 2-Light Setup Ideas
When it comes to portrait photography, whether you’re using one light or four, you can get some fantastic results just with a little creativity and the right knowledge. Here you’ll see how to use just two lights with a variety of modifiers to get some amazing portraits.
Portrait photography: 3 Creative 1-Light Portrait Lighting Setups
Looking to create a beautiful soft light portrait image? Or perhaps you want something more dramatic and moody? Even if you’ve only got one light, with a little creativity you can get a variety of different results.If you’re looking for some inspiration, I’ve put together three easy studio setups that use only one light with basic modifiers.
Light Meters and Why I Don’t Use Them
My stance on light meters is one that can often spark fierce debate, and you’ll quickly notice that I never use a light meter when shooting. I’m not saying you can’t use them, I’m only here to explain why for me they are a waste of money and can negatively affect creativity.
Lighting Modifiers: Softboxes
Softboxes are popular modifiers that are well suited to many genres of photography. Here I explain the advantages, disadvantages and effects of softboxes as well as offer some alternatives.
Lighting Modifiers: The Beauty Dish
The beauty dish is often a popular lighting modifier among fashion and beauty photographers because of its versatility and unique light. In my next live show I’ll show you exactly what you can achieve with it and demonstrate how you can modify it even further.
The Magic of Parabolic Lighting
As a professional photographer, one of the most common questions I get asked is “If you could have just one lighting modifier, what would you choose?” And my answer is always the same — “The Para 133”.
A Simple 2-Light Portrait Setup
It doesn’t have to cost a fortune to create a high quality professional studio portraits & fashion images. In this video you’ll see a simple portrait & fashion photography lighting setup using softboxes.
Choosing the Right Lighting System
Choosing or even switching studio lighting equipment brands can be a big decision, so I’m going to share the things I considered before switching my own system from Elinchrom to broncolor. Hopefully by sharing this, you’ll understand my decisions and thought process so that you can make the right choice for your own photography.