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    Minus 2/3 – The Invisible Flash: Crafting Light for Photographers in the Field
    Minus 2/3 – The Invisible Flash: Crafting Light for Photographers in the Field
    Minus 2/3 – The Invisible Flash: Crafting Light for Photographers in the Field
    Ebook219 pages44 minutes

    Minus 2/3 – The Invisible Flash: Crafting Light for Photographers in the Field

    By Gerd Ludwig

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    About this ebook

    Gerd Ludwig, a National Geographic veteran known for his powerful photo essays, is one of the leading documentary photographers of our time. In Minus 2/3—The Invisible Flash: Crafting Light for Photographers in Field, Ludwig takes us behind the scenes of many of his most iconic images to share his approach to lighting with small flash.

    As a photographer focusing on diverse cultural and environmental stories, Ludwig is often confronted with a wide range of low-light situations—from classic street photography to portraiture, from scenes in bustling night clubs to intimate moments in churches—many of which require additional lighting that must be created quickly, effectively, and discreetly.

    More than 20 years ago, Ludwig began incorporating small handheld flashes into his photography with the aim of creating an evenly balanced look in the final photograph. These small flashes also alleviated the burden of carrying heavy equipment, allowing him to be flexible and inconspicuous when moving around in the field. Over the years, he has refined his use of small flash to hone his technique even further. His use of flash appears so subtle in the final image that it is easily mistaken for natural light—an invisible flash. Additionally, in his fine-art and documentary work in interior or night settings, Ludwig recently began making long exposures by combining a camera on a tripod with a series of flashes fired from a single hand-held unit.

    In the past, Ludwig has discussed his tricks of the trade only in lectures and workshops. Now, in Minus 2/3—The Invisible Flash: Crafting Light for Photographers in Field, Ludwig takes us behind the scenes of many of his most iconic images to share his approach to lighting with small flash.

    Equal parts inspiration and education, Minus 2/3 is straightforward and succinct, yet filled with numerous takeaways from one of today’s leading photographers. Packed with beautiful, effective, and moving images, Minus 2/3 offers ideas, insight, and inspiration for photographers looking to subtly incorporate flash into their work.

    Please note: Some images featured in this book may be considered unsettling for some sensitive readers.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRocky Nook
    Release dateDec 1, 2016
    ISBN9781681980706
    Minus 2/3 – The Invisible Flash: Crafting Light for Photographers in the Field
    Author

    Gerd Ludwig

    Gerd Ludwig was born in Alsfeld, Germany, and studied photography at Folkwang University of the Arts in Essen, Germany. He has been photographing for National Geographic magazine since the early 1990s. His ongoing coverage of post-Soviet Russia has garnered him the distinction of being the world’s foremost color photographer documenting the region. Ludwig is the author of Broken Empire: After the Fall of the USSR (National Geographic Society) and The Long Shadow of Chernobyl (Edition Lammerhuber). Based in Los Angeles, Ludwig continues to photograph primarily for National Geographic while exhibiting, lecturing, and teaching workshops internationally. He is the recipient of the 2006 Lucie Award for International Photographer of the Year, the prestigious Dr. Erich Salomon Award from German Society for Photography (DGPh) in 2014, and the Missouri Honor Medal for Distinguished Service in Journalism in 2015. His works are exhibited in galleries and museums worldwide.

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      Book preview

      Minus 2/3 – The Invisible Flash - Gerd Ludwig

      INTRODUCTION

      In early 1989 I was an established photographer married to a photographer with whom I had a child, our son Maxim, and I found myself at a party of mostly established colleagues on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. As one would expect at a party full of photographers, everybody was taking pictures. My friend Ethan Hoffman was snapping away along with the others, but I noticed something different about him. He moved with great ease and used his on-camera strobe* with confidence. I walked over to Ethan, complimented him on his grace, and confessed that, even with my years of experience, I lacked any understanding and self-assurance when using a strobe. I had to admit that I had never taken a successful image with a strobe. Sage-like and full of mystery, Ethan said to me, Today, all you need to know is minus 2/3. At the time, I had no idea what he meant. I’m sure my face conveyed my confusion because Ethan offered proof—he took a picture of me with my then-wife and son using the strobe and promised to send it to me.

      © Ethan Hoffman

      Later that week, I received a slide in the mail and was totally stunned. How could a single image, shot with a strobe, be so perfectly exposed? I began researching the recently introduced through-the-lens (TTL) technology that Ethan had described to me, which revolutionized flash photography. The process of TTL is actually very technical, but I’ll offer an abbreviated explanation. The flash is fired and hits the subject. When the light hits your subject, it then bounces immediately back to the camera itself, making its way through the lens where it hits the film plane. The light from the film bounces to a sensor that measures the light as the exposure builds on the film itself. The sensor and software then determine when the exposure is sufficient. At this point, the computer turns off the flash. Remember, this all happens at the speed of light.

      Once I had amassed an understanding of this, in theory, I went to the now-defunct Advance Camera in Manhattan and bought one of the best TTL strobes on the market to begin putting what I had learned into practice. I soon found that when using a TTL strobe at its automatic, unadjusted setting, it powers out too strong of a flash. This gives the image a noticeable and somewhat boring, intrusive, and excessively strobed flash look. Even the first TTL flashes had a built-in setting to increase or decrease the flash output—that’s when I realized what Ethan meant when he mentioned minus 2/3.

      The human eye has the ability to adjust to varying light intensities—from light to dark and vice versa—and continue to recognize details. It takes a moment, but the ability is there. We all know the extreme: when walking from bright daylight into a dark room, it takes a moment to see the details inside. Photography does not traditionally afford that same luxury. Though a background may be beautifully lit with ambient light, the subject in the foreground can be immersed in shadow. When the background in this sort of situation is properly exposed on film, the subject in the foreground is silhouetted. Even with today’s digital technology, opening up the shadows in

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