High Times – October 2019

(C. Jardin) #1
LIGHTS
If you can’t get natural light, make your own.
Photographers basically have two choices
when it comes to lighting: continuous and
strobe. Continuous lighting is the only choice
for video, but it’s also very popular in digital
photography. Modern fluorescent and LED
lights (cold lights) work great and make the
photo shoot much more comfortable than
old-school halogen lights (hot lights). Flash
photography (or strobe) is still the most
popular lighting technique for many reasons.
A strobe can be as simple as an on-camera
flash or as complex as a professional power-
pack system. The bright flash of a strobe
allows photographers to use smaller aper-
tures, keeping everything in focus. A simple
flash can fill in shadows or create extreme
drama. Flash is also great for freezing motion
or creating special effects.

HARD OR SOFT?
How do you like your shadows? Soft boxes,
umbrellas and colored gels allow you to

change the feel of the photo. Modifiers allow
you to create soft, delicate flowers or harsh,
dramatic effects. Colors can evoke moods
or feelings and can take a boring bud into
another level of creativity.

BACKDROPS AND MORE
One of the most overlooked aspects of can-
nabis photography is the background. When
it’s time for your hero shots, backgrounds
can make or break your photo. How many
times have you seen a big, fat, juicy bud with
a distracting, busy background? Don’t get
me wrong, I love interesting backgrounds,
but it’s hard to make the subject stand out
when it’s competing with the background
for attention. I always recommend using
standard black-and-white backgrounds for
product shots. Then it’s time to party with
colored gels, vapes and other creative light-
ing techniques. You can spend a lot of money
on backdrop stands, tables and other cool
gadgets, but all you really need is a couple of
foam-core boards to create amazing photos.

66 HIGH TIMES I OCTOBER 2019


Macro
photography
set up

Simple light
set up for
shooting
flowers

A simple flash can
fill in shadows or create
extreme drama. Flash is
also great for freezing
motion or creating
special effects.
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