Flash Photography with Neil Van Niekerk

<p>I'm relatively new on this forum and have posted several questions to try to improve my work and technique overall. One of the most important aspects for me was improving my flash photography technique. Every person I'd ask or thread I'd read would directly me to Planet Neil over the last two years. The information he provides has been the foundation for my early education. I read a review from Marvin Israel here... among many other glowing reviews about the outstanding workshop they attended with Neil van Niekerk. <a href="../photodb/user?user_id=3916920"></a> <br /> <br /> I spent the day with Neil at his studio in NJ learning flash techniques and we applied them nearby at Lamberts Castle. I gained practical experience of blending flash and ambient light in and outdoors. His flash workshop should be a MANDATORY workshop for everyone. He truly loves what he does and went above and beyond to ensure that I understood everything he taught me. <br /> <br /> When I arrived, he reviewed several flash principles in detail, spending additional time on aspects that I wanted clarification on. As I applied the techniques throughout the day he guided me and took great care to ensure that I achieved the desired result. Neil would look in my viewfinder and confirm my results, make suggestions and I’d apply the changes. I photographed a model in his studio under different lighting conditions.I used a video light, softbox, on and off camera flash. I learned the use of gels to balance flash with the ambient light. We controlled flash manually and automatically... had exercises using the histogram to meter. There were no questions unanswered and I didn't hesitate to ask him to explain it further if I was unsure. <br /> <br /> I drove home this evening filled with inspiration… recounting my experiences today. There were so many glowing reviews online for his workshop and they were indeed correct.<br /> <br /> I wanted to post this on the education forum, because I want everyone to have the benefit of meeting Neil. Whether you live on the East or West Coast, hop in a car, take a train or get on a plane because he is truly the best!<br>

Natalie</p>