Lighting Tips

Improve your still and motion photography with top-notch lighting tutorials, videos, and articles presented by the industry’s most influential filmmakers and photographers.

Engagement Photos by Zach Gray (3)

Essential Tips for Shooting Engagement Photos with Speedlites

Shooting engagement photos midday at the Red Rock Amphitheater in Colorado, Zach Gray knows that he'll need to use speedlites to properly expose his subjects and their stunning background. Zach also knows that ...

Filmmaking with LEDs Still (4)

Using Flex LEDs as Practicals for Cinematic Shots

Lighting Tips, Reviews

Kyle Johnston, KJ Creative director and filmmaker, recently embarked on a project to capture the history and essence of craft distilleries. While preparing for the shoot, Kyle recognised the need to have lighti...

Loop Lighting Portrait

Essential Loop Lighting Technique for Speedlite Shooters

Loop lighting is an essential lighting technique for portrait photographers. It is easy to create with just a single light source and is flattering on most subjects. This lighting pattern will create a shadow t...

Detail Shots (2)

The Importance of Capturing Quality Detail Shots

Images courtesy of Toledo-based photographer Brooks Clayton of Swatch Studios.Photographing a wedding is stressful. Photographers are pressured to capture every precious candid moment and still find the tim...

Food Photography on a Budget (5)

Pro Food Photography on a Budget

Photographing food is a fantastic way for budding photographers to build their portfolios, master studio lighting, and perfect their styling abilities. Even photographers without studios or pricey lighting gear...

Engagement Portrait (2) Zach Gray

Capturing Unique Outdoor Engagement Portraits with Flash

To capture eye-catching engagement portraits , photographer Zach Gray heads to a sunny open field with a stunning backdrop. With the Flatiron mountains in the distance, Zach wants to focus on his beautiful subj...

Alex D. Rogers Westcott Deep Umbrella

Creating Modern Portraits with a Deep Umbrella

This article is courtesy of Atlanta-based portrait photographer and designer Alex D. Rogers. Whenever the situation allows, I love to use a simple one-light setup for portraits and fashion shoots. It’s a quick...

Beach Portraits by Lou Freeman (1)

Controlling Harsh Sunlight for Glamorous Beach Portraits

Beaches are a common location choice for photo shoots. They're beautiful, accessible, and offer plenty of sunlight. Sometimes, a little too much sunlight. In locations like this, many photographers default to ...

Food Photograph - Freeze Motion

How to Freeze Motion for Eye-Catching Food Photography

Want to capture food photographs that will stand out from all the rest? Instead of capturing the typical overhead still shot, you can deconstruct your dish or add some movement to your image for results that ar...

Green Screen Essentials

Mastering the Art of Green Screen

Implementing the art of green screen (or blue screen) into your video productions can be extremely useful. Background composites aren't just for sci-fi scenes or exotic locations - they are useful in common int...

Underexposing the Sky - Hernandez Portrait

Underexposing the Sky for Dramatic Portraits

Kentucky sports and senior portrait photographer Matt Hernandez is known for capturing dramatic senior portraits with relatively simple lighting setups. To emphasize the drama in these shots, Matt typically sho...

Portable Lighting Portrait by Zach Gray 10

Lightweight and Portable Lighting Setup

The most eye-catching photo shoot locations are often the hardest to get to. Take Zach Gray's dream location on a Colorado river for example. Zach wants to photograph his clients from eye-level and practically ...

Wedding Photography Portrait 1

Wedding Photography on a Budget

For wedding photographers, nothing is more important than using gear that is both portable and easy to use. Wedding photographers are constantly on the move and always need to be ready to capture those special ...

Food Photography by Steve Hansen

How to Create Environmental Food Photography

Seattle-based photographer Steve Hansen has a knack for creating food images that pop. Standard food photography is often times flat and lifeless, with minimal props and color. Steve avoids boring imagey by add...

Zach Gray - Final Image 3 - Modifying Flash

Behind the Scenes: Outdoor Fashion Photography with Flash

During a recent trip to Denver, photographer Zach Gray sets out to capture eye-catching fashion photography in the mountains. Zach (alongside his wife Jody) manages an successful photography business back in Na...

Behind the Scenes Product Photography

Light Painting for Product Photography

Whether you are photographing products for a client or taking photos to sell your crafts or goods online, lighting is an essential tool for capturing quality images. In this video tutorial, Photoshop guru Dave ...

Ad Campaign Photo Shoot with Lou Freeman

Ad Campaign Photography (Part 1)

In part 1 of this ad campaign tutorial, talented photographer Lou Freeman discusses the dos and don’ts of a commercial photo shoot. Behind the scenes at Coyote Ugly saloon in Florida, Lou begins her shoot by r...

Pet Photography 101: Cream Puff

Pet Photography 101

In this video, Team Westcott joins the Toledo Area Humane Society to teach photographers and shelters how to capture professional-quality pet photography. It has been proven that shelters with better photograp...

How to Eliminate Lens Flare with Joel Grimes

2 Ways to Reduce Lens Flare

In this video, commercial photographer Joel Grimes demonstrates 2 simple solutions for reducing lens flare during in-studio and on-location portraiture. Lens flare is an issue most photographers encounter. Len...

Realistic Composite Final by Dave Cross

Realistic Composite Editing in Photoshop

In part 1 of this 2 part series, Adobe Creative expert and photographer Dave Cross demonstrates how to use studio lighting for a composite image. In part 2, Dave discusses the essential Photoshop editing techni...

#filmmakerfriday Bittersweet Creative BTS 5

#FilmmakerFriday with Bittersweet Creative

Welcome to #FilmmakerFriday, where you can meet filmmakers that inspire Team Westcott."I wonder how many people have felt like I do: increasingly numb to statistics and paralyzed by awareness campaigns rath...