So hot shoe mount. This is the one that people are the most familiar with, because this is what we have on most of our digital cameras. And most 35 millimeter and 645 formats are gonna have hot shoe mounts. So let me just grab mine here real quick. Alright. Let's bring out the Hasselblad too, why not. So, hot shoe mounts are this little place on top of your camera where you would put your flash or your trigger. And they are connected to your camera electronically, so that when you fire your shutter they fire your flash or your strobe. They're up there, they're awesome. Like I said our film cameras that we are using are older. The hot shoe mount on my Contax, for example, gets kind of wonky and every once in awhile it'll misfire (laughs) and it will short out my strobes. And my strobes will just start flashing like crazy. So, you know, it's just the fun quirks of working with old equipment. Sometimes they work great sometimes they don't. When they don't, I'll show you some work arounds.

Being film photographers, I always say, makes you a better photographer. And some times it makes you a better photographer because you have to figure out the hacks. (laughs loudly) So, that's a hot shoe mount and that's how those work. And where's my trigger? So, yeah you just slide them in on top. Alright? I think everybody is familiar with a hot shoe mount. Now some film cameras have cold shoe mounts. So let me show you those real quick. We'll get these guys out of the way. So and we'll bring out my Hasselblad. So this is the Hasselblad 503. And with this camera I have the prism on top of it. And I like the prism because it just helps me focus...lens cap. So I can be up here it's easier to look through. And you'll notice that it has a little mount here on top. This cold shoe mount, however, is not connected electronically to the camera. So if I just put this up here and fire the trigger, nothing's gonna happen. If I put a flash on it and fire the trigger nothing's gonna happen. Fun fact, I actually didn't know that at first (laughs loudly) when I got this camera. 'Cause like I said I learned all this myself just going through the motions. So, if you have an accessory that has a cold shoe mount on it, like I know for the Pentax you can get that great handle, that wooden handle. And it also has a cold shoe mount on it. Different cameras can have them in different places. One of the Mamiya 645s, I think actually has a hot shoe mount on it, but it's on the side in this kind of weird place. So you just gotta look for this stuff. But if you do, if you're working with a camera or camera accessories that has a cold shoe mount so normally there's gonna be place on the camera where you can sync your light, your trigger, your flash to your camera so that when you do hit that shutter it'll fire. So what you need in that situation is you just need a sync cord. And they look like this, a little male to male. There's different kinds of sync cords I should show you. So sometimes they can look like this. Sometimes they can look like this. So if you're ever unsure of which cord you need for your camera, you can always just go into your camera store and ask. But basically you just plug one end here and connect it to the camera there. And then you're ready to go. And now when you fire this camera, it'll fire the trigger or your flash. So that's what a cold shoe mount does. I gottta get it out. (laughs loudly) And then there's some cameras that don't have either. They don't have a cold shoe mount. They don't have a hot shoe mount. So what do you do in that situation? So...oh this camera is a beast. It's so heavy. So like the Pentax67 or the Rolleiflex, which is my favorite, I use it all the time. So these cameras, there's no place just to attach a flash. And so in this situation, you just have to look. Every camera has a little place where you can attach a sync cord to. And it looks a little different. And sometimes you have to search for it. And sometimes you have to look on the Google at the camera's manual, but it's always there. So on the Rolleiflex, this is where you fire your trigger there's this little place here where you can, just again, plug in that cord, and then you're ready to go. That's how you do it there. And on the Pentax. Where's the Pentax? The Pentax, you're over here. And you just plug it in and you're good to go. Now one thing that people always ask me is when you are in a situation like this, you know, what do you do? (laughs loudly) And there's a couple of things. When I'm using this camera with lights, or when I'm using the Rolleiflex with lights I actually always put it on a tripod. A)these camera are really super heavy and it's just easier. This ones not so heavy, but it's just easier for me. And then I'll just let it hang there and it's fine. But, what I just wanna really drive home is that no matter what camera you're using, there is a way to connect it to your lighting. And you can use a wireless trigger. You can use a flash, however you want to do it. Oh and here this is a picture of that spot on the Hasselblad where I connected that cord.

Class Materials

Bonus Materials with Purchase

Discount Codes from Richard Photo Lab

Studio Gear List

Color Film Stock Exposure Tests

Black & White Film Stock Exposure Tests

Great Photo Labs

Noritsu Frontier Comparison

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Sandra Coan

With over sixteen year’s experience working in both film and digital photography, Sandra Coan is a film photographer specializing in studio portraiture and family photography.

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topics covered in this class

Lighting

Ratings and Reviews

a Creativelive Student

Wow! with a lot of online stuff out there one can become rather overcome with too much information, however, the way Sandra presents her courses is just perfect! Her honest and simple and easy to understand approach was just what I needed. Not once did I think she was just going through the motions, she really loves what she does and it shows. To be able to rewatch and rewatch was also a key for me. Since I have dyslexia I have to take things one half step at a. time. After completion of the class I had a new found confidence when using strobes. A must have.

Micah Hewett Images

Out of all the classes I own on Creative Live, Strobe Lighting with Sandra is my FAVORITE! She is an incredibly kind and gifted teacher. She explains everything on a simple level and then gradually build to more complex issues. I am 100% happy with this course. Thank you Sandra!!

Amy

Do you own a film camera? Then you NEED this class. I knew I *kind of* wanted to try shooting with a strobe, so I bought this class as some encouragement. But honestly, I half expected to do the class and not actually buy the strobe (because strobes are scary!). But as soon as I finished this class I IMMEDIATELY bought a strobe, umbrella modifier, a backdrop, and seamless paper (in Storm Grey because I basically want to be Sandra.) I felt so empowered to shoot with strobes and film and suddenly what had seemed terrifying now seemed doable. My very first test roll turned out great after following Sandra's easy tips. Now that we're in the winter months, I can shoot indoors with my film camera and strobe! Thank you, Sandra, for so generously sharing your knowledge with us and for being such a great teacher! And to anyone even remotely considering this class, DO IT. There's no way you'll regret it.

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How To Use Your Camera With Strobes?

How To Use Your Camera With Strobes?

Lesson Info

6. How To Use Your Camera With Strobes?

Lessons

Class Introduction

Why Strobes & Film?

Using Sync Speed

How To Avoid Ghosting

Equipment Overview