The Flash Bus - Grand Rapids

The Flash Bus hit Grand Rapids this week. Two people known for using small flashes for portraits and other work, have been touring the country. I was kind of surprised that they came to GR and not Detroit, but I planned to go. I was glad I did.

David Hobby, editor of the Strobist blog.

A slide from Davids presentation. He didn't do any photography on stage, but went through the steps on how he sets up his shoots. I probably learned more from this part of the session then the second half. Though both were good.

Joe McNally, National Geographic photographer and writer of several books on using and setting up small flashes.

Joe used one of his helpers for the first several setups, and then started using people from the audience. He commented that there were some other things he could do to make this photo better. I would have been happy with it, but I guess that's why I was attending.

The last setup Joe did, he used flashes from the audience for an effect. There were several tries before he got what he wanted. I was lucky enough to be able to capture the flashes going off on the last shot.

They both answered questions from the audience while the crew packed up. I'm pretty sure they stayed until most if not all of the audience questions were answered. And they weren't just questions about the seminar, they also answered questions about their careers and past work.

An excellent seminar. The presenters kept the audience engaged and entertained while teaching the basics and fundamentals of using small flashes. There was a comment about maybe coming back next year. I hope they do.