Photographing Creative Portraits Using Gels + More

Getting creative and seeing what I can do in the studio with my favourite new piece of photography gear! In this BTS session I put the Broncolor Stelos to work as my key light and push it hard – including charging while shooting and testing fast flash duration with movement. Everything you need to learn lighting: https://visualeducation.com/lighting/

We build two looks: a rich red/blue gelled set-up with edge and hair lights, then a bright, punchy fashion set driven by the Para 222 as the main source. You’ll see how I balance power, colour, and control to keep contrast crisp and freeze motion without sacrificing style.

What you’ll learn:
🎯 How to use an on-location light as a studio key (pros, cons, real-world limits)
🎯 Colour control with gels: bouncing into polyboards for even, saturated backgrounds
🎯 Edge & hair lighting: P70 with grid for rim, Pico+Fresnel for hair separation
🎯 Para 222 vs smaller modifiers: spread, fall-off, punch, and subject movement
🎯 Practical workflow tips: charging while shooting, keeping flash duration fast, and directing poses (including wind-machine shots)

If this helped your lighting, like, subscribe, and tell me what you want tested next – Stelos with larger mods? HSS vs normal flash? Drop questions below and I’ll jump in.

Everything you need to learn lighting: https://visualeducation.com/lighting/