The Raven Simplifies The Process Of Photographing In Difficult Locations

Danny Batista of Danny Batista Photography

 

Through portrait photography, Danny realised he is able to create truly beautiful moments for individuals. “It’s all about finding these moments with people I've never met before and just showing up to a shoot and creating with them.” 

Of course, there’s a lot that goes into producing a seamless experience, and for Danny the Raven flash trigger has really heightened this process. “The Raven has been a great partner as it helps me to work quickly and capture beautifully lit shots right out of camera. The Raven is my key in bringing out these moments with off-camera flash versus relying on post edits.”

 

Photo Credit: Danny Batista

 

We wanted to know more about Danny’s process, so we asked him to take us through his recent shoot with Alexia Jeri. Like many of his photoshoots, the outcome of this project was for his client to use the imagery to build their personal brand.

 

Raven controls one moment after another

First and foremost, we wanted to know what camera equipment Danny takes with him on a portraiture shoot. As it turns out, Danny’s gear bag includes a Nikon Z7 II, 24-70mm F/2.8 lens with Polar Pro Circular Polarizer, and the FusionTLC Raven flash trigger to set up and trigger Flashpoint XPLOR 600 with a 3ft Glow EZ-Lock Octabox .

 

Photo Credit: Danny Batista

 

The location of this beach photoshoot included rocky terrain and a lot of shallow water areas with constant incoming tides – a challenging scene for many! However, Danny confided that one of his masterful tricks is to create directional light that looks like sunlight, regardless of whether there is actually sunlight on the scene. 

“On this particular shoot with the full sun, I wanted to manage the sunlight and get as much strobe light as I needed in the different scenarios I was putting myself in. I used the Raven on a single zone to trigger the single flash, using PowerTrack to adjust the power levels as I made ambient ISO changes as the sun changed position in the sky. The results were quick and flawless.”

We couldn’t agree more – these shots certainly are flawless! Danny loves experimenting with the scene, creating different looks within the location and creating amazing shots out of camera that we can already see.

 

Raven, set, go 

On this shoot, Danny needed to consistently manage the look and feel of the light in the rocky cove – positioning the light where it was needed, while also working quickly with the splashing of waves. This required impeccable timing. Having the capacity to work at speed and with precision is always one of Danny’s greatest objectives, which is where the Raven comes in. The Raven helps him quickly control the light and utilize every moment.

 

Photo Credit: Danny Batista

 

“Being able to modify where that cycle is actually happening in the trigger or flash pop is very powerful because [it gives me] that extra amount of boost in my photography where I need it. I could use that in certain scenarios where the sun was either coming or going, and especially when I'm shooting at 1/1250th of a second. I need that extra power sometimes to really create that extra light boost that I didn't have with my previous trigger.” 

 

Photo Credit: Danny Batista

 

Through using the Raven, Danny also realized how cumbersome other triggers were. One thing that stood out to him was that he would be standing next to other photographers using fiddly and time-consuming triggers, while he simply had to turn the dial and was ready to shoot!

 

Photo Credit: Danny Batista

 

In these images Danny was using SyncView on the Raven because he was shooting it over 1/250th of a second. This flash power was able to give him what he actually needed, instead of bumping up his ISO. The result? Danny smoothly achieved a nice pocket of light hitting Alexia Jeri’s face. 

“The OLED screen was a blessing under the full sun. For the first time I could see the screen at all times. It was so natural that I didn't even think about that. The Raven’s High Speed Sync feature allowed me to choose where the flash was triggering.”

 

 

Photo Credit: Danny Batista

 

You don’t know till you know

“The Raven was something that I never thought I would need. It's like having a device and going, ‘Do I really need this?’ I didn't realize it until I used it, so it's really cool to be able to turn that dial and see the power levels incrementally going up, because I know I need power adjustments in both zones.”

Danny now loves the Raven because it gives him the flexibility to choose the features he wants – and fast – so he can capture the images he needs.

Danny is also excited to use the Raven’s nose light for his blogs, where he’s teaching with the light from the trigger hitting on his face. “That's huge from the multiple gear standpoint. I don't need another light or anything to have a second light – it’s all in my Raven trigger. I'm able to go from warm to cool color temperatures, and that's going to be amazing for the different scenarios I find myself in during the day and night when I need to have some kind of light on me.”

Danny is truly figuring out what works best for him, and we can’t wait to see what he creates next!

 

Learn more about the Raven from our Explore Raven section on the website: 

SyncView

Flash control

 

Photographer: Danny Batista

Personal portfolio: www.dannybatista.com

Facebook: @dannybatista.photography

Instagram:@dannybatista

 

Model: Alexia Jeri

Instagram: @alexiajeri