Pye Jirsa

Wedding Detail Shots: A Photographer’s Guide to Every Must-Have Image

April 7, 2026February 22, 2026 by Pye Jirsa

Here’s a handy list of our 8 Must-Capture Wedding Detail Shots and some tips on how to take your wedding detail shots to the next level.

Smoke Bomb Photography Tips for Capturing Epic Portraits

February 21, 2026 by Pye Jirsa

Smoke bomb photography has emerged as a vibrant and dynamic way to add a burst of color and excitement to portrait photography. Whether you’re a seasoned photographer or just starting to explore the realms of creative photography, incorporating smoke bombs can transform ordinary photos into extraordinary pieces of art. From selecting the right smoke bombs …

Camera Modes Explained: When to Use Each One

March 26, 2026February 11, 2026 by Pye Jirsa

We’re going to take a closer look at the four main modes available on most cameras and discuss scenarios where each mode makes the most sense. Ready? Let’s dive in!

20+ Posing Cues for Couples from Professional Photographers

February 12, 2026February 9, 2026 by Pye Jirsa

Photographers often hear their clients say, “We’re awkward, but we want to be natural, fun & romantic.” This common challenge underscores the importance of mastering posing, a skill that blends technical knowledge with creative communication. The art of posing is more than just positioning subjects; it’s about crafting authentic, emotive stories through images. This guide …

4 Effective Communication Skills Photographers Need to Succeed

February 6, 2026 by Pye Jirsa

When we think about jumping into photography as a career, we often focus on our hard skills, or the technical aspects of shooting. It’s the part we fall in love with while learning to use our gear and discovering new techniques to capture incredible images. Knowing how to take beautiful photos, however, does not automatically …

Learn the Art of Visual Storytelling Through Photography

January 28, 2026 by Pye Jirsa

Storytelling in photography is an invaluable tool that allows us to communicate beyond words and deliver a visual narrative that touches our hearts and minds alike. An image, or a set of images, that tell a story can have a profound impact on the viewers, connecting with them on a level beyond the aesthetics of the photograph. In this video, I’ll be talking about the art of visual storytelling and how you can turn your photography into beautiful artwork that tells a story.

Video: The Art of Visual Storytelling Through Photography

When I look at the scene like this, I see a perfect opportunity for storytelling. A lot of us might think there’s only one or two shots we can get out of this scene. Instead, what I see is a whole bunch of details waiting to be captured. A landscape like this has so many pieces we can use to craft a story and I’ll show you how. We also apply the art of visual storytelling when we shoot weddings and engagements. Then, later in the video, I’ll walk through my editing process in Adobe Lightroom. At the end, we’ll have a beautiful collage of images worthy of printing or hanging up on a wall.

For this tutorial, I’ll be shooting with my trusty Canon EOS-R5 with the RF 28-70mm f/2. Also, be sure to download the exercise files here and follow along as we edit later on. Let’s dive in.

Wide, Medium, Tight

“Wide, Medium, Tight” is a technique we use to capture all the details in the scene. We start off with a wide shot to establish the scene. Then, we capture the medium shots to capture the story. Lastly, we get the tight shots that showcases the intricate details. We’ll be following this exact process as we photograph this location.

Wide: Establishing the Scene

I’ll take our first image based on the example in the last video about How Your Phone Will Make You a Better Photographer. I tilt the camera down to get most of the landscape in the frame. Then, I closed up to f/5.6 to get that wide depth of field. Timed with the waves, we get our wide establishing shot.

Medium & Tight: Capturing the Details

First, I got a shot of the waves and the mist by the horizon.

Don’t move on just yet! Look at the details in the rocks, or the way the water crashes against the sand. All we have to do to tell a story is recognize what’s already in front of us. Here are some of the images I got from this location.

Before moving on, I got some photos of the surfers. Since the 70mm wasn’t telephoto enough, I relied on the 45mp sensor of the R5. Then, in post-production, I can crop in and still have more than enough detail left over. Now that we have all of our shots, let’s take it into post and select out our images.

Post-Production

Before we begin, if you haven’t already, go ahead and download the exercise files here to follow along as I edit.

The first thing I want you to notice is that none of the images are particularly interesting on their own. If you have a hard time selecting out good photos from your own shoots, you can fall back on this technique. We’ll be creating a sequence of images that all work together to tell a story. Together, they create a visually interesting piece of art.

Step #1: Edit All the Images

The first step is to make sure all the images are cohesive with Visual Flow‘s new Black & White Mixer Presets. We’ll be using these to edit our photos to bring out the dramatic look. I began with the Cinematic HDR Landscape preset. Then I lifted the whites to get that pop.

Then, select the rest of the images and apply the same settings across the board. Press Ctrl/Cmd + Shift + S to copy all the settings (Excluding local adjustments, crop, and spot removal). Scroll through the photos to match the appearance of each image. Here are the final settings for each image.

Use Survey View to review the images altogether. Keep an eye out for the white and black points. Make sure they match.

I also added in a Medium Film Grain as an extra touch.

Step #2: Cropping the Photos

I imagined these to be arranged as square wall art pieces. So, I’ll make the crop on each photo. For your own images, crop them to your liking.

Step #3: Arrange the Layout

Select three at a time. Choose a wide, medium, and tight shot. Here are some trios I picked out.

The goal is to showcase the details from far to close. You can apply this technique to any genre. Here are some samples from some of the weddings we’ve shot.

Conclusion

I hope you enjoyed this video/article. Next time you’re out on a shoot, keep an eye out for all the details around you. Follow the Wide-Medium-Tight principle to capture every bit of your scene. Then, watch the story unfold in post as you combine all the photos together instead of relying on just a single image. For the Black & White Mixer presets, be sure to visit Visual Flow and check out all the other available presets!

Don’t miss our next episode of Mastering Your Craft on Adorama’s YouTube channel next week! If you want to catch up on all the episodes, make sure you check out our playlist!

5 Responsibilities of a Photography Lighting Assistant

January 25, 2026January 23, 2026 by Pye Jirsa

While being a lighting assistant doesn’t require a specific skill set, the job does go beyond simply carrying equipment and following instructions. Here are some tips to make you a better photography lighting assistant.

Sitting Pose Tips, Ideas and Common Mistakes

January 18, 2026 by Pye Jirsa

You can have the best, most perfectly prepared subject with phenomenal hair, makeup and styling and have gorgeous light at your disposal, but bad or mediocre posing will make it all moot. Even an experienced model who knows how to work the camera can use a little coaching to look best from the camera’s perspective …

Easiest One Light Portrait Setup for Professional Headshots

January 13, 2026 by Pye Jirsa

How many lights does it take to create a great, pro quality image? In my early career, my answer was “as many as I can get.” But over time, I learned that some of the most beautiful portraits are captured using simple setups. No need for multiple lights, sets, and gear to get gorgeous results. In this video, I’ll walk through an easy one light portrait setup for photographing professional level headshots.

Video: Easiest One Light Portrait Setup for Professional Headshots

Let’s jump right into it. For this one light portrait setup, you’ll need a flash and a camera with a portrait lens. Here’s my setup for today’s photoshoot:

Keep in mind that this one light portrait setup setup can work with practically any light and camera setup, so remember to not let cost be a barrier.

The guest of honor today is my friend Kiara and you can check out her Instagram here.

Step #1: Composition & Ambient Light

I like my headshots with a simple background, so I placed Kiara in front of this dark wall. This way, the focus of the image is directly on your subject.

At 1/200, f/5.6, ISO 200, the image is nearly blacked out.

Now let’s dial in the ambient light settings. To achieve this one light portrait setup, I need to nix all the natural light from the window and rely on only the flash. At 1/200 sec, f/5.6, and ISO 200, we’ve practically cut out all natural light.

Step #2: Add & Modify Light

This one light portrait setup is incredibly simple. I attached an umbrella to my Profoto A1 and set the light beam to wide in order to fill the entire umbrella. This will provide the softest light possible. I raised the light as high as it can go and keeping it center, aimed it down at Kiara. This center lighting is called “Paramount / Butterfly Lighting”

Here is our first test shot. An important part of portrait photography is the catchlight in the eyes. A catchlight is the highlight reflection in the eyes that gives them that “sparkle.” To get a stronger catchlight, simply lower the light a touch.

One tip to get the maximum softness from a modifier is to measure the width of the modifier and place the subject that same distance away. For example, the umbrella is roughly 3 feet wide. Therefore, I placed Kiara approximately the same distance away.

You can also add fill light from below by placing a reflector just underneath your subject.

Step #3: Pose & Photograph

Now it’s time to photograph away! Here are some of our final shots using this one light portrait setup. Edited using VF Presets.

Conclusion

If you’re thinking that buying more lighting will automatically take your work to another level, I challenge you to take a step back and explore all of the ways you rock your next photo shoot with just one light and modifier! No more complex and expensive setups. The gear that you have and a fun subject are all you’ll need to capture incredible portraits.

For those serious and want to take the next step, check out the Flash Photography Training System at SLR Lounge Premium. There, we introduce more advanced lighting setups and styles for complex portraits, weddings, editorials, and more. Also, be sure to check out VF Presets for intuitive lighting based presets and retouching tools like we used here.

Don’t miss our next episode of Mastering Your Craft on Adorama’s YouTube channel next week! If you want to catch up on all the episodes, make sure you check out our playlist!

5 Creative Accessories to Conceal Distracting Backgrounds

January 12, 2026January 12, 2026 by Pye Jirsa

We’ve all been there: you have great clients but a less-than-superb background. How do you deliver the high-quality, creative imagery that your clients have come to expect? Creative accessories are perfect when you need a spark of creativity or need to block distracting elements in your scene. These simple tools can transform an ordinary shot …

How to Design a Photo Album | A Step by Step Guide

January 10, 2026 by Pye Jirsa

Whether you’re a professional or a hobbyist, printing is an important aspect of photography. Instead of images lost in clouds, hard drives, or social media, printing your photography into wall art or albums makes your photography tangible. Selecting your favorite images for print and laying them out in a story gives them more value and …

How to Fix a Photo With Bad Lighting in Post Using Adobe Lightroom

January 6, 2026 by Pye Jirsa

Photography is all about capturing the perfect moment, but sometimes the lighting just doesn’t cooperate. When this happens, it can be frustrating to have a photo that doesn’t showcase your subject as you intended. Fortunately, with the right tools and techniques, you can fix bad lighting in a photo and bring it to life. In this article, we’ll explore how to fix bad lighting in a photo using Lightroom, one of the most powerful and popular photo editing tools available. Whether you’re a professional photographer or just starting out, these tips and tricks will help you transform your photos from dull and lifeless to vibrant and captivating.

Video: How to fix bad lighting in a photo

Bad lighting on a photo? Don’t toss it out just yet. You might still be able to bring it back alive. In this video, I’ll be walking through 9 easy steps to fix a photo with bad lighting in Adobe Lightroom Classic.

Let me preface this by saying that you should always, always, strive to get the shot right in-camera. This means taking the time to get the right settings and properly lighting your subjects. However, there are many reasons to learn editing techniques to save imperfect images. As photographers, we face countless different scenarios and it’s nearly impossible to get the perfect shot 100% of the time. Understanding what’s possible in post-production can help you still achieve a professional result nonetheless.

Before we dive in, be sure to download the exercise file here and follow along as I edit.

Getting the Image Right In-Camera

fix a photo with bad lighting taking the photo

You can see how this image was shot in a previous video where I talk about why the Canon RF 28-70 f/2 is my favorite lens. Even if the conditions aren’t the best, you want to try and get the best shot that’s possible by:

Shoot in RAW format to capture as much information as possible.
Expose properly to preserve as much detail in the shadows and highlights as possible.
Work with the natural lighting.

Step #1: Raise the Exposure

The first step to fix bad lighting in a photo. is to roughly set the exposure to the subject. For imperfectly lit images such as this, it’s okay to let the background blow out. The priority is to make sure the subject is well exposed.

Step #2: Set the White Balance

Use the eyedropper to set the white balance. I selected Kiara’s shirt. Notice the green color cast from the surrounding leaves and grass still persists. We’ll fix that shortly.

Step #3: Base Tone Adjustments

The third step to fix bad lighting in a photo is to settle on your overall base tones. I used the basic tones to make subtle adjustments that brought out more detail in the highlights and shadows.

Step #4: Set the Tone Curve

The next step to fix bad lighting in a photo is to adjust the tone curve. I started off with a basic S-curve to add contrast. Then, I created a matte look by pulling the white point down and black point up.

Step #5: Color Calibration

fix a photo with bad lighting color calibration

Step 5 to fix bad lighting in a photo is color calibration. The color calibration panel is a great tool to make corrections for unwanted color casts. I focused on restoring the skin tones.

Then, I went back to fine tune the white balance to match the updated colors.

Step #6: HSL Adjustments

This is where we can continue to separate the skin tones and remove the green tint we started out with. Start with the hues and focus on the color. Then move onto saturation and luminosity.

Step #7: Split-Tones

The seventh step to fix bad lighting in a photo is to use split toning. I used the eyedropper tool to select a the shadow hue from a color already in the image. I did the same for the mid-tones and highlights to bring out the skin tones even more.

Step #8: Tweak Your Adjustments

Go ahead and make your final tone adjustments here. I tweaked the basic adjustments to add a touch more contrast. However, fixing the bad lighting will be different depending on the lighting issue.