Too much light, too little time
There’s a certain genre of internet that gives generously, provides clear outcomes, and doesn’t really ask for more, but more is there, and you can pay for it we guess, but we don’t care. Strobist is that form of internet. It is on Blogspot, in a palace of Lucida Grande, and it acts without apology and now I have spent too much on studio lighting equipment. None of it went to Strobist, but this is all Strobist’s doing.
I’m convinced that Strobist mints studio photographers. I asked the unwashed masses about a studio question, and was instantly linked there. Then I bought $400 of flash equipment, umbrellas, and stands – all of which combined is less than a single entry-level flash bought first party. I’ve been taking photos since 1995 and have barely ever used a flash. My camera doesn’t even have a flash. Now I own more flash stuff than I ever expected to use in my life – and I’m excited to use it.
Strobist has more free content than most people strictly need. Most experienced photographers already have some fluency in how light works. What we need to know is how flash differs, what separates a good flash from the low-quality one on your camera, and how to use flash like an actual studio photographer. Strobist one-ups this by providing effectively a couple of university-level courses. For free. In the age of online courses costing an arm & a leg, and your not even knowing whether they’re worth trusting ahead of time.
If third-party flash manufacturers knew any better, they would have paid millions for Strobist years ago. They did not, and now we are provided with this gift. It is, given the current grievances, impossible. It also feels obvious, simple enough that anyone could do it and post it online and make a name for themselves.
Strobist is the sort of thing that takes 20 years to build. Yes, the course itself was probably quite a bit faster than that. But the existence of Strobist helped it build a reputation that gave it enough momentum to keep finding its way into consciousness now. Even though it’s on Blogspot. (Probably because it’s on Blogspot.) Even though it looks outdated. Even though the photography itself is more Flickr-aesthetic than Instagram.
Strobist endured. You don’t need to re-teach a flash. Flash technology doesn’t progress quite so fast. The principles of photography will always remain evergreen. So you write the thing once, change it as models change, keep things updated, and keep it somewhere free that you can use as a marketing vehicle for further educational initiatives & freelance work. And then you watch it spread.