The Hot Shoe Diaries: Big Light from Small Flashes

Light as a Feather

TELL THE STORY.

You know why they call it “fill”? ‘Cause the glass is already just about full. All you have to do is pour a little more in.

This “little more” is just that—a little. With fill, you aren’t making wholesale changes or dialing in a new round of f-stops. If we were discussing a piece of writing, we would talk about fill as reading between the lines. It’s not there in black and white, but something is being said. It’s tough to get your head around, but as little as a third of an f-stop can alter the mood and intent of a photograph.

Louie Cacchioli and I are taking a ride on the Staten Island Ferry ...