Some creative Holga Tips!

Tip 1:

You can make some good use of the holga's flash to make some creative effects! The color flash on the camera will only reflect on subject that are near. So a shot near a window will have an effect as shown :)

Alternatively, if you shoot with the red flash on a human subject near you, this is what you will get! The creativity is yours :)

Tip 2:

Make full use of the Bulb function of the 'N' type Holga to take some creative night and low light shots. Switch to 'B' and the aperture will open as long as you hold the shutter button. How long you hold depends on how much ambient light is available and what effects you like to achieve.

Here is an example of my long exposure on the street lamps taken in a car, from the passenger seat. Make sure you do not distract or obstruct the driver!

There are many other dramatic and creative effect that can be achieved using the bulb function.

Tip 3:

Shoot using the 35mm film instead of the medium format. This method require some modifications to your Holga but it is really not too difficult. The modification procedures can be easily found from searching the internet. 

These are some of my shots with the 35mm film on my Holga:

More interestingly, you can buy a film scanner, and you can produce pictures with the sprockets! Well, I would say this is more challenging and a relatively good scanner should be used :)

Here’s a Quick Way to Setup a Basic Studio Portrait Lighting

Studio photography by seanyeo


For studio photography, the equipment plays a key role. The lightings and setup can determine the effects or styles of the final product.

One of the easiest way to setup a basic studio lighting is to use a single light source placed at 45 degrees to the subject and pointing at a 45 degrees angle to the subject.

Front view

Side view






The white translucent umbrella will disperse the light to give a soft look. A popular alternative is to use a soft box, which will produce very nice diffused light too.

If you prefer a harsher light to give a more dramatic look, you can use the black umbrella with silver coating inside:

The pictures will show a nice gradient on the models' faces :)

If you will like a more balanced look, you may use another light source on the other side e.g. window light to reduce the gradient. Alternatively, a reflector can be used too. The 2nd light source should be set to about half the power of the key light, facing at an angle to create a geometric effect for the face!

The equipment used is from elinchrom.