How to use lighting gels:
Apart from a softbox, the most useful accessories that I have for my small lighting kit are different-coloured lighting gels. However, mention lighting gels and many photographers will think of images seen in photography books from the 1970s and ’80s, where portraits were lit with blue- or red-coloured lights – and sometimes even both.
This garish style looks very dated, and has probably deterred quite a few photographers from ever buying a set of lighting gels. Yet these gels are useful for a variety of different purposes, and are one of the cheapest accessories available. There are basically three ways that lighting gels can be used: for colour correction; to create a special effect; or to simply illuminate an area or subject with a particular colour. The key to using lighting gels well is to use them subtly and in moderation. Unless you are using a lighting gel for colour correction, there are few times when the coloured light should be the dominant illumination in an image.