Dear Diary,
Hair Lights, Back Lights, and Barn Doors, oh my! Studio Lighting can be very overwhelming when
you first start getting into it. Some
photographers out there have thousands of drywall screw
factory dollars of accessories associated
with their studio setup. The good news
is, you dont have to be rich to enter into the world of studio portraits. Think about it. How many light sources did God create for
earth? If you said One meaning the
sun; you were almost right. He also
created the sky and the ground to bounce that light into the shadows. Light that is bounced back is commonly
referred to as a fill light. If there
was no fill light on earth; anything not directly lit by the sun, would have NO
DETAIL, it would all be totally black.
It is astounding how much you can do with one main light and one or two fill
lights. For those of you thinking three
lights doesnt sound simple to me, let me clarify. In this article what I am describing is one
light and one or two reflective surfaces to help bounce that light or to fill
in the shadows. With one light and one or
more reflectors, you can make amazing photographs.
Having the tools and knowing what to do with those tools are two different
things. Today I want to show you what to
do with these basic tools.
1) Short Light is the type
of studio lighting setup, where the face side of the subject which is the
farthest from the camera gets the main light. In this type of lighting setup,
the side of the face which is toward the camera gets less light then the side
facing away form the camera. The effect you get when using this lighting setup
is a thin face, this is why it is good to photograph large (or chubby) people
with a short light setup. A photo tip
worth remembering is: short light helps to visually thin your subject.
2) Broad light is just the
opposite of Short light. In the Broad Light setup, the side that is getting the
most light is the side facing the camera. This setup is less commonly used for
portraits as it tends to make people look chubby. In both these cases, you can place a
reflector on the opposite side of the light (at about a 45 degree angle) to
help fill in the shadow side.
3) Split Light sounds more complex
than it is. Position your main light on one side of your subject so that its
exactly 90 degrees to the subject. In
other words, you will see a dramatic shadow going right down to the middle of
his or her face. If your main light is a
flash, you might want to consider a secondary light; not for exposure . . . but
just for light placement. We call this
small secondary light a modeling light.
In some units, they actually have a modeling light built in around the
main light, so you can visually see whats happening.
Using the modeling light, make sure the line between
light and dark runs directly down the center of your models face, right down
the tip of the nose. The model should be looking directly at the camera. This
is what we call a split light portrait.
Another photo tip is this: split light portraits, create dramatic visual
results.
4) Rembrandt Light is considered
an artistic classic. The main light is
positioned high and on the side of the face that is away from the camera. Generally the subject is placed at a 45
degree angle to the camera (as opposed to just looking straight on.) This
technique produces an illuminated triangle on the cheek closest to the camera.
The triangle will illuminate just under the eye and not below the nose. The face should appear illuminated on one
side and heavily shadowed on the other.
Place your reflector (or white poster board) on the opposite side of the studio
light. The reflector should be angled so that it reflects any remaining light
in the room to the subject's darken side. The key here is NOT to eliminate the
dark shadows, but to add detail within the shadows. The third photo tip to remember: adding subtle detail makes images appear more
artistic.
5.) Butterfly Lightis
achieved by positioning the main light directly in front of the subjects face
and adjusting the height to create a shadow directly under, and in line with
the nose. This style is best suited for
subjects with a normal oval face and is considered to be a glamour style of
lighting best suited for women. This
lighting technique creates hard shadows in the eye sockets and under the chin
depending on the size of your main light and distance to your subject. Use a
reflector under the main light source to fill in the underside of the face (eye
sockets, under nose and under chin areas). Sometimes this is referred to as over and
under lighting.
Now the setups given above; can use extra lights, but they dont have to. Just as you can take an award winning
photographs with a $50.00 camera or a $5,000.00 camera, you can also take great
shots with a single light source. As we
mentioned before, having the tools and knowing what to do with them are two
totally different things.
It is my firm belief that photographers who learned to master Black and White
photography first and then learned Color photography; will ALWAYS have the
advantage over those who started with color photography. This is not meant to insult younger
photographers. If a cake taste bad, it doesnt
matter what kind of icing you put on it.
Learn the basics of good photography first, and then you can add more
lights, more lenses, or whatever the case may be. Thus the fourth photo tip to
remember is this: start with the basics, master them first. Then
go forward.