Dramatic portrait lighting setups

The angle of the light source casts a small shadow from the nose to the cheek to create depth. Short lighting is the opposite of broad lighting, so instead of turning away from the light, the subject turns towards it. With short lighting, the broad side of the face facing the camera is all shadows while the thin or short side lights up.

With soft lighting, the shadows under the cheekbone and next to the nose are more pronounced. Ensure you have some form of fill light or catchlight when creating short lighting or broad lighting to bring the eye on the shadow side to life. Use the skills gained here to experiment with a subject to develop your face lighting techniques.

Consider using the split method horizontally rather than vertically. Light the bottom half of the face while the top half is in shadow for an unusual, sinister look! There are some critical pieces of kit for portrait lighting setups. But sometimes, less is more — especially as a beginner working from home.

Here are some very simple and easy to follow tips for portrait lighting. While these are for beginners, every photographer needs reminding from time to time. By mounting the ring light in front of you, you can point your camera lens through the opening. That way, your model will have perfect circle lights reflected in their eyes. Ring lights cast a constant light that illuminates the front of the subject.

They are ideal for patterns such as loop lighting and Rembrandt lighting to make the eyes oop. Portrait photographers usually consider the light from a large, soft, diffused light source as the most flattering.

Flattering light brings skin to life without revealing too many blemishes and imperfections. It also makes features such as the eyes, brow and mouth stand out. Generally, a warmer light with a value of Kelvin is better. This is an excellent guide with which to begin.

Best to you! When the shadow is on the side of the face closest to the lens, it called short lighting. You can have broad or short lighting with loop or rembrandt. Broad lighting makes the face look larger, while short lighting creates a smaller looking face. The light sculps the face. Amazing post, well structured and very easy to understand, love the examples. Well done and thanks! Thanks very much. Just what I need. This is a straightforward, clear guide, very helpful.

No bullshit. What a great reference! Thank you! Except for butterfly lighting, all can be broad or short. Your email address will not be published. Notify me of follow-up comments by email. Notify me of new posts by email. Our mission at BorrowLenses is to advance photographic and cinematic dreams by providing access to superior, cutting-edge gear and expert advice.

Ready to get to work? Order from your desk, have gear delivered to your door, and take on your next project. Alexandria Huff's photography and lighting tutorials can be found on px and her blog. See her lighting tutorials here.

She learned about lighting and teaching while modeling for photographers such as Joe McNally and has since gone on to teach lighting workshops of her own in San Francisco. See her chiaroscuro-style painterly portraits on her website. Tom LeTourneau says:. November 27, at am. Barry Perhamsky says:. October 8, at pm. Akinwunmi Ibrahim says:. August 24, at am. Fernando Maquedano says:. July 24, at pm.

Dominick Cuming says:. May 14, at am. Irene says:. October 22, at pm. This is why learning how to create focused or patterned light is also important. An unmodified flash creates hard light. But the light from a flash will also spill out over the entire scene without adjustments.

Using a lighting modifier can help create a focused or patterned light. A grid , snoot , or barn doors will focus the widespread of the light from a strobe or flash. You can use each of them to prevent the light from hitting the background and creating more contrast.

Or you can use it to draw attention to a specific part of the image. While each accessory can focus the light, they are used in a different way. If you want to create light with a limited spread, but still want some softness, consider trying a beauty dish modifier. A grid looks much like the name suggests. The pattern restricts the light, creating a narrower beam. Grids are measured in degrees. A degree grid will create a much tighter spot of light while a degree grid will have a wider spread.

Place and then position the light. Make sure you get the right position since that restricted beam leaves less room for error. A snoot is a collapsible cylinder. Think of a snoot as a spotlight effect. They are available in different sizes based on the size of the opening for the light.

Barn doors work to create a narrower beam of light, too. But they are more customizable than grids and snoots. You can open or close them to adjust the shape and size of the light.

With all four doors closed, the light is narrow like a snoot. But you can also close just two doors for a thin strip of light. Or you can adjust each one individually to add more variety. The zoom setting on your flash can also play a role in how the light spreads. A higher zoom, like mm, creates a narrower spread of light than a lower setting, like 24mm. In portrait photography , creating patterned light is done by placing the key light so that it creates a specific pattern on the face.

You can also find patterned light in natural conditions. Look for the pattern created by the light and shadows in the scene around you. See the shadows created by the goalposts in the football image above. Hard sunlight streaming through window blinds also creates an interesting pattern that can lead to great photos. Photographers can also mimic the effect by creating a DIY cardboard cutout or adding gaffers tape over a softbox.

There are unlimited possibilities for creating a custom shape with DIY photography. Contrast refers to the difference between the darkest and lightest areas of the image. You can use hard light and a modifier to prevent the light from also hitting the background.