Lighting – Scratching The Surface

Lighting

I joke that the three Ls of photography are Lighting, Lighting and Lighting.  The truth of the matter is, it’s not really a joke.  Lighting will make or break a shot, no matter what camera you shoot with.  There are countless articles and books written on the topic, and many of them may as well be written in Greek.  I’ll confess right now that I’ve never taken a photography class, much less a class in lighting.  My methods come from experimentation and observations of the natural world.  The funny thing is, the more experience I gain, the less I feel I really know.  What that means is this – the more I learn about lighting, the more I realize how infinite the possibilities are.  This is a good thing.  The means I have come to understand that the only limitation for creative lighting is the extent of one’s imagination (and maybe budget).

Technical Schmechnical

The hard part, at least for me, is deciding HOW I want the subject lit…. Soft light?  Hard light?  Hard shadows?  Soft shadows?  No shadows?  Some combination of all the above?  Once you know how you want it to look, the rest is child’s play.  I honestly think this is where many other photographers get stuck – the creative part.  Once you know HOW you want the subject or scene lit, the technical details are simple to figure out.

There are MANY tools for shaping, reflecting, diffusing and absorbing light.  I like to relate studio lighting techniques to what Mother Nature creates during the course of any given day.  For example, I think of a single bare strobe as the sun.  If I want clouds, then I can add an umbrella or soft box.  The bigger the umbrella (or soft box), the cloudier the sky.  If you’ve ever taken photos outdoors in bright sunshine, then under cloud cover, this is an easy comparison to understand.  Digging a bit deeper, the larger the light source, the softer the shadows; the smaller (and brighter) the light source, the harsher the shadows and highlights.  When you put an umbrella or soft box on your studio strobes, what you are essentially doing is making your light source LARGER.  Here’s a hint – you can also change the size of your light source by moving the light closer to or farther from your subject.  A single bright spot of light far from the subject will create bright highlights and hard, sharp shadows… just like the sun on a clear sunny day.  A large umbrella positioned just a couple of feet from the subject will bathe the subject in light and create extremely soft wrap-around shadows…. just like a bright overcast day.  Get the picture?  Now, this might seem like an over-simplification.  But if you stop and think about how many variants there are on this one aspect, you will realize the possibilities are infinite.  It really is “painting with light”.

One Light, Two Lights, Three Lights, Four..?

How many lights does it take to create the “perfect shot”?  It would be easier to answer how many licks it takes to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop.  This goes back to answering the harder question of HOW you WANT the shot to look.  This question is so difficult, because there is no right or wrong answer.  Here are a few examples of what I have done in terms of how many lights went into creating the shot:

One light:

Two lights:

Three lights:

Four lights:

Five lights:

No lights (well, ok, natural light):

That last shot reminds me of everything that goes into thinking through a shot using natural light.  The girl standing in a wheat field took two solid days to create (three if you count drive time).  The setting was hand picked after about 200 miles of driving around, location hunting.  I visited the same sites in the morning, afternoon and evening, paying close attention to the position of the sun at the different times of day.  I wanted the model’s face to be lit with low-hanging sunlight, and I wanted the landscape to be expansive.  I also wanted the sky to be blue, and I wanted a breeze to be blowing her hair, dress and white fabric.  Taking all these things into consideration accounts for all the time it took to get the shot.  That shot exhibits more luck than skill, because everything did line up just right.  But it helps to illustrate the concept of CAREFULLY picking the elements in the shot, as well as paying close attention to the setting/background.  Finding the right model for the shot is another story!

Eventually, I will get more detailed as to the type, positioning and distance of each light for various set-ups.  At best, this post is only scratching the surface.  The best thing I can recommend is to PLAY.  Start with one light.  Move it around the room.  Move it closer.  Farther.  Use an umbrella.  Take the umbrella off and point the bare umbrella reflector at the ceiling.  Let your gut and your emotion drive the look of the shot and don’t worry so much about the formula.  You will eventually develop a style that is all your own, and other photographers will be scratching their heads, wondering and asking, “How did you do that?”

Side Note: Finding The Right Model

I am often asked how I go about finding models and how much I pay.  Many of my models are simply friends and friends of friends, and friends of friends of friends, and sometimes family.  Every once in a while I will find models through sites like ModelMayhem.  Sometimes they find me.  Sometimes I find them while standing in line at the coffee shop (people love hearing they ought to be in pictures).  The question of compensation is a broad one, but I always try to compensate the models in some way, even if they are close friends.  If I am contacted by a model looking for portfolio work, then I will do photos for trade (also referred to as TFP/CD .. “Time For Print or CD”) – they get images for their modeling portfolio; I get a model release.  If I am hiring a model for something very specific I am looking for, then I will pay anywhere from $40 to $150 per hour.. depending on the experience level of the model and my confidence in their “look”.  The most I have ever paid a model is $187.50 per hour (yes, it’s an odd hourly figure, but it was the rate I was presented with), and that was for a seasoned professional who strictly made their living from modeling and acting.  Basically, everyone needs something.  At the very least, they want to feel appreciated.  Compensation does not always have to be money.  It can be prints or a CD, pizza and beer, trade for other services.. like shooting a wedding, or even kind words and a heart-felt “Thank You.”… if it’s family.