There are countless articles online that discuss all aspects of photography, from
buying the right DSLR to lighting, composition and color. In this tutorial
we're going to look at some of the lighting setups. It doesn't really matter
what kind of camera that you have, the camera simply records the light that it
sees and so it's important that your subject is lit to the best so that you
can achieve the results that you're looking for. There are numerous different
possibilities when it comes to lighting a subject and a wide variety of lighting
sources and tools to affect the light- everything from floodlights, hair lights,
ring lights, right down to mirrors and reflectors to bounce the light where
it's needed. We'll look at a few setups then we'll use
some basic equipment to help achieve the look that you desire. The images that I
have shot of the doll were done with LED lights available from any dollar
store and my reflectors were made from aluminum foil. First let's talk a little
bit about light. Light is measured in temperature on a Kelvin scale. In
photography, the temperature ranges from 1000 Kelvin to 10,000 Kelvin. In this
diagram we can see various light sources and where they reside on the scale.
The mood that you want to convey will determine what you use as a
light source. If you're looking for soft, warm lighting, use Early Sunrise or
Tungsten lighting. This is ideal for soft glamour-style photography. At the other
end of scale the lighting can be harsher and is more suited for high contrast
portraits or product photography. Now before we get into the types of setups,
let's talk a bit about some lighting terms. Ambient light is the light
that surrounds the shooting area and is usually unwanted. Background light is the
light that is set behind the subject to help eliminate shadows on the background.
It can also be used to bring out detail in the background. Backlight is
used behind the subject to help separate them from the background. Catch light
is a light source that causes a specular highlight in the
subject's eyes. Fill light will fill in any shadows
to lighten them and control contrast. It helps to balance out the lighting.
Hair light is used to emphasize the hair or help to separate
dark hair from dark background. Key light is the main light source for your
subject. Now let's move on to the various lighting setups. We'll start with the one
light. The one light setup is best used when you have another light source as well,
such as daylight. Your flash becomes the key light and simply exposing for the
background. This will have the effect of making the subject a bit darker but the
key light will compensate for that. You would place a key light 45 degrees away
from the camera on the side that the subject parts their hair and the level
of the light should be just above the head. Next we have butterfly light. You
can easily identify butterfly lighting as it creates a small shadow under the
nose. The key light is typically placed about five feet in front of the subject
and well above the head, angled downwards. You may want to use a small reflector
close to the subject and reflecting upwards. This will create a strong jawline.
If an image is taken using a Rembrandt lighting setup, you'll notice a small
triangle of light opposite where the key light was set. This lighting technique is
very flattering for almost all subjects. As a rule, when setting up a key light do it
on the opposite side from where your subject has their hair parted. The reason
for this is to avoid casting large shadows across the face. The key light is
45-degree angles to the side and six to seven feet up. The fill light is 90
degrees opposite the key light and just at eye level. With this set-up, play with
the key light to achieve the desired look. Rim lighting is most effective when
your subject's head is 90 degrees from the camera. This is much more dramatic style
of lighting that accents elegant features. The key light is aimed at the
face and is placed behind the subject to illuminate the profile. The fill light is
placed on the same side as the key light, with a reflector to fill in the shadow
areas. Hair and background lights are optional for this setup, but if used, are
placed on the opposite side to the key and fill lights. A split lighting setup
will illuminate only half of the subject's face.
It has a slimming effect on the face and nose. The key light is usually lower and
can be further to the side of the subject. Using a weak fill light will
help to hide facial imperfections or, if you wish, using no fill for a dramatic
effect. The headshot lighting is used when shooting with darker backgrounds
and the subject's hair will blend in. The hair light will create sort of an
outline around the head to help separate them. The key light is in a similar placement
to the Rembrandt set up - 45 degrees to the side and 6 to 7 feet up. The hair
light should be 3 to 4 feet above the subject on a boom. If a boom is not
available, point it at the background behind the subject's head. A diffuser for
the hair light should also be used. These are just a few of the more common
lighting setups. Continue to explore and the next time you go out and take a shot
hold out your hand with the palm towards you and ask yourself the following: what
type of light is hitting my hand daylight or artificial? What is the
intensity? What is the color of the light? Where are the shadows? How can I
improve on this image? Apply this to the subject that you're about to shoot.
Now that we've covered off some of the more common lighting setups, see if you can
identify what setup was used with each image. Doing this will help you better
understand the importance of lighting position and the effect that it has on
your subject. If you've enjoyed this tutorial, be sure to check out learn.corel.com
for some more equally informative tutorials.