Lesson 1

You already know and understand what is needed to effectively light any subject. The character of light is basicallly a combination of two factors
  1. Size of the light source relative to the subject.
  2. Distance of the source from the subject
Think of it this way!
Where would you expect to see the strongest, sharpest shadows? What is the softest, most shadowless light you have ever seen?

Strong, hard light can be found at high noon in the desert. The light comes from a single, point source. (Although the sun is huge....it's also 93,000,000 miles away.) Inother words, it is a point source from our position. This type of light will tend to yield the richest and punchiest colors.

By contrast, you may have picked overcast and fog as the softest light you can imagine. In fog, the light comes from everywhere (ie the light source is huge relative to the subject). This type of light will yield softer, pastel like colors.

So how does this apply to lighting in a studio?
Your first decision is always What kind of effect am I seeking?. This is how you establish the relative size of the reflector you will use. If you are after a softer effect, with gentle shadows and a smooth transition from light to dark, you will require a light source which is large relative to the subject. This lets the light wrap-around the subject.

Let's assume you are after a low shadow portrait light. Obviously you will need a large light source. A nice size for single portraits is a 3x4 feet light source. Remember the light source needs to be close to the subject. Professionals use "Bank Lights" to achieve this effect.

I can't afford that stuff!
Maybe not, but you can duplicate the effect. All lighting equipment came about because a professional tried to figure out how to do something. Get a lightweight sheet of white fabric from a local fabric store. Attach it to a frame of some kind (metal, wood,plastic tube.) When you set up your small flash to fire through the fabric, you will get the same softlight effect.

The fabric will tend to warm the light. In addition you can expect to lose 2-3 stops of light compared to what you would obtain with the flash alone.

The fabric is the light source!. From the subject's perspective, the fabric is where the light comes from. Think always in terms of "light source". If you bounce a flash off a wall, the wall is the light source.

Your own bank light.

Lesson 2

Go to Brian Greer Photo Home Page