Studio More hard light portraiture

juggler

juggler

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Simon
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Every now and again a studio local to me has a club night / networking evening where a few models and a number of photographers get together for a bit of a play and a natter. They're a great chance to experiment. Shooting time is necessarily limited and there isn't much chance to influence styling - glamour isn't really my thing - but there's usually chance to alter the lights a little.

Anyway.. I got another chance to muck around with hard lighting, I think I'm starting to understand what I can and can't do with it.
I'm sure the processing won't be to everyone's taste but my head tells me that this kind of glamour-ish stuff needs a bit of polishing.


Jada Rose I by Simon Carter, on Flickr
 
•
She's… wow!

As I see it, this is not only hard light but high key as well. I relish
the first immensely but the second… IMO, not the best Idea as
she is too close to the backdrop and that causes a shadow.

In this case, the proper setup would be a white background, yes
but the model should be far enough from it so there is no shadow.

The girl is awesome and the pose too. More care should have been
taken of the garment at the rib cage.

Very cool stuff Simon!
 
Kodiak Qc said:
•
She's… wow!

As I see it, this is not only hard light but high key as well. I relish
the first immensely but the second… IMO, not the best Idea as
she is too close to the backdrop and that causes a shadow.

In this case, the proper setup would be a white background, yes
but the model should be far enough from it so there is no shadow.

The girl is awesome and the pose too. More care should have been
taken of the garment at the rib cage.

Very cool stuff Simon!
Click to expand...

Thank you :)
The shadow was deliberate in this case but I can see why you may not like it.
 
juggler said:
I can see why you may not like it.
Click to expand...
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This is just me Simon, but the reason I bring it up is the I know
no AD that would go for it. You would be kindly (sometimes)
asked to redo but without!
 
Very nice, the lighting suits the look and the pose.
My only gripe is the lower seam of her top, the way it is slightly twisted.

I usually spot these when I'm at home on the computer rather than at the time I'm shooting
 
light is harsh on models forehead and arms
also the shadows don't do anything for the picture
 
holty said:
light is harsh on models forehead and arms
also the shadows don't do anything for the picture
Click to expand...

Disagree on both counts, you may not have caught the bit about hard lighting in the OP. It's different, the shadow adds to the shot and it works. High key using soft light, well there's loads of those. Simon, I applaud you for continuing your quest, this is a great shot IMO.
 
Hi Simon,

I am no expert but like the lighting and the pose.
 
Kodiak Qc said:
•
This is just me Simon, but the reason I bring it up is the I know
no AD that would go for it. You would be kindly (sometimes)
asked to redo but without!
Click to expand...

Really? I can think of quite a few recent ad campaigns with very similar lighting, some of which are quite high profile such as the Equinox Gym ads by Terry Richardson.

You see this lighting a great deal in contemporary editorial fashion too.

You sure you actually know what you're talking about?


Kodiak Qc said:
•

In this case, the proper setup would be a white background, yes
but the model should be far enough from it so there is no shadow.
Click to expand...


Says who? You? It's clearly deliberate and not a mistake. You're just out of touch I think. The shadow is clearly well controlled and PLACED well and not just a random artefact of being too close. She was PUT that close to GET the shadow.
 
I like the hard light. I wonder if you could have made more of it though. It seems a bit flat somehow
 
If you were after soft lighting this would be rubbish, if you were after natural light it would be rubbish, if you were after hard lighting you've nailed it.
 
holty said:
light is harsh on models forehead and arms
also the shadows don't do anything for the picture
Click to expand...

Thank you for taking the time to comment. What do you mean by harsh? There are no hard edged shadows in those areas. Perhaps you mean the specular highlights are hard-edged? Or just too bright? They're not blown, though, I think they're about where I want them.

boyfalldown said:
I like the hard light. I wonder if you could have made more of it though. It seems a bit flat somehow
Click to expand...

Interesting observation, and slightly disappointing. I was hoping the shadows would reduce the sense of flatness. The distance from the light means there is very little fall off. I did contemplate putting up some black panels to reduce the amount of light reflected from the wall onto the model but didn't really have time. Note to self: make time.

On the shadows... I'm in a slight minority, but I was hoping for a number of things from them:
  • To give some sense of depth and avoid the 'body floating in a sea of white' effect that high key images often have
  • To draw attention to the rather angular pose (which I like, 'cos it shows off Jada's fabulous muscularity. She's not a stick thin fashion model). In an ideal world the shadow of the upper elbow would be more prominent too.
  • I won't claim originality but I think they add a graphic element which is more interesting than the image would be without.
Pookeyhead said:
Really? I can think of quite a few recent ad campaigns with very similar lighting, some of which are quite high profile such as the Equinox Gym ads by Terry Richardson.
Click to expand...

Terry Richardson has an unsavoury reputation and is often dismissed as a chancer with poor technique. As I've learnt some skills I have renewed respect for his abilities. I hadn't seen the Equinox ads but some of them are very clever.

Anyways.. thank you all for your feedback, much appreciated.
 
I keep coming back to this, firstly I quite liked the shadow on the furthest arm but not the elbow so much, but I keep coming back to look and I'm swaying I think I do.
I also like her top in that it's colourful and makes it stand out even more
I'm not knowledgeable enough to comment loads but...
I like it :D
 
juggler said:
Interesting observation, and slightly disappointing. I was hoping the shadows would reduce the sense of flatness. The distance from the light means there is very little fall off. I did contemplate putting up some black panels to reduce the amount of light reflected from the wall onto the model but didn't really have time. Note to self: make time.

On the shadows... I'm in a slight minority, but I was hoping for a number of things from them:
  • To give some sense of depth and avoid the 'body floating in a sea of white' effect that high key images often have
  • To draw attention to the rather angular pose (which I like, 'cos it shows off Jada's fabulous muscularity. She's not a stick thin fashion model). In an ideal world the shadow of the upper elbow would be more prominent too.
  • I won't claim originality but I think they add a graphic element which is more interesting than the image would be without.
Click to expand...


I think the high key look to this has put me off it a little. I love hard light, and love the shadows behind her. It seems like while you've managed this there are also a lack of shadows of her which spoil it a little for me - I hope this is atleast a bit useful
 
That's a great shot Simon, great lighting and pose. This shot works really well in my book.(y)

George.
 
Pookeyhead said:
You sure you actually know what you're talking about?
Click to expand...
•
In the same register, that you use, I could ask you:
"Are you sure to ask this question to the right person?"
…but since I do not like to use that kind of register,
I will not answer the question… not even by an other question.
 
juggler said:
Terry Richardson has an unsavoury reputation and is often dismissed as a chancer with poor technique.
Click to expand...

He has a VERY unsavoury reputation, yes, but that's neither here nor there... I'm talking about his photography. His commercial work is actually very good. What he does with fashion is an affectation - a chosen way of working, much as Jurgen Teller did the same thing during the heroin chic thing in the 90s. Despite what peopel think of him as a person, he does actually know what he's doing :). He's still a misogynistic, sexist knob... but he knows what he's doing with a camera.


:)
 
Must admit hard lighting is something that interests me but I haven't any experience of using it. I do like this Simon and have noted quite a few editorials using similar. Care to share the set up please.
 
Livin The Dream said:
Must admit hard lighting is something that interests me but I haven't any experience of using it. I do like this Simon and have noted quite a few editorials using similar. Care to share the set up please.
Click to expand...

Ta! This was a single strobe in a gridded standard reflector about 4-5m from the model, above & behind the camera position - and probably just over 2m high.

Keeping my own shadow out of shot was mildly tricky, and it was a good job the model was very good at working with the light. The angle of the nose was critical.

Next time I'll try both black and white panels either side of the model.

Getting the exposure right - i.e. as bright as poss without losing detail was awkward, too. I slightly underexposed - accidentally - and fiddled around in post; I need to calibrate my meter again.

hth!
 
IMO, the hard shadows would work better with more of them and more offset by moving the model farther away and the light to an angle. You would loose the flat "glamour look" unless you turned her to look into the light, but I think a good balance is possible in there.
 
sk66 said:
IMO, the hard shadows would work better with more of them and more offset by moving the model farther away and the light to an angle. You would loose the flat "glamour look" unless you turned her to look into the light, but I think a good balance is possible in there.
Click to expand...

I've got a couple along those lines, too - they have more drama but do lose the glamour look.
 
Bravo. I'm quite a fan of this hard lit style of shot. It's harder to get right than it seems. When I first came across Terry Richardson's work (no pun intended), I thought it lacked skill. I was wrong.

I think you've nailed it.

Encore.
 
Honestly, there's nothing not to like, Simon. You've got the shadows where they need to be and avoided the hard nose ones. Top job.
 
I looked at this yesterday but didn't comment. I have looked at it again today and still think it's a great image!
 
Very nice shot and hard light has worked great... I especially like that the top nearly matches the eye colour :D
 
juggler said:
Credit to the model for that one - she knows what she's doing. I contemplated tweaking to make them an exact match.
Click to expand...

I think that would work really well .... though model may not like her eyes being changed nor the top :D
 
Nice work. One of my favourite lighting setups is a barebulb strobe with model close to a white backdrop. Great definition of the subject and leaves some really cool compositional possibilities with the shadow composition. Well done.
 
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