Practical course of SLR-portrait lighting skills

Lighting skills in portrait photography: the texture of light.

The uncontrollable nature of natural light has always been a difficult probl

Practical course of SLR-portrait lighting skills

Lighting skills in portrait photography: the texture of light.

The uncontrollable nature of natural light has always been a difficult problem. Even if the weather is fine, the intensity of light is still difficult to control. Let's first understand the characteristics of light with different textures—

highlight

The utilization rate of hard light in portrait shooting is not high, because it is difficult to control the contrast between light and dark and the light ratio. We usually control the light ratio around 1:2 when shooting female portraits, but it is difficult to achieve it when using hard light. If we want to solve this problem, we can use the reflector to supplement the light, and weaken the contrast between light and shade of portrait face by reflecting the light.

However, if you want to emphasize the emotion of the picture through hard light, hard light still has some merits. At this time, we only need to pay attention to how to enhance the modeling effect through the environment. When shooting under strong light, it is very important to control the exposure. When exposed, you can overexpose half a level to increase the contrast of the picture. Or the exposure is less than half a level to lower the tone and express different emotions.

subdued light

Soft light is the opposite of strong light. A wide light source can soften shadows, reduce contrast and soften the texture of the subject. So it is often used when shooting women. It can make the skin look whiter, more transparent and smoother. The whole scene will also be brighter, reducing the intensity of shadows. Soft light is more suitable for shooting middle scenes and those smaller than middle scenes, which can better highlight the texture of characters.

There are many ways to get soft light-

1, a piece of white paper can turn direct light into soft light. Light colors, such as white umbrellas, can be used as light softening equipment.

2. Backlight can also be used as a light source for soft light. Few objects are only illuminated by backlight. If a person stands in front of a bright window, the wall he faces will reflect some light and fall on him. If a person is outdoors, even if the background is bright sunshine, there will be light from the sky on the front. You can use a mirror to reflect the backlight back to the subject to increase its exposure.

3. Choose days with thick clouds, such as cloudy days and foggy days. At this time, the light source will be wide and unfocused, and the water vapor in the sky will be like a huge soft box, softening the sunlight.

Friendly reminder: You can add half or one exposure when shooting in soft light, which can make the model's skin whiter and more transparent.

Selection of light level

Guang Shun

Parallel light is a kind of light projected in front of the character. Uniform intensity and good exposure control. This kind of light can make most characters get enough light without forming a strong contrast between light and shade. It is more suitable for shooting close-ups, close-ups and other small scenes, and can show the facial details or characteristics of people in detail.

Disadvantages: the light is flat, and it is impossible to highlight the key points.

Tip: Don't overexpose when shooting in smooth light. Generally speaking, the ideal effect can be obtained by using average photometry.

Backlighting

Backlight refers to the light form of the light source behind the figure, which is convenient to outline the figure. Conducive to convex shape. Backlight is more suitable for scenes above the middle scene, such as panorama or distant view. This kind of scenery can not only reflect the modeling of the model, but also explain the environment to a certain extent and enrich the layering of the picture.

Tip:

When shooting the silhouette effect, the metering point can be selected at the edge of the model's body, where the light is the brightest part of the whole picture. In addition, the lower the light projection angle, the more obvious the silhouette effect. So the time can be chosen at sunset or early morning. However, the use of backlight is not always a silhouette effect, and details can be preserved by controlling exposure. At this time, the metering point can be selected on the hair or human face irradiated by light. This backlight effect is common in photos and portraits.

Indirect explanation

Side light refers to the light source projected from the side, which can enhance the texture of the subject. If used properly, it can reflect the character and emotion of the characters more strongly. Side light can shoot many different scenes. The atmosphere created by the big scene is stronger; Small scenes make models look thinner.

Disadvantages: it may make the face of the character half glow and half in the shadow, resulting in a "yin and yang face".

Tip: If you want to photograph a pet's furry hair, you can knock off the light source from the side, which will make the texture of the hair more obvious.

The side backlight comes from the backlight. It illuminates people's hair from the side and back, making it show some emotions in the backlight, and does not hide the front details of the model. When shooting with side backlight, if the metering point is in the illuminated part of the face, the exposure needs to be overexposed for about one step to ensure that the facial details of the model are not suppressed by darkness.

Below the middle scene, you can choose a scene, such as a close-up or a close-up. It will be more full and vivid to show it with side backlight.

The front side lamp is a lamp evolved from the side lamp, which shapes the car model. Shooting with front light can make the model turn to the direction of light source and enhance the three-dimensional sense of her face. Use soft light to make the transition of light more natural. Pay attention to choose the area of light and dark transition of the face to measure light, so as to keep more layers of the model's face.

dome light

The top light is generally not used for portrait shooting, but it is also good to make reasonable use of the feeling that this light overflows from above.

Disadvantages: the direct illumination of the dome light on the face will make the forehead and cheekbones of the model protrude, and the effect will be a bit scary and uncomfortable.

Tip: When meeting the top light, it is much better to let the characters lie on the ground and shoot than to stand up and shoot. If you need to show the feeling of light on the characters, you should overexpose them and reflect the feeling of light through the enhancement of brightness. If you shoot at noon, the effect will be more obvious if you use a transparent white barrier to soften the light.