Portrait black and white photography skills

Lead: Black-and-white photos abandon the color interference of the scene, and show the details and textures of the scene in three levels: black, white and gray, thus showing the inner essence of things or the relationship between things. It has a strong shocking effect. Let's look at some techniques.

What about digital SLR cameras? Monochrome? Photograph is the effect of simulating the use, development and enlargement of black-and-white film to obtain traditional black-and-white photos. It faithfully inherited the performance of black and white photos in the film age, and was also loved by the majority of film friends.

When shooting portraits of people, we will first observe the facial contour and skin texture of the task, and then decide what kind of light to create what kind of tone, so as to highlight the texture of this texture, so we can call the skin texture, the color of the picture and the mood of the people a black-and-white portrait trilogy.

There are usually three tones in black and white photos, namely, high-key, low-key and medium-key. High-profile and low-profile photos, depending on the theme and content, make the picture full of a large area of black or white, while the corresponding brightness of a small area enhances the expressive force and artistic appeal of the work.

High-profile photos

High-profile is a picture formed by comparing a large area of white or light-colored images with a small area of dark images. Generally, dark parts and dark parts are the main body or focus of the works in the picture, while white parts and bright parts are the base or secondary parts of the picture. High-profile pictures give people a light, pure, elegant and bright feeling, which is suitable for expressing children, girls and other themes.

When shooting a high-definition picture with a digital SLR camera, the dark part should be selected as the measuring point when metering, or the exposure of 1.5~2 level should be added on the basis of average metering to ensure that the picture is bright.

High-profile works occupy most of the picture with white to light gray tones, plus a small amount of dark tones. High-profile works give people a clear, pure and light feeling, but with the change of subject matter and environment, there will also be a feeling of desolation, emptiness and sadness.

Low-key photos

Low-key is a picture formed by comparing a large area of dark light image with a small area of bright light image. Light and bright parts are the focus and center of the work. Although the dark area is large, it is generally only used as the background or base of the picture to illustrate the environment and render the atmosphere.

Low-key pictures are suitable for works with heavy content, solemnity, melancholy, horror and mystery. Use backlight, side light or soft local scattered light. Low-key images can hide messy backgrounds and objects unrelated to the theme in the dark, making the bright parts of the subject more prominent.

When shooting portraits of low-key people, they are usually old people and determined men. Of course, it is also an exploratory use when shooting female body lines. When shooting, black or dark background is usually used, and the edge of human body is outlined with highlights by using backlight and side backlight. When shooting, the light should be taken as the reference point, and the half-level exposure should be appropriately reduced to ensure that the background can be darkened.

Intermediate tone photograph

The black-and-white photos we take every day are generally medium-tone photos. It is different from high-profile and low-key photos, and there is generally no large proportion of black or white in the picture. Instead, it is rich in black, white and gray tones.

Ansel, a master of black and white photography? In the movie era, Adams divided the gray-scale transition from black to white that can be distinguished by human eyes into 12 levels in order to pursue the richest level changes. In the digital age, the computer can subdivide the gray level transition in photos into 256 levels, but how to make black and white photography work better requires photographers to conduct in-depth research on new technologies and materials.

Usually taking black and white photos with a digital SLR camera, do you think the effect of black and white gray is not good? The whole photo is gray, the contrast is not strong, and there is no shocking effect of black and white photos, so it is considered that the effect of black and white digital shooting is not good. However, if we understand the whole process of traditional black-and-white photography, we will understand that this phenomenon is not the weakness of digital photography.

Traditional black-and-white photos are controlled from the early stage of shooting. Different black and white films have different characteristics, and the fineness of particles and the level of black, white and gray are also different. When shooting, photographers usually add different color filters in front of the camera according to different shooting environments (nature, city, portrait) to improve the brightness of some scenery colors; In the later stage, film processing, paper selection, development and fixing were carried out, and the corresponding drug formula and time control were carried out, and the level and contrast of the image were carefully controlled. This is a whole process control.

To shoot a group of attractive black and white portraits, the photographer must master the use of light accurately. Depending on the orientation of the camera and the light source, the light falls on different parts of the subject, which will produce different effects.

According to the angle of light, the basic common light types can be divided into four types: front light, side light, top light and backlight. In addition, the intensity of light can be divided into strong light and soft or scattered light. Let's take a look at the effect of black and white portraits in various lighting conditions.

Frontal light

Because the light shines on the subject from the front, it is usually called plane light, because the front light will produce a two-dimensional sense of plane. The front light can be very low, like the sun in the morning or evening; It can also be high, like the noon sun.

Each position produces a different effect. When shooting with frontal light, the light is directly above the model and evenly shines on the model's face and body. We can clearly see her facial features, the level and texture of her hair and clothes.

Side lamp

Side light generally refers to side light, which can produce many angles, the most commonly used is 45? . The main light used for indoor portrait shooting is mostly oblique light, which can not only produce good contrast between light and shadow, but also highlight the rich color and three-dimensional sense of the subject.

Especially 45? Side light is usually considered as "natural light", and many people think it is the best light type for portrait photography.

top light

The ceiling lamp is a kind of lamp that is difficult to use. The light is generally above the subject's head, and the shadow is deep and strong. Pay attention to adjusting the model's face when shooting.

Backlighting

For black-and-white portrait photography, we can create images of dynamic people by using contrasting light.

Backlight silhouette portrait can be regarded as a kind of portrait photography in Gao Fancha. Backlight photo is a silhouette image effect taken by the subject with the light source behind him. When the light shines from the back of the subject, if exposed, the subject will become a black silhouette.

If the light source is in a higher position, a bright outline will be drawn above the subject, such as the model's hair, creating a kind of image called? Silhouette light? .

A simple and expressive Gao Fancha image can be created by using silhouette objects with their backs to light. Sunlight is often used as the light source for taking silhouette photos against the light, but any light can be used as the light source according to the photographer's convenience or preference.