Detailed explanation of the whole process of portrait shooting at night

Lead: Portrait at night is a photographer's favorite theme. However, due to the complexity and diversity of light sources, photographers need to use light more accurately, and it is more difficult to shoot in the daytime than portraits. In the next tutorial, photographer Zach Sutton will tell you the process of shooting portraits at night, hoping to help you.

Detailed explanation of equipment selection in the whole process of portrait shooting at night

In low light environment, it is a good choice to have a camera with high sensitivity and a large aperture lens, but it is not necessarily required in this tutorial. In addition, three flashlights, reflectors and other continuous light sources should be prepared (not all of them need to be used, depending on the situation).

Selection of shooting location

The shooting location is different, and the shooting process is also very different. Just like in abandoned warehouses and brightly lit streets, there is a difference between the two shooting methods. When choosing, consider whether there is continuous lighting in the shooting area. If there is no lighting, you need to bring some lighting tools to facilitate your actions and help the camera focus.

Selection of ambient light

When shooting in a place without ambient light, in this case, all the light sources come from the flash, and then a higher shutter speed will be used to shoot, so the exposure of the subject and background will be easier to control. If you choose a place with a continuous light source to shoot, the output of the flash will generally decrease, and the shutter speed will be slower if it is mixed with ambient light (note: the shutter speed will not affect the output of the flash).

workflow

The theme of this shoot is Spencer, a bearded smoker. According to the characteristics of the theme, use two flashlights, one on the back and upper part of the character for backlighting; The other is in the upper right corner of the figure, which is the main light. After determining the approximate position and output of the flash, you can start shooting, and adjust the accurate position and output of the flash when shooting.

After determining the approximate position and parameters of the flash, set the parameters of the camera and start shooting. Here are the photos taken for the first time, which are not exposed enough.

So the output of the main light flash is increased, and the photos taken after adjustment are as follows. As can be seen from the photos, the exposure time is still very short.

So I raised the ISO, the flash output was a little higher, and then I started shooting. The photos obtained are obviously much better.

Next, I made a fine adjustment according to this theme, and the position of the main light moved to the left, reducing the output a little; The backlight flash slightly increases the output, making the backlight effect more obvious and the separation of smoke from the environment more clear. Finally, I got the following photo.

I completed all the above steps in 15 minutes. Let's take a real photo!

post production

In post-processing, according to the shooting theme, reduce the saturation and depress the dark background. Then copy the elements you want to highlight for another layer, and use tools such as deepening, lightening and layer blending to get better results. The final processed photos are as follows:

Other examples

Cigar smoker

As you can see from this picture, I shot it by simulating a street lamp. The position of the lamp is in the front of the picture, ISO is around 800, and the shutter speed is relatively fast, so it seems that the state of the smoke is relatively solid and the background will not be dead black. If low ISO and slow shutter speed are used, the shape of smoke will become blurred and the effect will be poor. In the choice of color, I used warm colors to make the photos more interesting.

The girl under the street lamp

When taking this photo, we used a soft mask and set a higher ISO and a larger aperture. The main purpose is to solidify the snowflake and take a good-looking shot. In terms of color expression, restoration is the main way to make photos more attractive.

label

Through the above sharing, I hope to provide some help to everyone. When shooting, the first step is to determine the shooting location and prepare for the next equipment preparation and lighting arrangement. Use your imagination when arranging the lights to make the photos more colorful.