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WORKING WITH TWO LIGHTS LIGHTING ACADEMY

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LIGHTING ACADEMY WORKING WITH TWO LIGHTS NO KICKER LIGHT

KICKER TOO STRONG

KICKER ANGLE TOO LARGE

In the first picture, which uses just one light firing from around the seven or eight o’clock position, the opposite side of Harri’s face is too shadowed. However, when the kicker light is added in the position shown on the previous page and triggered at the same strength as the main light, it’s much too bright, because it’s glancing into the lens. Power needs to be reduced to avoid burning out. In the third version, the kicker is still too bright, but also firing from side-on to Harri, so it simply balances the main light and gives a look that’s too flat. A kicker – also called a rim, back or edge light – is much like a hair light in principle, except that it’s positioned to accent the edge (or edges) of the subject, rather than just to add a glow and texture to the hair. For example, a hair light shouldn’t touch the subject’s face, but a kicker should, accentuating cheekbones or the jawline. A kicker can be used in conjunction with any number of other lights, but in our example shot of Harri, we wanted to make its

The angle and strength of the kicker light is really important and can make or break a portrait. It needs to be aimed from behind the subject and with its power well under the main light’s. Also be careful of lens flare – use a modifier that will narrow the light, like a snoot or grid, or position deflectors between you and the light.

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presence quite obvious, so used it with just a key light and a reflector in the fill position. The striking addition that the kicker gives can also be its downfall. It’s quite a harsh, glancing light that emphasises form, so while it can beautifully sculpt the contours of a face, it can also show imperfections, increases texture, and look unflattering or distracting on some subjects. Its strength and position can really make or break a shot, so here’s how to use it right. We started by setting the key light in a basic loop position, slightly above and between the seven and eight o’clock angle, so that it left some shadow on the opposite side of Harri’s face. To make the shadows a little more sculpted we decided against a softbox or umbrella and instead used a 40cm silver beauty dish. A silver reflector in the four o’clock position filled the shadows a little and the key light was used at 1/8th power giving an exposure of 1/125sec at f/11 and ISO 200. With this basic arrangement, Harri’s left falls into darkness, so the kicker is vital. However, so is its positioning and its power; one leading naturally into the other. We wanted to control the spill of light and stop it falling back into the lens from its position at the rear of the setting, so used a snoot, channelling the light into a spot. If you’re using a spill kill, or even a honeycomb, you may need some additional deflectors to stop lens flare. Moving the light more broadly onto the subject isn’t the way to deal with flare, because to do its job it has to be glancing. Even in the three o’clock position it’s too flat and needs to be further into the two or one o’clock angle to work. The kicker is well named, adding impact, but it’s often used too brightly. Undiffused and fired at a glancing angle means that only a little power is needed in relation to the key (or fill) light. We used @advancedphotog

info@advancedphotographer.co.uk

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02/12/2014 15:52

WORKING WITH TWO LIGHTS LIGHTING ACADEMY BUTTERFLY LIGHTING To get the butterfly (or Paramount) look, position your key light directly in front of where the subject is facing and above their eyeline to create a shadow directly under the nose. A fill light or reflector can be used to soften shadows slightly, which is desirable, but it shouldn’t be as bright as the key light. For a more dramatic shadow, have the subject tilt their head up.

Keeping the kicker light separate on the subject’s face allows you to create a pleasing contrast in lighting styles. Here we used a blue gel on the kicker light to accent Harri’s jawline and scarf. only 1/64th power at the 1/125sec at f/11, ISO 200 exposure set for the key light. If used at the same power, the kicker will be way too bright, because of the way it reflects directly off the subject, meaning you’ll create very bright highlights on that side of the face and lose detail. Because, in our set-up, the effects of the key and kicker lights were kept almost entirely apart, we also had the chance to use a gel on the end of the snoot. The blue gel we used cooled the light and gave a nice contrast with the warmer illumination of the beauty dish. For a more dramatic split lighting effect to mix with the kicker, you can move the key light to nine o’clock. Butterfly lighting You’ve probably heard this hundreds of times, but butterfly lighting is characterised by the shape of the shadow produced under the subject’s nose. It’s also called Paramount lighting due to its popularity amongst Hollywood photographers in the 1930s and 40s. If you’ve heard the first one, you’ll have Advanced Photographer is also available as a fully interactive magazine – go to iTunes now!

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WHY USE A BEAUTY DISH? Beauty dishes are very popular with working portrait and fashion photographers, offering a look that’s different from heavier diffusers like reflectors and umbrellas. The light from a beauty dish is still diffused, but it’s more contrasty than a softbox, and less harsh than a reflector, retaining the wrapped look, while keeping some shadows. This adds up to a sculpted look that’s less flat than a softbox or umbrella. Beauty dishes are larger than regular reflectors which helps spread the light, and the use of a second opaque or deflector disc in front of the flash means that no direct light hits the subject, softening it and meaning the dish can be used closer to the subject. Beauty dishes, like the Lencarta 40cm Medium Silver version (£45) we used in our shoot, also come with covers that can be pulled over the front, adding another level of diffusion, while their shape leads to distinctive circular catchlights.

CATCHLIGHTS Beauty dishes create a very distinctive catchlight, which doubles up if you use a fill light, too.

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LIGHTING ACADEMY WORKING WITH TWO LIGHTS NO FILL OR REFLECTOR

TOO MUCH FILL

heard that, too. The shadow shape is meant to look like a butterfly, but often doesn’t. Today, more often than not, it’s simply centralised by the position of the key light so it sits directly under the nose. Typically, the key light is around 45º or higher and needs to be placed directly above the direction in which the subject is facing. For example, you can shoot the subject looking away from the camera, so long as the light remains above where they’re looking – not simply above the camera. If they turn their head, the shadow moves and the effect

POSITIONING The above-and-below set-up is similar to clamshell lighting, but with the power ratio biased towards the key light.

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HEAD TURNED & SHADOW LOST

THE POSITION OF THE LIGHTS MAKES BUTTERFLY LIGHTING SIMILAR TO CLAMSHELL LIGHTING, BUT WITH THE KEY HIGHER, IT’S HARDER LOOKING is lost. Don’t position the light too high, or the nose shadow will break the lip which is a no-no. The high position of the light also accentuates cheekbones, so it’s well suited to slimmer faces. Because butterfly lighting requires shadows, we used the same 40cm beauty dish as our modifier, but you could also use a spill kill with a diffusing panel or even naked. You don’t need to fill the shadow under the nose – many classic butterfly lighting portraits don’t – but unless you’re shooting a Marlene Dietrich lookalike on a German Expressionist theme night, it can look a bit harsh. A reflector is fine for this – and it can be held by the subject if you’re short-handed – but for more control, we used a fill light with an Octabox diffuser positioned directly below Harri. The position of the lights makes butterfly lighting similar to clamshell lighting, but with the key light higher and less diffused, it’s harder looking, and, as already stated, there’s less flexibility in the placement of the lights. While clamshell lighting is designed to create shadowless, wraparound illumination and the lights can be at any angle so long as they’re at equal power and opposition, butterfly lighting still needs some shadows, so the lighting ratio needs to be in favour of the key light. Therefore the fill light only needs a little power. In our example the key light was used at 1/8th power giving 1/160sec at f/11, ISO 200 and the more heavily diffused fill light at only 1/32nd power – just enough to stop the shadow under the nose and the chin blocking out. @advancedphotog

The images above show how to get the butterfly lighting effect right and wrong. LEFT The key light is correctly positioned, creating the nose shadow desired, and while there’s no fill light to soften it, many pics in this style don’t use one. If you want a higher level of contrast go for this, maybe using the second light on the background or hair. MIDDLE The fill light is too bright, making the lighting ratio too equal, and while there’s nothing wrong with the look, it’s actually clamshell lighting, rather than the butterfly effect. RIGHT Harri’s head is turned, losing the central shadow desired.

NEXT MONTH: Get creative with your lighting as we look at open flash techniques. info@advancedphotographer.co.uk

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02/12/2014 15:53

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@advancedphotog

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05/12/2014 12:15