Jeff Smith's Guide to Head and Shoulders Portrait Photography

stead, I will tell you the relationship of each light to the output of the main
light. The output of the main light varies based on the aperture I want to use,
and this is determined by the lens I am using and how soft I want to make the
background. There are bold backgrounds that I typically soften, so I may shoot
at an aperture of f/4. Other backgrounds, with a softer texture or design, I may
want to shoot at f/11. By discussing the relationship of the other lights to this
main-light reading, I hope to give you the flexibility you need to make these
main-light choices yourself, then fill in the blanks (working in relation to that
main-light setting) to achieve the effect you are looking for.

Auxiliary Lights.

The auxiliary lights are light sources other than the main and fill lights. In this
section, we’ll look at what I consider to be the minimal selections for creating
a salable portrait in each situation.
Low-Key Setups.Background Light.In a low-key (darker background)
lighting area, the most important auxiliary light is the background light. The
output of this light should be determined according to the light output of the
main and fill lights metered together. With the background light set at the same
exposure as the main and fill light, the background will pretty much record as
it looks to your eye under normal room lights. To lighten or darken the back-
ground, you simply adjust the background light accordingly. On my back-
ground light, I use the simple parabolic reflector that comes with the light. The
placement of the light will determine if the light is even (directed at the back-
ground from the subject’s shoulder height) or has a gradient effect (light that
skims across the background at an angle).

38 JEFF SMITH’S GUIDE TO HEAD AND SHOULDERS PORTRAIT PHOTOGRAPHY

In these photos, you can see how you can

direct the viewer’s eye to or away from a

certain area of a client’s body. With the

background light low, it draws the eye to

the hips and thighs, which is good for some

but not for most. As the background light

is elevated, the eye is drawn to the waist-

line. Finally, with the background light at

shoulder height, the focus is the area of

the shoulders and head, with the body

blending into the background.