Advanced_Photoshop_141_-_2015_UK_

7. WORK WITH NATURAL LIGHT

08. LEARN THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN

OUTDOOR AND STUDIO LIGHTING

Natural lighting can help to lift a photograph and give

it a certain subtlety, however you need to ensure that

you use it and enhance it in the right way to get the

most out of it, or it can dull your image.

“Natural light can tend to make images look very

flat and boring if you don’t find a way of making it

define [and] give depth to your model, or highlight

them in an interesting way,” explains photographer,

retoucher and digital artist Clinton Lofthouse (www.

clintonlofthousephotography.com).

PhotograPher Jamie mahon (WWW.JAMIEMAHON.COM) exPlains how to work

with these two different lighting tyPes in-camera and in PhotoshoP

Before After

“In my Dark Tales And The Rose Of Solitude image

(above), I had to shoot natural light in Leeds

University library, which was fairly dark and secluded.

Eventually I noticed shafts of sunlight beaming down

from small ceiling windows. Placing my model

underneath this light created some defining rim light

and depth.

“I also knew I could enhance and adapt this light

afterwards in Photoshop to add further interest to the

image and draw your eye to the model.” When

Shoot setup: 50mm prime

lens and a reflector on location used to bounce

light back onto subject

Shadows and highlights:

shadows and highlights done on a s oft l ight layer, as opposed to

dodging and burning

Lighting setup:dish as only light source Beauty

Noise: Noise added to

equalise image

Vignette:to create vignette multiply layer

Lens Blur: lens Blur

filter, but painted in with Quick mask to pull

focus more onto subject

Edit contrast: curves

layer adjustment to lower the contrast

Blending modes: linear

dodge layers on various opacities used to

emphasise the scene and colour of the setting sun

Dodge and Burn: overlay

layer set at low ododge and Burnpacity to

retouching images in Photoshop, it pays to work with

the natural light to give your final image more drama:

“One technique I commonly use to do this is to

sample the highlight colour with my picker, create a

new layer and set it to a Linear Dodge blending mode.

I created a selection of the model then painted in the

light beam on a low opacity. To add more realism I

added some dust speckles in the air along the light. I

did this by creating a dust brush in and painted in the

dots, again on a low opacity only in the light.”

© c linton l

ofthouse Photography;

stylist and model - r

achel r ea

© Jamie Mahon