40 8 June 2019 I http://www.amateurphotographer.co.uk I subscribe 0330 333 1113
Lighting
set-up
number 3
The light has been
moved behind the
subject and is pointing
slightly down as I
wanted the light to
skim over her head
and the remaining
light to be bounced
back into her face
with a refl ector. In this
way you can create a
soft lighting effect
with soft tones.Lighting
set-up
number 2
The strip light has
been rotated vertically
and moved to the
left of the camera,
creating a narrow
vertical strip of light.
The spread of light is
shallow and using it
this way illuminates
the subject, while the
light falls away from
the background owing
to the soft grid.I recall a time when I went with
him to collect the contact sheets
from a recent portrait shoot. The
photographer had just wrapped up the
shoot, the model was getting changed
and the lights were still on in the studio.
My dad was busy discussing the contact
sheets, so I was invited to look around the
studio... the atmosphere was electric in
there; the magic was hanging in the air,
and it made me so excited that I thought:
‘I want to do this.’ I was hooked and
wanted to explore this amazing creative
practice. I studied a lot of art-based
subjects – from dance, music and theatre
to photography – and all of them have
given me a good grounding. Composition,
movement, lighting and directing are
essential to my work.
I still get the buzz of excitement now, the
enthusiasm is contagious, and I love what
I do – even 20 years on. The buzz is what
drives me along if you love what you do; it
will not feel like work and be something
you will not want to stop doing.
Multiple lighting set-ups
At 2019’s The Photography Show in
Birmingham, I was asked to give a talk
on creative lighting on the Profoto stand.
Many people attend the show so I wanted
to create a presentation and demo that
would be appealing for a wide range of
skills. My talk was about one light, used
in three diff erent ways. In case you
missed the show or didn’t make the talk
I’m going to share with you how you can
create three great lighting set-ups with
only one light.
Portraits are typically lit with a simple
rectangular softbox or umbrella but for
this I wanted to shake things up and
approach it diff erently. My light was
a Profoto D2 Air used with a 6x1 RFi
Softbox Strip completed with a soft grid.
Strip lights are used to create a rim light
on products, or when shooting portraits
it separates subject from the background.
The soft grid creates a more directed light
and eliminates a large amount of light
spill. I use them frequently because of the
control they give, allowing me to shape the
light with precision.
Try it yourself
I invite you to experiment with using
your kit in diff erent ways rather than the
conventional way. See what happens, what
works and where you need to make refi ned
changes. I seek inspiration from many
places, and it’s a rare treat to go and visit
an art gallery as you can learn a lot about
lighting from painters. Composition and
posing is something that should be organic
and natural, whether in a painting or a
photograph. If you have time, go and
visit a gallery to study lighting, pose and
composition; you will be surprised
about how much you will learn.
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Technique