ing produces dramatic lighting with bold highlights and
deep shadows.
The Basic Lighting Patterns.Although there are five
distinct lighting patterns in traditional portraiture (Para-
mount, loop, Rembrandt, split, and profile lighting), they
are seldom used in children’s portraiture because they call
for sharper, less diffused light sources. When you use a
large, diffused light source—the type of main light usu-
ally employed in children’s portraiture—its effects will be
less visible, since the shadow edge is much softer.
What is important to remember is that you should de-
fine a lighting pattern by making the main light stronger
than the fill light. The fill is necessary to lighten shadows
that go unilluminated, but the most important light is
the main light. It is usually positioned above and to one
side of the child, producing a corresponding shadow pat-
tern on the side of the child’s face opposite the light
source. Different effects are achieved by elevating or low-
ering the main light and moving it to one side of the sub-
ject. The lighting patterns are produced by the main
light, which only lights the highlight side of the face.
There are a few important things to remember about
the position of the main light. When placed high and
roughly on the same axis as the subject’s nose, the light-
ing will be nearly overhead. When this occurs, shadows
will drop under the nose and chin and, to some extent,
the eye sockets. The eyelashes may even cast a set of dif-
fused shadows across the eyes, and the eyes themselves
will need a fill source to open up the shadows and to get
them to sparkle.
As you move the light lower and farther to the side of
the subject, the roundness of the face becomes more ev-
ident. There will also be more shadow area visible on the
side of the face opposite the main light. As a general rule,
most portrait photographers start with the main light
roughly 30 to 45 degrees from the camera/subject axis
and at a medium height.
Catchlights.Catchlights are small, specular (pure
white) highlights that appear on the iris of the eye and
make the eyes look alive and vibrant. Without catchlights,
subjects often have a vacant, dull appearance. The catch-
lights you create will be the same shape as your main light
source—if using a softbox, the catchlights will be square;
when a striplight is used, the catchlights will be rectangu-
lar and elongated, and so on. If you use a second light
or a reflector that adds light to the eyes, this too will be
mirrored in the eyes. This secondary catchlight can be re-
touched after the shoot for a more natural appearance.Lighting Ratio.
The term “lighting ratio” is used to describe the differ-
ence in intensity between the shadow side and highlight
side of the face in portraiture. It is expressed numerically
as a ratio. A ratio of 3:1, for example, means that the
highlight side of the face has three units of light falling on
it, while the shadow side has only one unit of light falling
on it. Ratios are useful because they determine how much
local contrast there will be on the subject of the portrait.32 CHILDREN’S PORTRAIT PHOTOGRAPHY HANDBOOK
FEATHERING
Feathering means using the edge, rather than the hot core, of the
light source. If you aim a light source directly at your subject, you
will find that while the strobe’s modeling light might trick you into
thinking the lighting is even, it is really very hot in the center, pro-
ducing an area of blown-out highlights. Feathering will help to
even the light across your subject so that you are using the light
source’s dynamic edge, rather than the hot core of the light. This
is achieved by aiming the light past the subject or up and over the
subject. Since this means you are using the edge of the light, you
have to be careful not to let the light level drop off. This is where
a handheld incident flashmeter is of great value. Always verify your
lighting with the meter and by testing a few frames.
David Bentley used a single diffused light source positioned very
close to his young subject so that the light would wrap around to
the shadow side of his face, negating the use of a fill source. In the
catchlights, you can see the shape of the light source, which con-
tained multiple strobe heads. You can also see that the photogra-
pher feathered the light source to use the more dynamic edge of
the light. Bentley is a master at lighting, having learned from some
of the great names in portrait photography.