Six Reasons Why Your Light Is Not Right

We’ve all been there, stuck with bad light and fresh out of ideas. I may spend up to an hour pre-lighting before a model or subject steps onto set, I work out the kinks and make sure everything is how it should be. But, despite my best efforts to make it right, every now and then I run out of time and have to wing it. We all have our “go to” lighting scenarios, but when you’re standing in unknown territory, keep the following tips in mind and you just might make it through the storm.

Too Much, Or Not Enough Ambiance

When shooting on location, I love blending and mixing ambient light with artificial light. It can add drama and a mood that natural light just cannot produce. But, sometimes adding too much ambience with artificial light can take away from the image and have a negative impact. On the same token, a shot with not enough ambience and a barrage of flash can look cheap and overdone. Check out my article “Up the Ambient, Create Beautiful Portraits by Mimicking Daylight” where I cover this exact dilemma. Shutter speed controls ambient light and does not affect artificial light, which provides the opportunity to increase the exposure of natural light to balance both the flash and ambiance. It simply depends on the mood and feeling you want your image to express, but remember ambience light is a powerful tool and should never be ignored with a standard 1/200 shutter speed.

Right Face, Wrong Modification

There is beauty in every face, whether your subject is round, slim, soft or hard there is a right modifier for every sort of face. And with that said, there is a wrong modifier for every sort of face. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve setup a light scenario and pre-lit for hours only to find that the modifier I landed on wasn’t right for the person I was shooting. It sends everyone into a frenzy to find the right light, but with experience you know what’s right and what is wrong. As a general rule, I've found that hard light only works for people with strong jaw lines and slim faces. Soft light really plays well to people with more round faces. In example, I probably wouldn’t use a silver beauty dish for a headshot portrait of a lawyer, unless it was an editorial look I was going for. So, find what works for your style and be sure to analyze who you’re shooting before they step in front of your lens and under your lights.

More Boom

I always loved the look of a boomed overhead light, it’s empowering and dramatiic. When I first started photography, I knew I needed a boom stand, but I couldn’t afford anything nice. And, I was certainly not going to boom out an expensive light on an inexpensive stand. So, I tried different methods such as clamping a light to a background stand or hanging a light from the ceiling. The attempts were successful, but completely impractical. When I finally decided to invest in a boom stand, it really changed everything for me. I was able to put my lights in positions and places that is simply impossible with a regular light stand. If you’ve ever seen behind the scenes stills from big productions, lighting grips usually have some sort of soft light source from directly above which imitates natural overhead light. When all else fails put a soft light overhead and work forward from there.

Too Far And Away

During my normal daily cruise through Facebook, I come across tons of behind the scenes images in which I see photographers place their soft modified light source 10-15 feet away from the subject and parallel to themselves, resulting in a nice flat light. The closer the light source is to the subject the softer the light will fall on the face. Don't be afraid to place that light close to your subjects face and body. On many occasions, I have had the light less than a foot from the cheek and if you were to look at my RAW images, the modifier can be clearly seen in the frame. But, with a quick cloning session in Photoshop any and all distractions can be removed. If you’re going for a harder light, then stick that light even further, 15-20 feet back from the subject! But, if your objective is soft light, get that light close, 1-2 feet close. If you're weary of having the light in the shot, invest in a boom stand.

Overlighting

We’re all guilty of this. Just this past week, I had the bright idea to experiment with a 6-light beauty setup and really step into unfamiliar ground with fill from a beauty dish. Was it overkill? Yes. Was it good? Eh.  Lighting is a game of light and shadows, drama is caused by shadows not light. That is exactly what I failed to realize. If you’re stuck in a light setup, then stop, backtrack and start reducing the amount of light by taking away strobes, you’ll see an increase in shadows and perhaps the dramatic image you’re seeking. If you still need a stroke of inspiration to get back into the game, check out my article “Beyond The Key - Building A Subtle Light Setup,” which provides some insight into how I build subtle light scenarios.

Don’t Forget A Fill

You just never know, everything might be where it should be and the only thing you might be forgetting is a simple chest-level fill from a reflector. It can provide an amazing pop and some beautiful catchlights. By setting a softly modified light source or a piece of white foam core next to those strong shadows, you can reduce the contrast and provide more playing room in post processing. Many photographers use fill under the chest for beauty or fill opposite of the key light for less shadow density. Although this isn't a pivotal point of light, it can definitely help out when you need it most. A fill light should not be forgotten while working with light.

Sometimes, it all just doesn’t work. But keep trying, keep working at it and take it one step at a time. Perhaps, a simple tip of the face or turn of the subject’s body can completely change the game, so don’t get discouraged when the first shot isn’t what you expect.

At the end of the day, if you have solid subject matter, a happy client and good result then the light was right.