Lighting a bodybuilder

[filemanager]

A bodybuilder wants some shots done because he's doing some "shows" (whatever that means!) in the new year.

I don't know much about lighting I always use TTL.. but I'm assuming that off-camera flash would be the best way to show off his muscles?

I have 1 flash and a lightstand, and a reflector - so am I right in thinking I could put the flash at about a 45 degree angle in front (or behind?) of him for the shots?

[Niresangwa]

Originally Posted by filemanager

A bodybuilder wants some shots done because he's doing some "shows" (whatever that means!) in the new year.

I don't know much about lighting I always use TTL.. but I'm assuming that off-camera flash would be the best way to show off his muscles?

I have 1 flash and a lightstand, and a reflector - so am I right in thinking I could put the flash at about a 45 degree angle in front (or behind?) of him for the shots?

Typically you're going to make use of lighting the very dramatic contours for this, so good use of depth and shadow is critical. However, you're also oing to want to maintain the fine details like popped veins and smaller muscles that make up the 'manscape'..

at the very least you're going to be looking at a 2-3 light set up, definitely the key needs to be off to the right or left, you'll need fill to make sure you fill in the shadows and also something to give some rim lighting and separation. You could try using a reflector for fill, but it will need to be pretty big, especially for the full body shots.

It's a more complex job to light this than it would first appear... but bottom line, big key light source, big but gentle fill, and then something to pop it out...

...oh, and bear in mind they often times use oil to grease themselves up... you're gonna be dealing with some specular highlights with the potential to blow them while trying to maintain your shadow detail, especially if the fill is weak. Assuming he's gonna be lubed up that is. Ew.

[carl yeomans]

Flickr: Search Strobist.com

You might have be looking at a steep learning curve here. Iam not saying you cant do it with one flash, but id would go with a 3 light edgy set up. Here is a neat idea and give you some practice with what you have. Go borrow some kids action man figure. Move your light around action figure to see what you like best then bring in your reflector to fill shadows, at least then you will have some idea on where you want to place your lightstand on the day of the shoot. Good luck.

[PROFusioNZ]

Hey filemanager,

First off, there's no right or wrong way to photograph anything. It's all up to your vision. Here's something that worked for me with just one light.

There's actually two light sources, one is a flash, the other is the sun. Yes the sun, believe it or not, can count as a light source.

The main thing about bodybuilding, is to get nice harsh shadows to show definition in the muscles. Personally, I think the best and most dramatic light for this is an overhead light. Why do you think bodybuilding stages use spotlights? Also, check yourself out in the mirror sometimes, you prefer

The setup: Your flash head is set up directly over the subject. The sun is acting as fill. Adjust the flash and camera settings to give you the preferred key to fill ratio you want.

The tough part about this setup is getting your flash above the model. In the example below, I had the flash hanging down a second story balcony. You gotta do what you gotta do, right?

Here's an example:

[oldwolf]

Before taking the picture make sure he pumps himself up. Push ups, sit ups. squats anything and everything possible to get his muscles filled with blood. Tell him to treat it like he's prepping for a competition.

You'll need to get that light off camera. You can do it with 1 light but you're probably going to need at least a reflector to try and get some fill to bounce back a little bit.

You can also take it outside and have the sun act as a rim light and then put your flash off camera about 35-40 degrees off the subject and use it as a fill flash to see if you can get that angled fill light to enhance his muscle definition.

Another thing you can try is is just body sculpting with one light. Pick certain body parts and put the flash off at an extreme angle to the muscles to cast shadows. Not sure what your client is looking for so you might want to get more info from him.

[Photologyst]

Don’t forget the baby oil. The muscles will show well if they are glistening.