What’s Your Preference?

Mark Engelhart · #1 (**permalink**) 05-14-2011, 02:06 PM

I purchased what I was told was a roll of Bright White backdrop paper. I was going to blow out the background and expose for the subjects. (high key) But, when I arrived on the job the bright white was bone. I tried to blow it out but ended up with just bright spots in the upper corners. So I backed it down to gain some subtlety. Anything I could have done to make these higher key during the shot or in PP?

f8
1/180 sec.
ISO 200
2-lights on backdrop set at f11 at the two hot spots with umbrellas
1- umbrella main light camera right f8 at face level
1-Soft box fill center left f6.3 at face level

JFSanders · #2 (**permalink**) 05-14-2011, 02:12 PM

That problem is a job for photo shop. Make a mask to bring the background to white and then erase around the subject. Very tedious. Sorry for your troubles mate.

Did you try gelling your lights?

Jim

Mark Engelhart · #3 (**permalink**) 05-14-2011, 02:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JFSanders

That problem is a job for photo shop. Make a mask to bring the background to white and then erase around the subject. Very tedious. Sorry for your troubles mate.

Did you try gelling your lights?

Jim

Uhh! I have seventy some of these.

Tedious won't be happening. You mentioned gelling the lights. How would that create more balanced light? A friend told me I should have ditched the umbrellas and shot acrossed the backdrop to throw more light without the hot spots. All in all the images turned out exceptable for the customers taste. I just thought I would see if anything could have been done to blow the bone backdrop out like it was white.

Lesson#1 Always look at the paper they are giving me.

MrJones · #4 (**permalink**) 05-14-2011, 02:48 PM

if you're trying to blow out the background why would you be using umbrellas? I assume you had the lights directed at the background and behind the girl (the background lights don't affect the girl's exposure) so why trying to diffuse them?

other than that I think you've learned your lesson - what ever the equipment you're using, always and I mean ALWAYS(!) test it before using it in a paid shoot!

btw, if you're using photoshop, you can select a color range and make your painting job a lot easier (about a 1-2 min. per photo). the option is located under the select menu.

Mark Engelhart · #5 (**permalink**) 05-14-2011, 03:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MrJones

if you're trying to blow out the background why would you be using umbrellas? I assume you had the lights directed at the background and behind the girl (the background lights don't affect the girl's exposure) so why trying to diffuse them?

other than that I think you've learned your lesson - what ever the equipment you're using, always and I mean ALWAYS(!) test it before using it in a paid shoot!

btw, if you're using photoshop, you can select a color range and make your painting job a lot easier (about a 1-2 min. per photo). the option is located under the select menu.

Usually with a bright white backdrop I don't use the umbrellas, I just blast the paper about 2 stops higher than the subjects. Usually the only thing I need to remember is to not let any of that light spill into the area of the subject and keep the subjects at least 7-8 feet from the backdrop. The problem I was having here was that I couldn't bang enough light against the backdrop to blow it out so I was getting real bright flares with darker areas falling off. The umbrellas took some of my light but left me more balanced across the backdrop.

You are right about checking equipment. I always set up and test before I break down to go to the job. This time I found that my bright white was too short of a full set so I stopped at the camera store on the way to the job to pick up a new roll. I opened the cap and it looked white from the end.

In photoshop if I were to create an adjustment layer, select the color range and desaturate and brighten, would that keep my faint shadows intact?

Niresangwa · #6 (**permalink**) 05-14-2011, 03:31 PM

If you'd tried to blow out the background with direct lights you would have had even more trouble... the space behind the subject would be white, and in areas where there was fall off, such as around and in front of the model you would have had the tint of the original color.

In this case, I actually prefer the tint I see here... it's warmer and less clinical and dull than it would have been as I envision what you seem to have had planned.

JFSanders · #7 (**permalink**) 05-14-2011, 04:15 PM

I agree with Steve that the bone works with the subject. But as the client doesn't like the bone background you will have to have them pick the ones that they like the pose and only work on those.

If you were trying to blow out the back ground through and umbrella you were never going to be successful with that. By using a gel over a flash and possibly using a snoot to get more direct power to the background you would be able to change the tone on the background. But you will get the bone color at the edges where the light starts to fall off.

Not any easy task. Hopefully a PS guru will see this and comment.

Jim

Mark Engelhart · #8 (**permalink**) 05-14-2011, 04:28 PM

Jim, Mr. Jones and Steve,

Thanks for your assistance. If I were to have problem, I'm glad that it is something as insignificant as my background not coming out the way I planned. The school owner is very happy with the results, in fact she mentioned how much she like the background over the dove grey I used last year. Go figure!!