Part 4 -- I Shot my In-Laws (A Lighting Tutorial)

[RussHeath]

Thanks to Saralonde for suggesting a title that's a little clearer.

If you're just joining me, first take a look at Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3 to get an idea of what I'm doing with this series.

So, I finished Part 3 with a road trip to see my wife's family, and I used one strobe and the sun in a crosslighting setup for some nice outdoor family portraits.

Now I'm back inside, it's Christmas Eve, and I've still just got one speedlight (not for long):

Note: Click any picture to open up a larger version.



It's my wife and her brother. They've read the same Christmas book together every year that they have been able to spend the holidays together. The light is a SB-600 through a shoot-through umbrella to camera right, very near the camera. I have also draped a shiny silver tarp over some chairs immediately to camera left for some fill. The direction they are facing takes good advantage of this light setup, without casting any hard shadows anywhere except the wall, but you can tell it's a single light from that hard shadow behind and to camera left of each of their heads. There is also a lot of light falloff along the wall from camera right to left, telling you that this is lit with one main light doing most of the work.

So, as I'm sure no one is surprised at this point, I got a second SB-600 for Christmas (gotta love a woman who buys you camera stuff) and a lightstand. I left the same lights described in the above setup, but I added the second light on the lightstand from camera left (it's tall and shooting down from above the reflector) pointed down towards the subjects. I zoomed it in as much as possible with the following result:



I'm now using that second light effectively as a hair light and also for a little more fill. This gives them some edge definition, separates them from the background (as does moving them forward about a foot), and makes the whole thing pop a bit.

Having more lights and more definition lends itself better to many post-production techniques. Here is one example:



The actual techniques I used for this are not that important (it's just a high contrast B&W conversion, LucisArt filter, and selective coloring of the eyes). My point is that none of it would have looked nearly as good without good lighting in the initial shot.

I think this is a key point when we all look at the work of professional photographers and are tempted to think that they achieve their signature "look" only by some complex and secret photoshop techniques. They may, but it's lighting a scene well in the first place with the application of those techniques in mind that really gives them that special something. (I in no way intend to compare myself, it's just an observation).

So, what else can you do with two light? Lots, but since there is a four pic maximum I'll finish with this one:



If it looks simple, that's exactly what I'm after. In reality that room is quite large and the Christmas tree behind the family is tall, as is the ceiling. Every photo we've ever shot in there looks like you're in a cavern because the flash only fills the subjects, not the background. To fix that I hid my second strobe behind the tree on a six foot stand and fired it up at the ceiling forward towards camera left. The bounced light acted as a large fill source coming from above and camera left for the subjects, and it lit the tree. My main light was the other strobe bounced into a silver umbrella camera right.

I know there is a lot of info in this post, but please feel free to ask questions about any of it. Comments and critiques about any of the pictures are also quite welcome. Thanks for reading.

Part 1 -- Umbrella Specular
Part 2 -- Adding a reflector for fill (and a Mother-in-law)
Part 3 -- Crosslighting with the sun (for a group portrait)
Part 4 -- Now I have two strobes!
Part 5 -- Ghetto striplight high key fun
Part 6 -- DIY Softbox for serious light

[Saralonde]

The best lighting is when you don't even realize it's there, unless you are using it for effect. That last shot looks good.

[RussHeath]

Originally Posted by Saralonde

The best lighting is when you don't even realize it's there, unless you are using it for effect. That last shot looks good.

Thanks, Saralonde! I think much of art is in the subtlety, and I think I have a long way to go before I call any of my work art . . .

Most of my lighting is still fairly obvious and in-your-face, but my hope is that eventually I'll get to that point where rather than looking at a picture and thinking "nice lighting," I'll look at my pictures and think "that's beautiful."

[Saralonde]

Hey, you're not "Newbie" anymore! 'Bout time!

[islandseas]

I really like the last picture. It looks really good.
Karen

[Digidave]

It looks like a third flash is coming soon! A second flash is quite an improvement. Just think what you could do with a third! Got a birthday coming up?

[RussHeath]

Originally Posted by Saralonde

Hey, you're not "Newbie" anymore! 'Bout time!

It only took a year!

Originally Posted by islandseas

I really like the last picture. It looks really good.
Karen

Thanks, Karen. It's certainly one of my favorites.

Originally Posted by Digidave

It looks like a third flash is coming soon! A second flash is quite an improvement. Just think what you could do with a third! Got a birthday coming up?

Dave -- I'm glad you think these are getting better.

With an army of SBs, maybe I could be a real photographer!!! Hmmm, maybe not.

I'm afraid I've exhausted the birthday thing, but I do have an anniversary coming up and a dive trip. I'll probably get a very small underwater flash for my P&S to use while diving, and my hope is that I can trigger that optically with the SBs to use it as a third ministrobe in my bag for above water adventures.

[CanuckNicole]

Your adventures in lighting are what led me to join this site. I was doing a search for something and ended up on one of your threads...I love how you put everything together and that you are posting your trial and errors for the rest of us to see. Thanks for all the tips for this newbie to read (and try myself!) all about

[Pawaniki]

Thanks so much for the detailed post. I have spent hours, no days searching lighting and had no idea where to start. I have looked back through all 4 parts. The link to strobist was by far the most helpful of all time. Your work shows well and I look forward to keeping tabs on your progress.

[RussHeath]

Originally Posted by CanuckNicole

Your adventures in lighting are what led me to join this site. I was doing a search for something and ended up on one of your threads...I love how you put everything together and that you are posting your trial and errors for the rest of us to see. Thanks for all the tips for this newbie to read (and try myself!) all about

Nicole -- Your post really made me smile. I feel like I've learned so much from this community, and it's nice to share the ups and downs with everyone. After looking through your photostream on flickr, I think you have quite an eye for portrait photography. Welcome to DPS! I hope you'll teach us all a thing or two.

Originally Posted by Pawaniki

Thanks so much for the detailed post. I have spent hours, no days searching lighting and had no idea where to start. I have looked back through all 4 parts. The link to strobist was by far the most helpful of all time. Your work shows well and I look forward to keeping tabs on your progress.

Pawaniki -- You're very welcome. Nothing about lighting ever really clicked for me until I started reading strobist. Put that together with the support you find here, and you'll be lighting like a champ in no time (or at least putting up long posts pretending to know what you're talking about . . .)