The importance of light in the field of photography is self-evident. Light is the soul of portrait photography. In our portrait photography, with the illumination of light, the picture will produce light and dark levels, tones, lines and tones.
From the perspective of the characteristics of light, light is mainly divided into direct light and scattered light. Different types of light play different roles in photography. The direct light and scattered light in natural light correspond to the hard light and soft light in studio photography, respectively. Next, this section mainly introduces the application skills of light quality in portrait photography.
Table of Contents
Direct Light
- Natural direct light
In sunny weather, sunlight directly hits the subject without any occlusion, the light-receiving side of the subject will produce a bright shade, and the side that is not directly light-receiving will form obvious shadows. This kind of light is called It is direct light. Under direct light, there will be a very obvious brightness contrast between the light-receiving surface and the non-glossy surface, so it is easy to produce a three-dimensional effect.
The direct light at noon is relatively abundant, the contrast of the scene is strong, and the tone is hard. It is suitable for subjects with strong and tough personality or subjects with rough skin. The effect is excellent. Shooting in direct sunlight, because of the strong light, we should use the fill light tool to fill the dark shadows of the characters appropriately.
The daylighting methods of direct sunlight are mainly side light, side backlight, and back light. The fill light tool can be a reflector, an electronic flash or an outdoor light.
Sunrise and sunset portraits are the best moments for photographers to shoot. At this time, the direct sunlight is relatively soft, and the picture will form a harmonious and rich tone and tone. Silhouette or semi-silhouette portraits can be represented in the expression technique.
- Hard light in the studio (direct light source)
Generally speaking, it refers to the formation of shadow light that can produce contrast between light and dark on the surface of the scene. The biggest feature of hard light is that it can produce clear shadows. The difficulty is to control the contrast of light and dark and the light ratio of the picture. But when shooting with hard light, the easiest way to control the light ratio of the picture is to use a reflector to fill in the light. This reflected light reduces the contrast of light and dark on the face of the person.
Indoor hard light portrait (direct light)
Hard light sources are very suitable for creating light and shadow effects. Light and shadow are an important means of rendering the atmosphere of the picture and shaping the mood of the characters. The light in the picture can infect the emotions of the characters. It is not only reflected in the portrayal of the characters, but also in the color tone, light and shadow Atmosphere. It is very important to use light to create the right atmosphere of the picture.
When using hard light to express portraits in indoor studios, due to the large contrast of hard light sources, we can also use auxiliary light sources or reflectors to transition to preserve the details of the dark parts as much as possible. At the same time, the intensity of the hard light source for auxiliary supplementary light must be weaker than Main light (commonly used accessories for hard light sources include standard cover, radome, beam tube, condenser, etc.)
Scattered Light
- Scattered light under natural light
When the sunlight is blocked by clouds or other objects, it cannot directly illuminate the subject. Any sunlight that is blocked by clouds, fog or tall buildings will illuminate the subject in a diffuse manner; the light will have a scattering effect, which This kind of light is called scattered light.
Because the light-receiving surface and shadow surface formed by scattered light are not obvious, and the contrast between light and dark is weak, the resulting picture effect is relatively flat and soft.
Cloudy, foggy, and rainy days are all soft scattered light. Because the light is flat, flash or reflector can also be used for auxiliary lighting when shooting natural light portraits to increase the brightness of the subject, improve the light receiving situation, and enhance the three-dimensional feeling.
When the outdoor sunlight is too strong, it is not suitable to shoot portraits under strong direct light. At this time, you can look for shade to provide good conditions for shooting. There is not only soft scattered light under the shade of the trees, but also mottled shadows that can add highlights to the picture. The rich type of light under the shade of the tree makes the picture very attractive. The scattered light is evenly irradiated on the model’s face, and the skin texture is perfectly reproduced.
- Soft light in the studio (scattered light source)
In artificial light, any light with direct light properties is added with astigmatism material (soft cloth, reflective umbrella, gauze, curtain, etc.) to illuminate the subject after it is blocked, which belongs to scattered light illumination.
Under the scattered light illumination, the light ratio of the subject is small, the contrast is small, the tones are soft, and the layers are rich, which can express the texture of the subject’s skin very delicately.
Sunlight entering through the window is generally scattered light. Its characteristics are: the lighting area is large, and it is soft and uniform, which can not only reproduce the rich layers and texture, but also can better express the three-dimensional feeling. It should be an ideal choice for shooting indoor portraits. The natural light thrown into the window affects the bright surface of the subject. The reflection intensity of indoor walls, floors, furnishings and other reflective surfaces directly affects the dark side of the subject, that is, the shadow part, which also determines the light ratio of the person.
Soft light can highlight the texture of the character’s skin and make it whiter and more transparent. Indoor studio soft boxes, soft walls, reflective umbrellas, etc. can all be used as light softening devices. The light ratio control of soft light should be controlled at around 1:2-.
Learn to Use Light in Photography: the Magic of Soft Light
Many beginners think that the best way to take pictures is to take pictures on a sunny day. Of course, there will be blue sky and white clouds when shooting on a sunny day, which is very suitable for landscape photos, but for other shooting subjects such as portraits, flowers, buildings, etc., it is different.
In these shooting subjects, “soft light” is the kingly way. Soft light can eliminate shadows, highlight the details and true colors of objects, and make the sensor of the digital camera perform its best, keeping the light and shadow within the acceptable dynamic range, that is, there is no over-brightness or over-darkness. .
Method of Creating Soft Light
To produce soft light, we can refer to the following methods:
- Shoot in cloudy weather
When it is cloudy, the sky seems unsightly, but in fact, the clouds are like a large reflector that softens the sunlight, which is useful when shooting portraits or buildings.
- Use white reflectors
Sometimes shooting in strong sunlight, we can put the white reflector on top, let the subject in the shadow of the reflector, forming a temporary soft light area.
- Use flash with soft box
To shoot at dusk or at night, use a flash with a soft box to make soft light. Especially used when shooting portraits.
On the comparison between this flower under “hard light” and “soft light”, the flower under soft light can present a more comfortable effect.
In addition to flowers, you should also try to use “soft light” when shooting close-ups of small objects to make the details better:
Of course, using soft light when shooting portraits can avoid strong shadows and highlight the beauty of portraits. Unless you want to use shadows for special effects, or want to take “calendered” photos, then shoot in the sun.