Table of Contents
Light height
The height of the light refers to the height of the person being photographed by the light. The height of the light is different, the effect of shining on the image of the subject is also different. According to the height of the light, it can be divided into top light, overhead light, flat light and upward light.
Top shot light:
When the light is irradiated from top to bottom at the 70-90 degree top light on the top of the subject, it is called “top shot light”. The overhead light is like the sunlight at noon. It will produce bright areas of high light on the top of the subject’s head, nose, shoulders, etc., and will produce bright areas under the subject’s frontal bone, under the bridge of the nose, under the lips, and under the neck Shadows are easy to produce the effect of “monkey face”. Therefore, top light is generally not suitable for facial modeling light in portrait photography. When the character looks upwards, shoots the subject of looking into the distance, eager to pursue, etc., the appropriate top light illumination can also achieve the effect of both form and spirit.
Top light illumination
In the creation of portrait photography, it can also be used as a special effect light. For example, when the height of the top light position does not exceed the main light of the person’s face, it can better express the sense of firmness of the person’s hair and help the three-dimensional response of the vertical image of the picture. For example, when shooting a dancer who is lying prone on the ground, the top light is irradiated to produce the effect of chasing light on the stage, which helps to highlight the theme of the dance appreciation in the picture.
Overhead light
The light is at a low light position 45-60 degrees higher than the person being photographed, and it shines from the top to the bottom, which is called the low light. The overhead light is generally used as the main light source for photographing people. The reason why the overhead light is widely used as the main light source of the picture modeling is because the illumination of the overhead light is more in line with people’s visual habits in daily life. At the same time, the overhead light level, from top to bottom, will produce vertical changes in the light and shade of the subject’s face and body, which is conducive to the expression of the subject’s facial texture and the prominence of the subject’s main image.
When the subject is facing forward, the overhead light will produce shadows under the frontal bones, eyes, bridge of the nose, and chin of the subject’s face. At this time, we can combine the forward inclination of the subject’s posture to effectively compensate for the shortcomings of the subject’s fatness, and use the overhead light as the main light position. Generally, it should also be equipped with lights or reflectors illuminated by a smooth light position as an auxiliary light source to adjust or compensate for the shadow or projection caused by the main light source.
Flat light
When the light is shot at about 0-15 at the same height as the subject, it is called flat light.
The light is irradiated in the flat light position, and will not produce vertical shadows on the subject’s face. In the creation of portrait photography, flat light is used as an auxiliary light source to compensate for the shadows of the subject’s face and other parts illuminated by the main light, and to adjust the natural transition of light and dark contrasts caused by the main light’s illumination of the subject’s face and other parts .
In addition, flat light irradiation is mostly used for photography of children and young girls to express plain and elegant pictures, with crisp and bright tones, to make up for slightly wrinkled skin. For subjects with thin faces, flat light can be used to make up for the defects. For subjects with rough facial skin, flat light can be used to make facial skin more delicate and smooth. At the same time, irradiating with flat light will produce a light spot in the eyes of the subject, which can make the dark eyes of the subject appear bright and full of spirit. Generally speaking, it is better to have a small bright spot on the upper middle of the eyeball. If multiple spots of light appear on the eyeball, it will not only give people a cluttered feeling. It is also not conducive to the expression of the eyes as a “window of the soul”.
Upside light
When the light is from -46 to -10 degrees lower than the height of the person being photographed, it shines from top to bottom, which is called “upside light”.
The illumination of the upward beam will produce a bright and dark light and shadow effect on the face of the person being photographed, so the upward beam can also be referred to as the “bottom light” effect. It is just like the person being photographed is on the beach or on the deck of a ship, and is irradiated by the sun, which intersects with the reflected light on the beach or sea. Therefore, the upward beam does not conform to the common visual habits of people. Generally, the upward beam is rarely used in portrait photography, unless it is necessary to show some evil people who are not right in their minds, and are insidious and cunning. Of course, upside light is not useless. In the current commercial portrait photography, in order to pursue a delicate and white skin effect, eliminate wrinkles on the subject’s face, and express fashionable and alternative character personality, upside light can be used.
When shooting a personal photo with the upside light, two lights with soft boxes are generally used together, that is, one light is above the head of the subject, and the downward light is illuminated, and the other light is on the subject’s head. The illumination from the bottom of the face to the upwards of the upward beam forms an up-and-down echoing light beam to ensure uniform illumination of the subject’s hair, face, neck, chest, arms and other parts, and the illumination effect of uniform brightness.
When shooting commercial portraits such as portraits with upside light, you should pay attention to the following three aspects:
- The brightness of the upper and lower two lights used is basically the same to avoid the problem of the subject’s face being bright up and down or bright up and down during shooting.
- Place the upside light as far as possible in front of the person’s face line of sight, and keep it consistent with the person’s face direction, so that the person’s face is surrounded by the upside light, resulting in a bright center of the face and two cheeks Dark lighting effect.
- Try to keep the upside light in balance with the face of the subject. For example, when the bottom light is shining from bottom to upward at -45 degrees, the posture of the person being photographed should lean forward slightly. Keeping balance with the upward-facing light can not only make the person’s face and other skin parts produce a smooth and smooth light and shadow effect, but also avoid the distortion and distortion caused by the upward-looking light. At the same time, the parallel light can also produce bright eyes in the eyes of the subject.
Basis for the use of light 2
In front of the floor-to-ceiling windows in the room, with transparent screens as a foil, and natural light coming in from outside the window as the basis for exposure, you can capture the genre of the person being photographed in front of the window talking about love and reading a book and watering flowers. In the studio, strong lights are used to illuminate the light background, so that the subject is in the backlight of the bright background, and the full-side posture can be used to produce a sharp and prominent silhouette of clothing.
The nature of light irradiation
The shape of the luminous body is not good, and the light properties produced are not good. For example, outdoor sunlight produces a bright direct light effect. When clouds cover the sun and cloudy sky, the shape of the luminous body changes from a point light source to a large-area luminous body. What it produces is a soft scattered light effect of light and shadow.
Scattered light
The light illuminates the characters in the form of scattering, which can produce a uniform, soft and coordinated illumination effect. The flash light is to let the light shine on the white ceiling, reflect on the object such as the reflector and then reflect on the image of the person being photographed, or add a reflector or soft umbrella to the film and television lamps and irradiate it, and you can get the flash light. effect.
Scattering refers to luminous bodies, which are mostly used as auxiliary light sources. Compared with the soft scattered light, it adjusts the light and dark transition of light and shadow, and makes up for the lack of light in the dark parts. The scattering luminous body can also be used for large-scale group photos. Multiple lights can be irradiated on the white ceiling, and you can get the good effect of uniform lighting up, down, left and right, and the front and back projections disappear.
Convergent light
The most widely used in portrait photography is the transmission type luminous body. When the light illuminates the subject through the floodlight, it can obtain the accurate direction of the light, the change of light and darkness, the vivid image of the picture, and the undulating artistic effect. Most of them are used as the main light source for character modeling. According to the light irradiation distance from the light irradiation height, the light irradiation direction can change the main light and auxiliary light and other lighting effects.
Condensed light
Condensed light is also called hard light. The light illuminates the subject through the condensed form, which can achieve vivid changes in light and shadow, and the effect of sharp and clear projection. Convergent luminous body, if used in the illumination of background light, can produce the effect of clear projected image and colorful and saturated color. If used in backlighting, the effect of beautiful contour lines can be obtained. If applied to the main light source, it can produce an artistic effect with a distinctive theme and strong tonal changes.