Shiny skin?

I enjoy taking portraits whether indoor or outdoor but I prefer to do outdoor portraits since I have some trouble getting "good" studio shots. On some of the "indoor studio" photos I have taken, the persons face turns out too "shiny" I am shooting with the Nikon Creative Lighting System and all the speedlights are on stands with umbrellas. It doesn't make a difference whether I underexpose it and fix it while processing the RAW file or not. Do some people just have shiny skin that makes for bad flash photos? What am I doing wrong? I am just learning and desperately want to know how to create professional lighting. It's frustrating not being able to meet my own standards for "studio photography". Help! BRAD

Brad,

Get hold of something you can use to diffuse your flash. A Photographic white umbrella on a light stand that you can use to either bounce off or shoot through, a softbox or even a scrim, that is a piece of white translucent material that you can hold up in front of the flash and shoot through - tracing paper or similar would probably be good enough. You could even try bounding the flash off a nearby wall.

Any of these light modifyers will soften the light in a similar way to overcast clouds stop sunlight being so hard and contrasty. You should find that that will reduce the specular hot spots on your subjects face and soften the shadows to give you a nicer results.

If you combine the diffused flash with a reflector that bounces some light back to the shadow side of your subject, you should be able to get some well balanced portraits

nikonianbrad said:

I enjoy taking portraits whether indoor or outdoor but I prefer to
do outdoor portraits since I have some trouble getting "good"
studio shots. On some of the "indoor studio" photos I have taken,
the persons face turns out too "shiny" I am shooting with the
Nikon Creative Lighting System and all the speedlights are on
stands with umbrellas. It doesn't make a difference whether I
underexpose it and fix it while processing the RAW file or not. Do
some people just have shiny skin that makes for bad flash photos?
What am I doing wrong? I am just learning and desperately want to
know how to create professional lighting. It's frustrating not
being able to meet my own standards for "studio photography".
Help! BRAD

Click to expand...

--
http://www.flickr.com/photos/k-blad/

It is much easier to prevent hotspots rather than trying to repair them. In addition to diffusing the light sources - clean oil off skin.

1. Kleenex tissue is an invaluable portrait accessory. Rub the oily surface several times during the shoot. For females, a bit of foundation makeup works great. For males or females who wear no makeup but, have oily skin ... use an alcohol swab in addition to facial tissue.

2. If you need to fix the hotspots try this. I know it works with PS CE2 but, I do not know about earlier PS versions nor do I know about different post processing software.

HOT SPOT REPAIR

a. Select Clone Stamp tool from toolbox

b. In the Options Bar change the Mode pop-up menu from Normal to Darken

c. Lower opacity to 50% (changing mode to Darken will only effect pixels that are lighter than area we are sampling – lighter pixels are the hotspots)

d. In Options Bar click on thumbnail after word “brush” and choose a large, soft edged brush from he Brush Picker

e. Press Alt (Mac = Option) key and click once in an area clear of hotspots. This will be your sample area so Photoshop knows to affect only pixels lighter than this.

f. Start gently painting over hotspot areas with Clone Tool and as you do, hotspots will fade away.

g. As you work on different hot spots, you will need to sample nearby areas (ALT/click) so skin tone matches.

--

Retired Navy Master Chief Photographer's Mate - 30 years service. Combat Cameraman, Motion Picture Director and Naval Aircrewman. I have done considerable comercial photography including advertising, weddings and portraiture.

brad and rich thanks for good tips that i look forward to practicing them.

Yesterday i shot an engagement party and it was the first time i used my new 580ex. I knew i wanted a defuser but i havent had time to make one.

The bride to be was the only one with VERY shiny skin. I found bounce better and turned flash power down one stop and exposure up one. it seemed to work and i like my results

i relied on ambient light and got a light fill from my flash.

Any body tried white stocking for a defuser ???

i am thinking about using plastick milk carton and white stocking to make a mini soft box

Nick aka snap

--
Rodney N. Yerby
http://www.pbase.com/RNYerby

Makers of a lot of products to treat excessively oily skin, notably to cure acnea.

They make these "Oil absorbing sheets" wich come in a cigarette paper style booklet and contain 50 sheets of disposable paper. You wipe and dab the skin just prior to shooting, when that's possible, especially nose and forehead.

Also, a large make up brush with colorless powder can be very useful. At a good cosmetician counter. Some warn against proposing the latter, fearing some nut case could sue you for skin irritation real or fake. Make up artists routinely clean their brushes when going from one person to another, or at least, they should.
--
Jean Bernier

All photographs are only more or less credible illusions

I usually pack a box of translucent powder. I had someone once complain about the powder so I switched brands (more expensive), and haven't had a problem. Look for hypo-allergenic without aluminum (I think that was the difference).
--
Harry

I am allready shooting with umbrellas and softboxes. BRAD

I might have to try that! Thanx, BRAD

was this powder something you bought at a cosmetic counter at a department store, or did you get this from a special place?

it was a cosmetics store, I just carefully read the label, it was $10 or so more expensive than the first powder I tried (from a theatrical make-up store).
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Harry

a better alternative to tissue is blotting paper, which is available at most drug store cosmetic counters: tissue can sometimes leave lint ....additionally, several companies make matting lotions which work very well on skin without make-up and?or can be applied under or over makeup.....among them are clarins for men, origins: the smashbox photography studio makes an industrial stenght matting lotion which will mattify the oiliest/ shiniest complexion.....additionally there are several companies that make mattifiers that work well for outdoor use....ddf and a line called cosmedicine(i found both at sephora) have matting lotions with an spf of 30 and 20 respectively, that are extremely effective when used during an outdoor shoot to reduce shine.... find that the mattifiers really do reduce the amount of post work necessary to address the shine issue.....although alcohol does work, i tent to shy away from it as it can be too strong on sensitive and/or childrens skin....
regards

It can be due to many things. So its really up to you to experiment and find whats making your photos have shiny skin.

In my case, I find that its usually the persons skin that is the common issue, not the light. Yes, some poeple are more oily than others. One thing that works wonder is just some powder on the face, even in men. If you already have makeup and its still very shiny, then get a better makeup person who can help you resolve the issue.

-daniel

Talk to a makeup artist with experience. They know which makeup works and which doesn't.

For some women there are makeups which actually accentuate the shine from studio photography. I have had the same model with the same lighting setup. One day the shots were fine. When she tried new makeup it was a disaster in terms of shine. The are certain bases which work particulary well. Go to the cosmetics counter at any high end store and ask which makeups are used for stage and film work.

Yep. There's a reason many photographers hire the makeup artist's for meaningful photo sessions.

If you search on Onemodelplace.com you should be able to find a makeup artist in your area. Hire her for one session and watch the difference.
--
Don Christie
http://www.onemodelplace.com/DonChristie

In my experience, it's not the lighting. . . it's the sweat! I do portraiture in Florida where both the temp and the humidity can be in the high eighties and it doesn't matter how I light a subject, if the subject is sweating (even just a li'l bit,) I'm going to see a sheen on the face.

An important part of my portable studio is a make-up case with a 12" x 16" mirror and two clip-on lamps. I carry several shades of a non-allergenic (very important) face powder and packs of disposable powder puffs along with a stack of combs, hair spray and the like.

The difference a li'l powder makes is dramatic and the Photoshop time it saves is WONDERFUL!

Be sure to allow your subject enough time to relax and cool down before the shoot. And be sure to find a beautician's supply house and buy a lightweight beautician's cape (same kinda thing your barber uses) to avoid getting powder on your subject's carefully-selected clothing. People appreciate that you are being very professional and helping them to look their best. (Even the men!)

Sometimes, the men will balk at the powder idea. I try to find one of the women in a group and appoint her as the MAKEUP ARTIST for the shoot and that usually loosens things up. A few laughs seem to put everyone in a happy and cooperative frame of mind and the images will be better because ot that.

And it's not just the sheen on the face and nose. . . how about those guys with acres of skin on the tops of their heads? Without a bit of powder, that's simply a pixel blow-out waiting to happen!

--
Pixmaker

I have had quite a bit of experience with this both behind my camera, under the hot-lights as "talent" or from just out of frame while holding a boom-mic.

These shiny bits are most often sweat, which no matter how large your softbox is, or how many diffusion pannels you put in there... heck, even if you put your clients inside a light-cube, you can't get rid of the shine unless you blott them with either blotting-paper or with some cover-up or foundation type make-up.

As an "actor" playing the part of a musician for film and TV, make-up artists routinely come and dab myself and my accomplices with foundation make-up to keep us looking dull and pastey. As even the smallest drops of sweat (which come frequently when sitting in a wool tuxedo under a 100k "midnight-sun" hot-light... yes 100,000 WATTS) create brilliant highlights on the film, or lately on the sensor with the new digital movie cameras.

For portrature, (when I'm taking the photos) I have a make-up artist available to my customers, whom I conviently met on a film shoot where I was the sound-recordist and boom-mic operator.

I'm sure no matter where you live there will be many many professional make-up artists willing to work. All you have to do is find them. I suggest calling any friends you have in the area who are actors to suggest somebody, or perhaps an internet search might be fruitfull.

--
Cameron Ogilvie
Violist / Photographer / Digital Audio Production