Studio light setup- HELP!

[sotirius]

Hi,

I have a 3x600W flash light setup with two softboxes(cm) and umbrellas. My problem is i can't get appealing images. I start from a basic one light setup. I've tried the softbox and umbrella, but i prefer the umbrella for portraiture. Then i sometimes add a fill light or rim light but when i get my pictures the look very flat. It seems like the light is scattered all over the place. Can someone please give me an advice. Exactly how far away should I put the lights from the subject, angle( i know the 45degree Rembrandt setup but it doesn't work well for me), power settings, aperture, camera placement etc... I keep on experimenting with different positioning of the lights but I can't get a good picture I shoot in my room, i don't have a studio. All comments are welcome. Thank you

 

[Peter Berressem]

Can't you post an example image that shows your typical result/setup? Would make it easier to realise your trouble....
--
cheers, Peter
Germany

 

[David Grabowski]

Using umbrellas in a tight room perhaps ? Then your light probably is spilling all over the place ! A good working distance to start with with umbrellas is about 3 ft. away from your subject. Size matters though, a 48" umbrella shot close in will give lot's of wrap to the light and a small, say 20" one further away will give sharper light..

David

 

[slowhands214238]

Learning to control the light is your challange, especially in a space where light can bounce back to your subject, and your preference to using modifiers which spill light all over the place rather than place it where YOU want it.

Add black scrims to control the light spillage from the umbrella
Add eggcrates to all control with the softbox
Adjust the power of your MAIN and your fill light positions
(you said 600W? are you using continuous rather than strobes???)

And possibly most important... understand the inverse square principal of light power falloff vs distance. A common mistake is to place lights too FAR AWAY from subject... bring them closer, not farther away to have falloff greater for any spill that hits walls & celings and bounces back.

There are no EXACT positions, power levels or distances we can give you...those YOU have to work out for YOUR equipment. Take notes, assess and evaluate, and adjust. Once you achieve something YOU like, take notes for that exact setup, so you can repeat it. It's work, with dicipline and procedures, even though some want to call it art.

 

[Sailor Blue]

Some great advice already.

Softboxes don't scatter like umbrellas do, they direct all the light toward the subject which makes them more efficient and gives you better control over your subject lighting. If your umbrella doesn't have a black backing on it then it should. That is what will reduce the scatter of light from it as much as possible.

You don't state what size your umbrella or softboxes are but there is a couple of general rules on how to use them.

First, the diffuser should be about the same size as your subject, or larger. A 24"x24" softbox is great for head shots, but too small for a standing portrait. For that standing portrait you need a softbox with one side 5' or 6' long or a 60" to 80" umbrella.

Second, you get the "best" lighting from a softbox at 1 to 2 time the diagonal measurement of a softbox. For umbrellas it is 1 to 2 times the diameter. Closer and you will see a greater ratio between the dark and light sides of your subject do to the rapid fall off of light. Further out and the light starts getting hard in a hurry as the relative size of the light with respect to the subject starts getting small.

Most beginners, including this one, make the mistake of aiming the center of their diffuser at the face of the subject. This will light the back of the head and the ear just as much as the front of the face. It is better to move the diffuser toward the camera so that the back edge of the diffuser lights the face about 1/2 to 1 stop more than the ear. This is one type of feathering the lighting and will draw more of the viewer's attention to the face, not the bright shinny ear. This will also wrap more light around the face of the subject and soften the lighting.

Another way of directing the viewer's attention is to aim the light above the head of the subject so that the light will slowly drop off down the body. You can also do this by blocking off the lower part of a large diffuser with black fabric (hold it in place with clips or Velcro).

Finally you can initially aim the light right at the subject's face the rotate it up, down, toward the camera, or away from the camera - this is also called feathering the light.

The results from moving and rotating the light are different. Experiment until you understand and can use the differences.

When you add a fill light it is easy to add too much. This is when a light meter comes in handy.

Start with your main light in the split light position at 1 diagonal/diameter for the greatest difference between the light and dark sides of a subject's face and take an image. Add a fill light just to the opposite side of the camera that is set to add one stop less light than the main - your total amount of light will increase so you will have to adjust your exposure. You should see a big change in the light/dark ratio. Reduce your fill light to 2 stops less than the main and do it again.

Change the type or size of the diffusers and the ratios will change.

This is the way to learn how to handle lighting ratios with your lights and diffusers.

 

[sotirius]

Thank you Sailor Blue very much for the advice, it was helpful. I see that I've been placing the lights too far away from my subject, which is why the light was so flat. I have 2x(80cmx120cm) softboxes (2.7ftx4ft), and umbrellas with different sizes 1.5ft, up to 3ft. I also understand now if my background is too close to the subject it will back light it, which i don't want. I have to spend some more time learning about the way light works. Can you recommend any books for me, or any internet websites i could benefit from? Thanks!

 

[Sailor Blue]

Can you recommend any books for me, or any internet websites i could benefit from? Thanks!

This link contains all you are asking for:

http://www.ttl-biz.com/links

 

[David Grabowski]

Maybe of interest to you. Lastolite has a series of videos at their web site. It's based on using their products but you still can gain some insight as to how to go about working around the set. It's a very easy going watch, enjoyable I thought.

Click here and work your way through the series http://www.lastoliteschoolofphotography.com/

David

 

[DaleB82]

This is why I visit this forum at least once a day - Lastolite's tutorials on technique are GOLD. Thanks for the link without which there's a good chance I (and others) would never have seen this.

DJB