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Portraits On Location Using Starlite Continuous Lights

The purpose of this lesson is to show how to set up and light an indoor scene for an individual portrait using simple Tungsten continuous lights. The lighting techniques demonstrated can be used for individual commissioned portraits or for commercial, corporate or editorial portraits. The emphasis is not only on lighting the subject, but also lighting the environment in which the subject will be placed.

This lesson uses only one light in a small soft box and a LitePanel reflector. Be sure to check out an extended version of this lesson on Web Photo School, which features the use of two lights and shows how to create a fixed lighting scheme that allows for multiple types of poses.



(Click on any thumbnail image below for an enlarged view.)

Topics Covered:

  • Choosing the Right Location
  • Lighting the Scene
  • Dialing in the Correct White Balance
  • Propping and Attire
  • Conclusion

     

    Choosing the Right Location
    For this assignment, our client was Storrs Winery in Santa Cruz, California. Their goal was to create a series of photographs showcasing their winemaker, Nathan, in the environment of the winery. We chose one of the wine cellars for the portrait series. The warm color of the oak wine barrels provided a great backdrop for the portraits.

    We asked the winemaker to bring in two wine barrels to place in the foreground for the portraits. [figures 1 & 2]

     

    Figure 3

    Lighting the Scene
    Next, we set about lighting the scene. We used the Starlite QL tungsten continuous light for this assignment. The units are very portable and are designed to be used in Photoflex vented soft boxes. [figure 3]

    Figure 4

    Once we mounted the Starlite head to a LiteStand and inserted the lamp (bulb), we then attached a small SilverDome soft box to it, which is vented and made to be used with continuous hot lights. [figure 4]

     

    After the soft box is attached, you can either open the vents all the way, or “tent” them to prevent light spill. [figures 5 & 6]

     

    Figure 7

    The photo at the left shows the main light set-up without a reflector. [figure 7]

    We placed the light source so it would light our subject, but also spill onto the barrels in the foreground and background. The two images below show this main light from different angles. [figures 8 & 9]

    Dialing in the Correct White Balance
    The next step is to set the White Balance in the camera. Since the Starlite 500-watt halogen lamps have a constant 3200-degree Kelvin temperature, it is easy to set the camera to the Tungsten setting. Most pro-sumer and professional SLR digital cameras have the ability to set the White Balance to a Tungsten preset.

    For more information on setting your White Balance, check out these lessons on Web Photo School.

    Propping and Attire
    Prior to the shoot, we had asked Nathan to provide some of the tools he uses to test the wine, as well as to wear clothing that was solid colored and darker to add contrast against his complexion. Typically, the goal is to have your client’s face be the lightest part of the portrait. In this case, Nathan’s beret also added to the winemaker image.

    Figure 10

    Once Nathan was ready for the portrait, we had him stand behind the front barrels and made slight adjustments to the light. We positioned the soft box above the subject’s head and about 30 degrees to one side. This produced a shadow under Nathan’s chin and shortened his shadow, preventing it from becoming a distracting element on the wine barrels in the background. [figure 10]

     

    As Nathan sampled some wine from a barrel and poured it into a glass, we took our first shot. [figure 11]

     

    Figure 11

     

    Not bad for just one light! The soft box helped to produce a very natural-looking light without being too high in contrast.

     

    Figure 12

    Next, we decided to add a reflector for a fill light. Reflectors are good at bouncing light into the shadow areas of your subject. In this case, we added a 39x39" LitePanel with a white fabric attached and positioned it to the left of Nathan. [figure 12]

    Figure 13

    Here are a few other vantage points of the scene with the subject and reflector added. [figures 13, 14 & 15]

     

    Once we had the LitePanel positioned where we wanted it, we took another shot. [figure 16]

     

    Figure 16

     

    As you can see from the result, the White LitePanel helped to lighten the shadow areas of our subject.

    Here’s a side-by-side comparison of the scene with and without a LitePanel fill. [figure 17]

     

    Figure 17

     

    Since it’s easy to change the fabric of the LitePanels, it‘s worth trying different fabric surfaces to see what works best for you. Below are some further examples in a vertical frame. [figure 18]

     

    Figure 18

    Conclusion
    Note that all of the metallic fabrics -- gold, soft gold and silver -- produce more light bounce, or power, than the white fabric does.

    You can see from this lesson that it is possible to fine-tune your portrait lighting using simple lighting techniques with the Starlite QL continuous lights and LitePanels. Once the basic lighting is set-up, you can experiment with different poses, focal lengths, etc, to change the mood of the portraits.

    Remember to experiment and have fun!


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