a lack of updates
I have been pretty bad about updating this site. The mountain of Costa Rica photos is pretty big and daunting, ergo it’s taking longer than expected to even make time to sort through them. Additionally, life takes unexpected turns, and some of those can be quite a time drain, albeit a very positive time drain. The daily project is consuming the majority of my current shooting, and I have no complaints about that at all. I’m starting to book ahead with subjects so I won’t be scrambling to find someone to shoot at 10pm, with a midnight deadline to get the shot.
At any rate, I thought I’d just share a quick technique I’ve been using recently with some of my female portraiture. For as long as I’ve been doing studio work, I’ve been much more satisfied with my male portraits because I’m better at setting up dramatic lighting, which isn’t becoming to most women.
Recently though I re-remembered an old trick I’ve used long ago that essentially is a variation of underlighting. It simply involves one large softbox over and in front (and generally off to the side) of the subject, and having her hold a large reflective plane, which in my case is a big piece of foamcore backing. This creates a somewhat indistinct light source; there is still a strong light coming from a commonly seen direction, however with a close, strong soft light from below, which is much less common in nature. This creates a very glamorous lighting with a bit more subtlety than traditional underlighting. Plus, with only one light and a reflector, it’s a very quick setup when you’re tight for time.
Below are a couple examples of the technique. Give it a shot, and let me know how it works for you.
