Time has excaped me once again and I've been neglecting my blog for too long! There's so much to post but first to catch up on the second workshop of contemporary portraiture back in September. Part one covered natural lighting - here part 2 looks at use of flash to give a more creative feel to a portrait.
The first two shots here used side lighting to light the right side of the body - just enough without too much contrast throwing the left side into excessive shadow. The image was shot from ground level to create a backdrop from the sky - slightly underexposing on the sky to bring out the cloud detail and using the side box lighting to light to the subject.
I choose to desaturate these images in lightroom to add to the mood.
The next set of images were taken using the quadra ranger ring flash. I love this piece of equipment and its effects and am now saving hard to purchase my own! The set up was simple and shot from directly infront of the subject. I chose to put these images in monochrome to compliment the subjects outfit and setting.
The final shoot was a creative piece using the oversized chess pieces. Off camera flash was used, again shooting from a low angle and under exposing the sky to bring out detail.
The use of studio lighting techniques can enhance a portrait even used in an outdoor location. It brings additional creativity and effects the final mood of the image. Use of post-processing techniques in lightroom or photoshop can further enhance an image.
Many thanks to John Denton, our model for the day Fredau and The Societies (SWPP) for running the workshop. I look forward to incorporating some of the skills and techniques acquired in future shoots.
