On Saturday, I’m shooting part two of a senior portrait session. Part one took place outdoors and was where I started talking about the merits of lighting with a single strobe. Part two will take place in the studio (which itself is going to be setup in a computer room at a friend’s house). For the studio, I’ll be setting aside the notion of one light and instead going in with all three strobes.
The plan is fairly simple; equipment consists of the backdrop stand and white roll paper, three lightstands, and three umbrellas (two shoot-through, one reflective). Even though I’m expanding to three strobes, the goal is to keep it simple. The space is limited and time – as always, when working with clients – is short. My model will likely have 2-3 nice outfits, and then will switch over to “interest shots.” In her case, this means shots where she has on a dance costume, shots in her basketball uniform, shots with field hockey gear, etc. At the end, the idea is to do a final shot in which she’s wearing/posing with some element of each of the interest areas – something that she’ll hopefully find fun.
What I have in mind is clamshell lighting. This is something I picked up from the Strobist site; like most things over there, it’s straightforward and uncomplicated. Essentially, it involves using two strobes with shoot-through umbrellas positioned one above the other, with a bit of space in between to shoot through. The bottom strobe is angled up just slightly; the top strobe down just slightly. The overall effect is, like the name suggests, a “clamshell” of light that envelopes the model.
The clamshell lighting setup
The lighting ratio between the top and bottom strobes varies between 1 and 2 stops, with the upper strobe usually being the more powerful. Background light comes from the 3rd strobe, with the reflective umbrella, aimed at the roll paper behind her. To blast a full body-sized area of paper pure white would require at least two dedicated strobes; instead, I’m going to throw a colored gel on strobe #3 and aim it across the paper at a downward angle. This should produce a gradient of light in the background, and the gel will color the paper however we choose (if we don’t like a color, we can easily switch to another this way).
The real trick is to keep the model (foreground) physically separate from the roll paper (background). This is the only surefire way to make sure that the background light doesn’t spill back and cause washout or haloing – or in this case leak background color onto her. The trouble is, as you move the roll paper back, due to perspective it becomes smaller in the scene; if you move it too far back, the models shoulders and arms won’t fit horizontally, or the paper will fall below the top of her head. So the solution is twofold: 1) find a room with taller than normal ceilings and raise the paper roll as high as possible; 2) find just the right distance between model and background so she fits on the paper, but the light stays separate. (The ideal solution would be a large, dedicated studio space, and some really wide backgrounds, but who are we kidding? This is the living room leagues.)
To help you visualize what I’m talking about, I included the sketch up above. Hopefully you can tell that’s a model standing behind the two umbrellas and the camera. (This is why I’m a photographer and not a sketch artist.)
The final thing I’ll keep in mind is the old saying, “the best laid plans…” Just because I laid out this elaborate pre-game doesn’t mean that’s what will happen. It’s just as likely that I’ll get everything setup, fire a few test shots, and decide that it doesn’t work. Or else I won’t even get it all setup before I have to start making changes. So the keyword is flexibility – if I can’t use clamshell lighting, I can switch to 45/45 lighting, or two a main/hair/background setup. No matter what, I’ll get the shots.
(If I have any luck left at all, my 7D will be here by Saturday. Right now I’m being to told to expect it on Friday, but this is also the third arrival date I’ve been given, each one later than the previous. In the more likely event that the 7D doesn’t appear on time, I’ll be shooting with the trusty 400D, and either way with the 17-40mm lens.)
