Have You Considered the “Arc of Beauty” in your lighting?
(Image by Tracy Sutherland)
We are going to take a high-level view of lighting today and discuss what I call the “Arc of Beauty“. And while no lighting scheme is going to be directly discussed, what we are to think about is a general tone of the light and what it does.
The “Arc of Beauty“
The Arc is backlight from side to full back. This lighting is one that I think of every time I get ready to do a still life, food, tabletop, or product shoot. It is a go-to lighting at the highest level.
What that means is I haven’t thought about whether it will be a softbox, or an umbrella, or a grid spot… I just want to get the benefits of back / side-back lighting established first.
And I do this usually with a boom or grid-held light instrument that allows me clean vision below it while keeping the light itself above and or behind the subject. While it can be done with a stand, the boom allows me to get the stand out of the picture from behind and not have to limit my angle in order to not see it.
Full on side light is also part of the arc of beauty. And remember, top down lighting is also side lighting since it is oblique to the camera.
Full Side Light is also within the Arc of Beauty and can provide some stunning textural and dimensional presentation.
The arc also extends vertically from lower than the subject to directly over top (also a ‘side light’ in angle from the camera.
From a full on back light oblique to the camera to top down light from above, the arc is also a vertical tool that can help with dimension, texture, color definition and more.
Why do I start here?
Because the tendency of front lighting is to make things flat. Dimension falls away, shadows fall away, and the overall texture is diminished as well.
Here are two shots to show you how it works from a small, intimate image to a large scene.
The pear and grape still life was shot on an 8 x 10 Deardorff and 14″ lens with Ektachrome 64 Transparency film. Light is from camera right and is a 24×36″ softbox shot through a 48×48″ scrim. The light is above the set.
Shot on Canon 6D / 24-105 MM at 30 MM. The back light gives texture to the sand, the wall and the sidewalk. It also creates a much more interesting set of shadows and shapes. Dimension and texture.
Bob Knill used a grid spot from the back.
Billy Walker chose side light to lift the details off of this head of lettuce.
Lisa Narduzzi chose a large soft light to bring out the texture and shape of her farm fresh beets.
Maciel Blaszczuk used a window light directly behind the bowl of onions for this iPhone shot.
James Kern uses light from the back right side to sculpt the texture and dimension of the assorted objects.
Soh Fong chose a diffused side light for her bananas in a corner of a small box.
Are there exceptions?
Absolutely. Shiny objects, liquid, situations where you WANT a flatter, less textural light. Of course there are exceptions and there are also some very talented photographers out there who choose front lighting as a stylistic difference for their work. They make killer images because they have worked with the technique long enough to know where and how to absolutely use it.
However that might be, we are talking about the bulk of our shooting approaches here.
To see it for your own self, set up something as a still life and move your softbox all around it as you make the photographs. You may have to add a little fill to the front (large white card perhaps) but shoot one with side light, back light, side/back light, low back light, high overhead backlight.
And shoot some with the light up front.
I believe you will see the difference and may help you think about your light in a bit of a different way.
Summer is here, and this is the time for more shooting, more portfolio building, and more list building for potential clients. This PROVEN system will help you on your way. These modules are free and there is a premium version on sale for a super deep discount you will read more about on the site. Build a great portfolio while you are building a client list that makes sense. Find Photo Clients NOW
This is the Portfolio Build Class for mid-level photographers. This is not a class for beginners, or for the more experienced photographers. This is a class for photographers working on their portfolio to make it more appealing to art directors, editors, and designers. More information and enrollment.
Your portfolio will be evaluated before acceptance. If you are not accepted, you will be instantly refunded the enrollment fee.
Have you wanted to take a look at the Project 52 workshop without committing for a year?
Well here is your chance. An 8 Week Project 52 Pro Membership is ready for you to get into – NOW. And it is the full deal. All of the resources, assignments, reviews, webinars and more are there for you to work with. This is NOT a truncated offer, but a full opportunity for you to take advantage of the most unique photographic workshop on the internet.
The Olympian Image Dust Up… Are There Lessons?
Over the weekend a 'controversy' began with a small firestorm of criticism of the images of American Athletes taken at a "media event" in Dallas. The images show cut off limbs, torn background papers, shooting off the sweep, terrible lighting and a longer list of...
Hectic Weeks, Good Friends, and New Books
It has now been a full week since I did the creativeLIVE workshop on introduction to product and still life. It was so long in the making, and then it was there. Done. The weekend before I left for Seattle, I had a huge list of things that were to be done for the...
Product and Still Life Workshop – FREE at creativeLIVE
I am making my second appearance at creativeLIVE this coming weekend. And it will prove to be something totally different than what creativeLIVE normally does. We are going to be tackling the still life and product realms. And I have a few goals and plans for this...
Commlite Enters the Trigger Market with Some Cool Features
NOTE: These triggers were sent to me to test. My TOS is clear. I do not review items that are not interesting or do not live up to my standards. If I don't like something, I do no write about it. I like these triggers. Commlite is a company based in China, I believe,...
My New WordPress Theme and Info Site
WordpressThemesForPhotographers is a new site at the URL I used for selling my WP sites. We are no longer selling those sites, but will be offering customization and initial setups of Wordpress Themes for photographers, designers, artists and small business. I will be...
OT Sunday: Hot Shots, Drums, Books and Jazz
Hey Hot Shot is a photo competition held by the Jen Bekman Gallery in New York. Featuring the work of up and coming photographers, the competition introduces new ways of seeing to an ever widening audience. It is certainly one place to go on the internet to see work...
Sorry We Were Away, Back Now… Hopefully for Good.
Looks like we had a server issue where one of my plugins was creating a huge CPU draw. The culprit was Contextual Related Posts which creates a little set of links at the bottom of each page to show you posts that may be related to the one you are reading. Problem was...
While Cleaning Up the Office, I Am Reminded of How Much I Miss Polaroid
Yeah, it happens. Once in a while I have to break down to clean the office. I find it is a great way to procrastinate from doing something that is not ready yet. Creative block - no problem... dig through the cabinets. Heh. This time I found my little box of...
OT Sunday: Travel, Freedom, Politics, and Donna Summer
Travel I simply love to travel. I want to do it much more. I am adding to my travel portfolio by doing some traveling this year just for portfolio work. On the agenda is: Vancouver and Western Canada, Toronto and Eastern Canada, Singapore, Malaysia, Cambodia, South...
Staying Involved and Staying Visible… Are You?
Photo District News has a great two part article on where art buyers are finding new talent. Consider it an absolute must to read... and take some time to hit ALL the links. There are many places we all know about... Flickr, 500Pixels, Yahoo, G+. And participation...
Emerging Photographer “Jump Start” Winner(s)
Update Info: We will be having dinner Friday evening at 7PM at Macayo's which is not very far away. If we need multiple cars, we will arrange it. Macayo's is a landmark restaurant in Phoenix and is where the Chimichanga was invented. Yes, it is Mexican food. I have...
The Black and White Portrait
I am an old school film guy. It's true. It's also true that I have embraced and love digital. Seems to me that photography gained a whole new set of tools with the addition of digital. Of course, many folks treat everything they do as some sort of 'team' affiliation...
Memorial Day, 2012. Some Thoughts.
Memorial Day... always comes on a Monday. The all important three day weekend. Sales on mattresses and big screen TV's. Beach, sun, the start of summer. I am rather quiet on these days. You see, there is another reason for this holiday. Long forgotten in the lowered...
Seat-o-the-Pants Shooting… Yeah, It Happens.
I am working on a big project with the Phoenix Children's Choir, and need to get some new shots of the kids and the choirs and the performances. So when last weekend's final concert came along, I knew I had to get some shots. The venue was amazing, and I checked it...
The “Bolt” – Small LED Packs a Punchy Light.
The "Bolt" LED light for photographers. LED lights are becoming more and more important as a tool for photographers. We are adding video and motion to our solutions, and continuous light that has color control as well as being able to run 'cool' is a great tool. This...
Some Exceptional Images from the Project 52 PRO Group
Project 52 is in its second year, and we added a PRO group. This group is focused on getting up to speed on the business, portfolio, website and marketing focus needed to go professional. Whether that professional is full time, part time or just for the fun of getting...
WordPress Themes that Rock: “Bloom”
I love this theme from Theme Forest. Bloom could be just what you are looking for. Clean, neat, responsive and full of custom features. This is a theme that would be a comfortable fit for a photographer, a designer or an illustrator. It would work for a small boutique...
creativeLIVE Workshop: “Table Top Product”
The great folks up at creativeLIVE produce new learning experiences for photographers, designers, illustrators and more. Their plan of delivering focused, intensive learning that is student centric instead of geography or school centric, is bold and, I think,...
WordPress Basics for Photographers: Part Four
One of the most powerful gifts of using Wordpress is the vast amount of Plugins and tools that are developed for it. These tools help you increase your productivity and interactivity without having to learn how to code. Simply push a button and install very powerful...
WordPress Basics for Photographers: Part Three
Once we have our theme worked out, we must get our materials ready. I suggest doing this before you start to build your Wordpress website. Flying by the seat of your pants is NOT the best way to organize your material, as well as write it, design it and get it into...
Workshops? A New Direction… After a Break. Maybe.
It's time. Actually it may be later than that. And that makes it all the more... more... Well, I don't really know how I feel about stopping the workshops. A little sad, I suppose. Possibly a tiny bit bitter (fuckit, I'm human... right?). But mostly I feel like I...
A Project 52 Assignment: Lunch
This was a most incredible assignment over at Project 52. Based on a single layout, supplied to the photographers, they had to complete a faux assignment from an ad agency that was representing a Pharmaceutical Company. The point of the ad was to show how a new pill...
Thoughts On A Couple of Portraits
I was asked about my portraiture by a reader who wanted to know what I am thinking about when shooting. I decided to break down a couple of shots I did of Natalie in Seattle the Sunday after my creativeLIVE presentation. We were on the waterfront and the sun was out...
WordPress Basics for Photographers: Part Two
(Finding your Wordpress Theme should not be taken lightly. I think you should spend some time getting to know what it will do for you before you pull the trigger.) Continued from Wordpress Basics for Photographers: Part One We have looked around and found a few themes...