First time using light modifiers

Next time I'll put them closer to the subject and increase dof. Also it seems the light is stronger on the right and I thought it would've been the one on the left that was stronger, so I'll have to play with that.

Feedback appreciated.

Welcome to the wonderful world of lighting. I'm assuming that you are using flash, rather than continuous lighting, so read my comments in that light (ahem).

From your comment, I gather that you intended to use one light as key, and the other as fill. The strength of the light on the subject is affected by a number of factors, including the output of the flash (both GN of the unit and relative power actually used), type of modifier and distance from the subject. It may be that one of those factors caused you to get a different outcome than you were expecting. Experimenting will quickly give you a good idea of how to achieve the key/fill effect that you are after.

I find that, for single subjects relatively close up (like this), a single light with large modifier (e.g. umbrella) close to the subject often gives you enough wrap around light that you don't need a separate fill light - which can make things more portable and quicker to set up.

Generally, using flash lets you take more control over aperture and ISO than shooting with available light. For example, your flashes should give you enough power to be able to take this photo at, say, f8 (for more DOF) and ISO 400 or below (for better noise control). IME, those settings are a sweet spot for simple and effective single person portraits using flash.

Oh wow, thanks Now I can't wait to try again tomorrow

great job.

might try getting the main light in closer. Unless you have a big modifier it can seem unnaturally close before it gets just right. I'd agree with dodgy on fill light especially once you get the light closer. you can even just put the white side of the unpowered modifier/umbrella on the opposite side of the subject to reflect some light back.

dodgyexposure wrote in post #17819086
Welcome to the wonderful world of lighting. I'm assuming that you are using flash, rather than continuous lighting, so read my comments in that light (ahem).

I find that, for single subjects relatively close up (like this), a single light with large modifier (e.g. umbrella) close to the subject often gives you enough wrap around light that you don't need a separate fill light - which can make things more portable and quicker to set up.

+1. An umbrella spreads light everywhere, so if you're still shooting is a small room with light colored walls, you probably won't need a fill light. The light bouncing off the walls should be enough to eliminate any hard shadows.

But should you decide to use a fill light you dont deploy one light left and one right, but rather the key light on one side and the fill light from the camera axis. This will ensure that the shadows the camera will see will get the fill. It also prevents the possibility of getting butterfly shadows on the background with each light throwing a shadow the opposite direction.