practicing with lighting

I am learning how to light shooting portraits. I think the first pic looks nice but overexposed. Need all the advice you can give. Thanks

Two things you might think about for future reference: (1) Don't pick a backdrop that is the same color as the subject's hair. (2) Try to reduce the dynamic range so that the important stuff doesn't lose detail. The light blue shirt kills this photo.

Got it, i have a white and tie dye greyish. What do you mean by important details? The hair?

I don't believe the first shot is overexposed. It would have been helpful to have either used a hair light or a light on the background to get some separation, but you can separate them in post. I also think this image would benefit if you warmed it up just a little. I agree with Joe about the shirt. It bleeds over into the black.

The second shot is underexposed by over a stop and it has the same issues with hair separation and the bright shirt. BTW, changing the color of the background won't have much effect unless you put some light on it. Even a white background will appear to be black when it has no light on it.

I've taken the liberty of editing your images to show examples of what you could do in post (I am not a skilled Photoshop user and this was a quick edit) to separate the hair from the background. If you want me to delete them, please let me know.

take a look at this article: https://digital-photography-school.com …photographer-should-know/

You have set up "on axis light". It can be effective in group portrait situations but is typically avoided most other times. If the light were higher up it might qualify for butterfly lighting, but you aren't quite there.

Move the flash/modifier to the right or left of the camera and halfway between the camera and subject, then place something to reflect a bit of light on the opposite side of the flash. a piece of white cardboard, a bed sheet or even a white wall will work ... this reflector will provide fill for the side of the face away from the flash.

experiment with different distances between lights, reflectors and subject.

enjoy.

Example

Thank you for the suggestions, I really appreciate it and nope do not delete. It gives me something to strive for.

Thank you for the link and drawing, it helps alot. I am practicing in my den which has 8ft ceilings so I cant raise the light up to high. I have a small reflector, silver and gold and held it in other shots trying to get the light right.

What type of light is this and what is it use for?

the bulb is a CFL (compact fluorescent light bulb) and it is sitting in a fairly standard reflector, although the reflector is probably a little deeper and bigger than a lot of reflectors.

even though the reflector is large for what it is, it is a very small light for portrait work.

is this the light you used?

No I didnt use it, I didnt what it was used for. When I turn it on its very bright. What can the light be used for?

well, what kind of light did you use?

Looks like a speedlight in an umbrella?

a 430exiii and a cl360, yes on an umbrella-shot thru

The CFL might look bright, but it is nothing compared to your strobes. With that being the case, you won't want to try mixing the "continuous" CFL with the strobes. It will give you nothing but headaches.

You might try putting the 430 behind your subject and up as high as you can get it. As someone said before, dark hair on a dark background makes the subject blend in. With the 430 as a hair light, you can get separation from the background.

The continuous light might be of assistance in seeing the effects of light position on the subjects face, but other than that it isn't going to be much use.

Thanks, since the dome light basically useless, I will sell it. I will practice using the 430ex as a hair light. I was reading I need to get Rouge grid so that I can control the light.