Business Head Shots

Could someone show me how you set up your lighting for business head shots, like on a business card or for professional use. Im very new at this! Thank you.

pamijo89 wrote in post #3000850
Could someone show me how you set up your lighting for business head shots, like on a business card or for professional use. Im very new at this! Thank you.

I set up my Main (with an umbrella as a light modifier) at about 45 degrees to one side of the subject and I measure that flash alone. You will need a flash meter to do this. You'll be able to figure out the exposure using the histogram and some trial and error but you'll never be able to get consistent lighting ratios without a flash meter. Anyway lets say the Main measures out to f5.6.

Then I place the fill light (again bounced into an umbrella) within 20 degrees of the camera position so its light will fall on both sides of the subject's face. If the Fill is not within 20 degrees of the camera then it's not a fill! I measure that light individually and I want it to be just a bit less than a stop below the Main. That's a 3:1 lighting ratio and pretty much what you want. After both flashes are set up I measure them together. That combined exposure f5.6 + probably a half, is where I set the aperture, but I may tweak it a bit after I see the histogram.

When you position your subject have them turn their torso towards the Main light, and turn their head towards the camera. I use a relatively short stool for them to sit on since I do a lot of location portraiture where the ceilings are low. Since raising the lights - an easy way to reduce reflections in eyeglasses - can be impossible, lowering the subject effectively does the same thing.

That's 99% of portrait lighting and everything else is the spice in the soup. For a hairlight I use a small battery powered flash that's on a B&H umbrella bracket and it's all on the pole that supports my background. It has a light slave attached and I use black cardboard attached with Velcro to flag the flash. That prevents flare.

Having the hairlight directly behind the subject is helpful since it pretty much CAN'T spill onto their cheeks. It also lights their shoulders evenly and that helps separate the subject from the background. I usually have the hairlight about a stop brighter than the Main. It often blows out highlights in the hair but I think that it's pretty much supposed to! I use a light grey backdrop for business portraits which seems to work better for newspaper reproduction later. It also doesn't require the need for a background light.

If I use a darker backdrop I may use a second small flash that I place on the floor behind the subject. I aim it so that it hits the backdrop low and behind the subject and its light gradually tapers off as it gets higher. Check a review shot and then with a little trial and error you'll get the placement correct.

Wouldn't one stop lower be a 1:2 ratio?

Hi John,

This is a common misconception. Many people think that by setting your main and fill 1 stop apart that you have created a 2:1 ratio. That is incorrect.

Think of it this way:
When you have your main and fill set up, and let's say your main light gives you a reading of f/11 and your fill is f/8. Let's think of the f/11 as 2 parts of light and the f/8 as 1 part (f/11 is twice the amount of light as f/8 ). In a typical setup the subject recieves 2 parts of light from the main and it also receives 1 part from the fill since the fill strikes both the hightlight and shadow side of the subject. So if you add the 2 parts of light with the 1 part of light you have 3 parts of light on the hightlight (main) side and 1 part of light on the shadow (fill) side. This gives you your 3:1 ratio.

TMR Design wrote in post #3004080
Hi John,

This is a common misconception. Many people think that by setting your main and fill 1 stop apart that you have created a 2:1 ratio. That is incorrect.

Think of it this way:
When you have your main and fill set up, and let's say your main light gives you a reading of f/11 and your fill is f/8. Let's think of the f/11 as 2 parts of light and the f/8 as 1 part (f/11 is twice the amount of light as f/8 ). In a typical setup the subject recieves 2 parts of light from the main and it also receives 1 part from the fill since the fill strikes both the hightlight and shadow side of the subject. So if you add the 2 parts of light with the 1 part of light you have 3 parts of light on the hightlight (main) side and 1 part of light on the shadow (fill) side. This gives you your 3:1 ratio.

Thank you, thank you, than you! I've been saying this for weeks but no one has believed me!

Hello pamijo89,

What type of lighting do you own? How many lights? If you give us a bit more information then we can give you some specific direction for lighting your subjects correctly.

everyone sees this differently.. I was tought and still follow the rule that
2:1 is a one stop difference.. Techically this might not be right right but I was taught this by my mentor who is a famous photog.. The way I figure it out you always divide 2 into the second number to come up with your stop difference.. For example:
for a 2:1 ratio you divide 2 by 2.. Of course 2 goes into 2 one time so therefor you have a 1 stop difference.. Now, I'm sure people will disagree with this but, it hasnt failed me yet so I'm sticking to it.. Another way to look at this is to figure how many stops apart is an 8:1 ratio? take 2 into 8 and you have 4 stop difference.. Again, this was taught to me by a brilliant guy and I'm not going to argue with his theory..

Hi John,

I know there are 2 schools of thought on this and many issues. Many many people do exactly what you do and they of course get excellent results as well. I don't think that is in question at all. Whether we call a one stop difference 2:1 or 3:1 is just semantics and technical talk but certainly won't effect the image. 1 stop is 1 stop.

The great debate ! It is like Certs being a breath mint and a candy mint!

The 2:1 per Johneric is the incident measurement of source intensity.
The 3:1 per Robert is the reflected light ratio, and its affect on the subject.

Note that 2:1 source intensity ratio can be set up to fall on the subject as 2:1 or as 3:1 reflected light ratio. 2:1 would be the ratio when the fill falls on 1/2 the face only; whereas 3:1 ratio would be when the fill falls on the full area of the face which is seen by the lens and is overlapped by the main source.

johneric8 wrote in post #3010910
everyone sees this differently.. I was tought and still follow the rule that
2:1 is a one stop difference.. Techically this might not be right right but I was taught this by my mentor who is a famous photog.. The way I figure it out you always divide 2 into the second number to come up with your stop difference.. For example:
for a 2:1 ratio you divide 2 by 2.. Of course 2 goes into 2 one time so therefor you have a 1 stop difference.. Now, I'm sure people will disagree with this but, it hasnt failed me yet so I'm sticking to it.. Another way to look at this is to figure how many stops apart is an 8:1 ratio? take 2 into 8 and you have 4 stop difference.. Again, this was taught to me by a brilliant guy and I'm not going to argue with his theory..

What is 1:1 then? If one stop is 2:1 then surely 1:1 is no difference between the two lights, right?

Let's see what happens when we try this. You set up two flashes so that one is at the camera position and the other is at 45 degrees and they both are putting out EXACTLY the same light, measured at the subject distance and let's say they are both outputting f5.6. There should be NO difference in light output from one side of the face to the other. Except there is, because f5.6 from one the Fill hits only the shadow side of the face, while f5.6 from the Fill and the Main hits BOTH sides of the face. That lighting is 2:1 even though the light output is identical.

A ratio is NOT stops, it's the relationship between how much light hits one side of the face as compared to the other. In this case of equal lighting amounts, two "parts" of light have struck the highlight side while one "part" has struck the shadow side, and that's 2:1.

Flash output is only part of lighting ratios since WHERE you put the lights completely affects the outcome. If I put both flashes on the Main side then I have NO lighting ratio even if I changed one flash so that there was there was a one stop difference between the two lights. The only way to actually get 1:1 lighting is that BOTH lights need to be set up at 45 degrees on each side of the subject (cross lighting, yech, but 1:1) and effectively there's no fill.

This is not all about light output, but light placement, and I'm afraid your guy got it wrong. He may like a one stop difference between the Main and the Fill, and he may have always thought that it was 2:1; but it's 3:1, so break it to him gently.

DaveG wrote in post #3011129
What is 1:1 then? If one stop is 2:1 then surely 1:1 is no difference between the two lights, right?

Let's see what happens when we try this. You set up two flashes so that one is at the camera position and the other is at 45 degrees and they both are putting out EXACTLY the same light, measured at the subject distance and let's say they are both outputting f5.6. There should be NO difference in light output from one side of the face to the other. Except there is, because f5.6 from one the Fill hits only the shadow side of the face, while f5.6 from the Fill and the Main hits BOTH sides of the face. That lighting is 2:1 even though the light output is identical.

A ratio is NOT stops, it's the relationship between how much light hits one side of the face as compared to the other. In this case of equal lighting amounts, two "parts" of light have struck the highlight side while one "part" has struck the shadow side, and that's 2:1.

Flash output is only part of lighting ratios since WHERE you put the lights completely affects the outcome. If I put both flashes on the Main side then I have NO lighting ratio even if I changed one flash so that there was there was a one stop difference between the two lights. The only way to actually get 1:1 lighting is that BOTH lights need to be set up at 45 degrees on each side of the subject (cross lighting, yech, but 1:1) and effectively there's no fill.

This is not all about light output, but light placement, and I'm afraid your guy got it wrong. He may like a one stop difference between the Main and the Fill, and he may have always thought that it was 2:1; but it's 3:1, so break it to him gently.

I hear arguments going both ways.. I dig that you have your opinion and I won't try to change it.. It's taught both ways get used to it..

And for the record:- When I lend my talents to photography studios for the day as a freelancer we do 100% 45degree setups because we do 8 sessions one after the other and have no time to haggle with the old school rembrandt rule. (I'm not knocking it") ... So, having said that- is it okay if I refer to that 45degree setup as 1:1 because the output is identical according to our meters? I understand your logic but, I still see no reason to alter my thinking it's certainly not going to help my photography...

To me it's useful to think of ratios in terms of stops because when I'm working with an assitant I can spout off things like I want a 4:1 in regards to that 90degree sidelight and fill light.. Of course me and my crew are all on the same page and view this as a 2 stop difference. We would also view a 3:1 ratio as about a 1 1/2 stop difference.

So, ratio's aside, here's one with no fill light. One softbox, and one refelctor directly under the camera. One hairlight also. And I don't own a flash meter..I measure the distance to the softbox.

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[QUOTE=DaveG;3002633]T​hen I place the fill light (again bounced into an umbrella) within 20 degrees of the camera position so its light will fall on both sides of the subject's face. If the Fill is not within 20 degrees of the camera then it's not a fill! I measure that light individually and I want it to be just a bit less than a stop below the Main.

Hi Dave,

Can you explain exactly what you mean by placing the fill within 20 degrees of the camera position? Is it next to the camera and angled 20 degrees to the subject, is it closer to the subject than the camera or further away?

Also how far do you suggest the main should be from the subject given it's 45 degree positioning?

[QUOTE=Embers;3016333]

DaveG wrote in post #3002633
Then I place the fill light (again bounced into an umbrella) within 20 degrees of the camera position so its light will fall on both sides of the subject's face. If the Fill is not within 20 degrees of the camera then it's not a fill! I measure that light individually and I want it to be just a bit less than a stop below the Main.

Hi Dave,

Can you explain exactly what you mean by placing the fill within 20 degrees of the camera position? Is it next to the camera and angled 20 degrees to the subject, is it closer to the subject than the camera or further away?

Also how far do you suggest the main should be from the subject given it's 45 degree positioning?

I'm not sure I'm the one you want answering this but, 20 degrees of camera position is pretty much right next to the camera. so, if your the camera man it's near and above your left shoulder while your main is off at a 45 degree to your right side.. You can tie a string to your main light and always keep the power setting the same if you want it's actually very helpful.

[QUOTE=Embers;3016333]

DaveG wrote in post #3002633
Then I place the fill light (again bounced into an umbrella) within 20 degrees of the camera position so its light will fall on both sides of the subject's face. If the Fill is not within 20 degrees of the camera then it's not a fill! I measure that light individually and I want it to be just a bit less than a stop below the Main.

Hi Dave,

Can you explain exactly what you mean by placing the fill within 20 degrees of the camera position? Is it next to the camera and angled 20 degrees to the subject, is it closer to the subject than the camera or further away?

Also how far do you suggest the main should be from the subject given it's 45 degree positioning?

Imagine that the subject is in the centre of a clock, and the camera is placed at 6:00. The Main light would be at about 4:30 (on the right) or 7:30 on the left. That main light is now 45 degrees to one side of the subject and the umbrella is aimed right at them. The fill light is within 20 degrees of the camera position and that's roughly between 5:30 and 6:30 on our clock, and once again is pointed right at the subject.

The whole idea is to get one light - the Main - to only strike one side of the subject's face. The Fill, placed no more than twenty degrees from the camera has to strikes both sides of the subject's face. If the light output from both the Fill and the Main are identical, light from both the Fill and Main hit the Highlight side of their face while only the Fill light hits the shadow side. This is a 2:1 lighting ratio, and that's as simple as 2 parts of light hitting the highlight side of the subject's face and 1 part hitting the shadow side.

When you have done this you see directional light coming from the Main, while you've "filled" in the shadow enough so that you can still see some detail in the shadow.

The 20 degrees rule means that the Fill is 20 degrees - at most - on either side of the camera. Closer though, is OK. When I use the Canon wireless system I have the Fill light in a bracket above my lens, which is what, zero degrees from the camera position? And that works just fine. As long as the fill can see both sides of the subject's face then it is a Fill. If it CAN'T see both sides of the face then it isn't a fill.

The Main can go anywhere and I used 45 degrees as that's a classical Main light portrait position. But it could be 30 degrees, or 90.

The distance of the flashes to the subject can be anything you like. Don't put them too far away as the light can get harsh since the two things that make light soft is size and proximity. If I have a very large light source then the light is soft, or if I have a small light source but it's very close then it's soft. But if you put a big enough light source far enough away then it becomes harsh, and you need look no further than the biggest light source there is - the sun - that's harsh because of the source to subject distance.