 Sheryl |
How To Get the Sparkle of Life in Subjects Eyes First of all, I love this site!!! My question is, when photographing people without a flash, how do I get the sparkle of life in the eyes? And, how do you shoot silhouettes against a sunset? And, just one more... when shooting on a sunny day, how can you avoid facial shadows? Thank you much for taking the time! Sheryl D.
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Ken Pang |
Without a flash? We'll you'll still need some catch light. A bright light source, such as a window will do it, so will a reflector. But basically, you need a source of light brighter than the surroundings. Silhouettes? They're easy. Just place the sun to their back, and then meter for the sun, not their skin. You can do this by metering first, locking the exposure in then getting them to walk in front of the camera. When shooting on a sunny day, avoid facial shadows by placing people in the shadow of a tree, or else using a reflector. Alternatively, turn them away from the sun, so that there is no shadow, but then you have to meter for their skin to avoid a silhouette.
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Jeff S. Kennedy |
Ken's right. For catchlights a reflector works really well. Also, it can help if you wear a white shirt. That helps you to become a walking reflector. For sillouettes you meter for the sunset and shoot. Foreground objects will go dark. For shadows on sunny days open shade, reflectors, diffusion panels, or fill flash are your best bets.
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John A. Lind |
Jeff and Ken have both given good suggestions. Terminology: It's a reflection of light off of the moisture on the surface of the eye. All the suggestions give are various methods used to create it. Indoors, I've used a table lamp across the room to create it (with a 60-75 watt or brighter light bulb; don't exceed what the lamp is rated for). It works even when using a flash. When using "fill flash" use something over the flash head to diffuse the light if at all possible. It will soften shadows and make it less harsh looking. The two most common methods for shoe mounted flash units are a small "softbox" or a "bounce card." Both result in the light coming from a wider area than the small flash tube in the flash, and this is what softens the shadows. -- John
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Sheryl |
Thanks guys, I will put your info to use! It will be a while though. My new Canon Elan shorted out on me last night... what a huge disappointment.
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John A. Lind |
:-(((((( -- John
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Jeff S. Kennedy |
One thing I might clarify in regards to John's response. He says to put something over the flash head to diffuse the light as this will soften it. That is only partially true. You soften the light by making it larger. Simply placing diffusion material over the flash will do very little to soften the light. A softbox, umbrella, and bounce card make the light source larger and that's why they are effective.
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