An

Portrait

Lighting Guide

JoeCraigPhotography

I have been a photographer for 25

years and throughout that time I have

specialised in portrait photography.

In this guide I want to share my simple

techniques for better portraits. These

examples are taken from ‘The Portrait

Video’ and show what can be aachieved

using two, three and four Elinchrom flash units with a variety of

different accessories.

There are two elements to photography, the scientific and the artistic.

Because photography is a science it is possible to standardise your

shooting procedure so that you achieve consistent results. Although

today’s negative films (and I shoot over 90% of my work on colour

negative stock) are very flexible and forgiving, an accurately exposed

negative will always produce the best possible picture.

Unlike the human eye film is not able to see such a wide range of light

levels at the same time. In portraiture you should always aim for

well exposed highlights, without any loss of detail, and at the same

time retain as much detail as possible in the shadows. To achieve this

the contrast range of each shot must be carefully controlled. In most

of the examples shown in this guide I have tried to use a 3:1 lighting

ratio. In simple terms this is achieved by having a 1 f-stop difference

between the Main Light and the Fill Light. This makes the Main light

twice as bright as the Fill Light. The highlight areas will receive light

from both the Main Light (which will have a value of ‘2x’) as well as

the Fill Light (a value of ‘1x’) Therefore the highlight has received 3x

the level of light whilst the shadow area has only received 1x hence 3:1

ratio. This will result in an easy to print negative which retains detail

in both the highlight and shadow areas.

Perfect Portraits

oeCraig

Good Shooting

The other technical aspect is focusing. Although it sounds obvious,

accurate focusing has to be practised. Always put the plane of focus

on the eyes of the person you are shooting and you can’t go far

wrong.

Good lighting is very important, without light the photograph cannot

exist and it’s important that lights are placed to create a natural

looking effect. Unlike the human eye, the camera does not have the

advantage of two eyes to see in three dimensions, instead it relies on

the light and shade that the lights create to indicate depth and dimen-

sion. When lighting a portrait always try and put dimension ito the

picture, too often the subjects appear flat.

Once the science of photography is second nature you are free to

concentrate on your subject, building up a special relationship that

can be seen in the final image. When I take a portrait the subject is

always more important than the lighting. Although I shoot more than

5000 rolls of film every year the excitement of portrait photography

is for me as strong as ever.

I hope that you will find this booklet full of useful tips

and suggestions and that it inspires you to take more

and better portraits.

J

Umbrellas

This is traditional umbrella lighting. The two light sources

are placed in front of the model and fitted with umbrellas.

To control the contrast ratio the Main Light will be one f-stop

brighter than the Fill Light. The power of the Main Light

(bounced against the Silver Umbrella), is set one f-stop above

that of the Fill Light (shooting through the translucent

umbrella). The camera aperture will be 1/2 f-stop above the

output of the Main Light by itself. If the Fill Light is f8 and

the Main Light is f11 then the camera should be set to f11.5.

Joe’s Tip

“Place the dome of the

flashmeter in

the subject

position and point it to

-

wards the light source.

This measures accurately how much

light is falling onto the subject fr

om

that flash unit. Measure each light

independently. The meter should be

pointed towards the camera for a

final check of the effe

ct of all lights

before the shot is t

aken”

Background

Subject

EL250TranslucentUmbrella

EL250SilverUmbrella

Camera

This picture has also been taken

using just two umbrellas and it

makes an exceptionally good

portrait. The Main Light is fitted

once again with a silver umbrella.

The Fill Light is fitted with a

Translucent Umbrella and placed

opposite the Main Light. This acts as

a hair light, separating the model

from the background. Finally a

silver reflector panel illuminates the

shadows to reduce the overall

contrast.

Background

Subject

EL 250SilverUmbrella Camera

EL 250TranslucentUmbrella

Silver ReflectorPanel

EL250TranslucentUmbrella

Subject

Wh

ite

Wal

l EL250Translucent

Umbrella

Camera

EL250 32˚ HoneycombBookcase

Desk

Joe’s Tip

“When I’m working

in a small room I

always try to take

advantage of the

surrounding walls.

Translucent umbrellas will spill

light around the room raising the

overall light levels. Make sure

that the colour of the wall is neu-

tral or it could have an unex-

pected effect on the final picture”!

In this shot a third head, fitted with a Honeycomb

Grid is used as a Hair Light. This accentuates the

subject’s hair and helps to separate the subject from

the background. Although they are both placed on

the same side of the subject the other two lights fiited

with their umbrellas still give a Main Light and Fill

Light effect and their output levels should be set

accordingly.

Umbrellas

Softboxes

In these pictures the lighting is in

layers. The first layer puts light and

detail into the background by lighting

from the side. The same light also acts

as a Hair Light separating the subjects

from the background. The Main Light is

placed slightly in front of the subjects

and lights across them. This maintains

a three dimesional appearance. The

Translucent Umbrella acts as the Fill

Light and the silver reflector panel fills

the shadow area. Once again Main

Light and Fill Light are set 1 f-stop

apart. The background light is set to

the same level as the Main Light.

EL 25070cm Softbox

EL 250100cm Softbox

Wall Hanging

Subjects

SilverReflector

Panel

Camera

EL250Translucent

Umbrella

Joe’s Tip

Always look for ot

her pic-

tures when you

are shoot-

ing. Here I’ve taken two

good individual portraits

as well as a striking image of both

models together.

Once again, two softboxes were used, but in this

example they were combined to act together as a

Main Light. The smaller 70cm Softbox was placed

on the floor with the larger 100cm Softbox above it.

This ensures that the model nearest to the camera is

evenly lit with no shadows below her chin.

Since the model in the background is out of focus

she is illuminated only by the light of the Honey-

comb Grid to give a much harder, more contrasty

effect. The flash units are adjusted so that the same

level of light is falling on both models. The studio

wall to the left of the models is a lighter tone and

this helps to reduce the overall contrast.

Softboxes

Subject

Subject

Background

Camera EL 500 above70cm Softbox

EL 500 on floor 70cm Softbox

EL 50016˚ Honeycomb

Out of the studio and into the home. Here we wanted

to create a natural looking picture by using a 100cm

Softbox to recreate the light coming through a

window. Two other light sources were also used.

A Fill light fitted with a Translucent Umbrella helped

to lighten the shadows.

A third light was fitted with a 16˚ Honeycomb was

placed behind the subject. This light not only helps to

separate the subject from the background but also

illuminates the items on the piano which would

otherwise be in darkness.

Subject

EL 25016˚ Honeycomb

EL 250Translucent

Umbrella

CameraEL 500100cm

Softbox

Wall

Win

do

w

Light Banks

Joe’s Tip

A single light

source is one of th

e

easiest lights to

use. Always use it

very close to your subject, t

hat

way the light

is at its soft

est and

most flatterin

g.

This portrait is lit with a single light

source, the Elinchrom Octa. It gives

a smooth even light which replicates

the light from a window. A silver

reflector is used just to lighten the

shadow area.

By adjusting the angle of the Octa it

is possible to lighten or darken the

background to the precise shooting

requirements. The Octa is 1.75m in

diameter, perfect for full length

portraits.

EL 500Octa

Lite Bank

SilverReflector

Panel

Camera

Subject

Background

Four lights were used to create this picture. The Main Light is an Octa

which gives a soft overall illumination. A Square 44 Reflector with

its 32˚ Honeycomb Grid was used as a Hair Light. A 100cm Softbox

acted as a Fill Light.

To get the texture onto the stonework, and to imitate the effect of the

lamp, a second 32˚ Honeycomb was fitted to a flash unit and pointed

up against the wall. This gives the whole picture a third dimension

but still looks perfectly natural.

Joe’s Tip“Always pose peopletogether. Everybodywants to see a fam-

ily close and together. You cansee how much this little girl lovesher Daddy just by her pose!”

Camera

EL500Octa

Lite bank

Subjects

Fireplace

Stone Wall

EL25016˚ Honeycomb

EL250Square 44

EL500100cmSoftbox

For this large set six lights and a variety of different

accessories were used. The Main Light is once again

an Octa. On the right of the set two soft light sources

were used either side of the column to give a natural

feel and to make sure the background had both

texture and dimension. The Square 44 Reflector was

used as a hair light and for extra effect a High

Performance Reflector was shot through the screen to

bring out its detail. Finally a 70cm Softbox is used

as a Fill Light and placed at the front of the set.

Joe’s Tip“Consider lighting the whole

set and not just your subject.

That will leave the subject

free to move around and

give you more shooting possibilities. I

used this set to shoot full length, 3/4 and

Head and Shoulder shots from a vari-

ety of angles.”

Using More Lights

EL250Square 44 Reflector

EL250Square 44Reflector

EL500100cm Softbox

EL25070cm Softbox

EL500OctaLite Bank

EL250HighPerformanceReflector

Column

Subject

Camera

Joe’s Tip“Light and pose the whole

body and not just the bit

you’re shooting. That will

make all your poses look natural and

not contrived”

A classic High Key lighting set up. The subject has detail

but the background is pure white. The secret is to get the

background evenly lit and overexposed by no more than 1

f-stop. This will remove any detail, if it is too bright it

will affect the edges of the subject as the light from the

background flares forwards. These lights must be

positioned accurately so that they don’t spill onto the

subject. Once the background level has been set the

subject can be lit. If the background is set to f16 then the

subject should be lit at f11 which will also be the camera

aperture. Make sure that the lights illuminating the

background are not allowed to spill light onto the subject.

EL500Square 44

EL500100cmSoftbox

EL500OctaLite Bank

Subject

Camera

EL250Wide AngleReflector

EL250Wide Angle

Reflector

CompactsThe Standard Elinchrom compact flash

units are small, lightweight and easy to

use. They feature fast recycling and offer

exceptionally short flash durations.

These units offer a potent combination of speed and

convenience. They have an extended power range

and are adjustable over 5 f-stops. The Elinchrom

Advanced Compacts are characterised by their fast

recycling, rapid flash durations and overall excep-

tional performance.

This unit incorporates the latest advances in

electronic technology and is the most advanced

compact flash unit in the World. It has a 5 f-stop

range and the power is controlled in precise

steps of 1/10th f-stop. Full remote control and

dual voltage operation are amongst the many

features of this exciting new unit.

Elinchrom produce a fine range of studio

powerpacks and Lampheads. Both the

Classic, the Combi and the advanced

Micro AS series Powerpacks are used by

top photographers the World over.

Micro Compact

Studio Systems

Advanced Compacts

Honeycombs

Softboxes

Light Banks

A honeycomb creates a pool of light. The

larger the degree of coverage the larger the

pool of light. Use for Hair lights in portraiture

or wherever controlled spots of light are needed.

Umbrellas are the simplest way to make the light

source larger and therefore softer. Different materials

work in different ways. Silver is the most efficient

and produces a high contrast result. White creates

less contrast and can appear softer. Translucent can

be reflected or used to shoot through allowing the light

source to be placed nearer to the subject.

A softbox, like an umbrella produces a soft light source.

Unlike an umbrella the softbox is much more controlla-

ble. The direction of the light is more specific and it can

be used with much greater subtlety. The uniform front

diffuser also gives more acceptable reflective highlights

than an umbrella.

These huge softboxes create the ultimate portrait light.

Their size allows them to be used effectively for full

length shots or larger groups. The unique Elinchrom

design gives a front surface that varies by as little as 3/

10th f-stop anywhere on the surface, allowing even low

power flash units to be used effectively in the portrait

situation.

Umbrellas

The Elinchrom professional studio lighting system is available from

Elinchrom appointed stockists worldwide

The Elinchrom Video SelectionJCraigoe

The Portrait VideoAll the images in this leaflet were

taken during the making of the Joe

Craig Portrait Video. This 60 minute

programme is a concise tour of

modern portrait photography.

Shooting in the studio, office and on

location Joe shows how to light and

pose a variety of different portraits.

Lighting for Perfect PortraitsThis video shows the broad scope of the

Elinchrom flash system accessories in

the studio situation. This 30 minute

video shows the extensive range of

Elinchrom accessories and visits the

studio of leading portrait photographer

Joe Craig to learn how he lights his

award winning portraits.