- The Short Version
- Back to Basics, Quickly
- Shoot: Position Your Modifier with intention
- Shoot: One Speedlite with Fill Reflector
- Shoot: Creating Soft Fill Light with a Big Umbrella
- Shoot: Broad and Short Lighting
- Shoot: Think of The Shutter as a Light Modifier
- Shoot: Just a Slash of Light
- Shoot: RING The Lens with Light
- Shoot: Nose to The Gridded Light
- Shoot: One-Light White Seamless
- Shoot: Speedliting a Silhouette
- Shoot: Does Softbox Size Matter?
This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
Shoot: Speedliting a Silhouette
Sometimes turning your Speedlite at the background can create more dramatic light than when you aim it at your subject. For this shoot, I actually underexposed Arian to such an extent that he turned into a silhouette.
Use Zoom To Create The Background Pattern
Even before Arian stepped into the frame, I experimented with different zoom settings on my Speedlite to see how they would illuminate the background. If you want a broad, even field of color, zoom your Speedlite out wide (to 24mm). If you want a spot of light that dramatically fades to black, zoom it in tight (to 105mm). The hero shot at right was made with the Speedlite zoomed to 70mm. The hotspot of color is the result of the Rosco medium red gel firing onto the deep yellow wall.
Hide The Flash
Pay attention to the details when shooting silhouettes. I had to hide the Speedlite behind Arian’s leg and instruct him on exactly where to stand.
Sometimes Less Is More
When it comes to the intensity of the color from a gel, the more light you push through it, the lighter the color appears. So if you are looking for a deep, saturated color, remember to turn the power of your flash down rather than up. (I know this sounds backwards.)
Lighting Details
Environment: Empty store
Time of Day: Not a factor
Ambient: Very dim, overhead fluorescent turned off during shoot
Speedlites: One 580EX
Mode: Manual
Zoom: Zoomed to 70mm
Tilt: Straight up
Gel: Rosco Medium Red
Modifier: None
Distance: Pushed up to wall
Height: Sitting on floor
Trigger: Simple radio triggers
Camera Details
Camera: 5D Mark II
Lens: EF 17–40mm f/4L
Distance to Subject: 12′
Exposure Mode: Manual
Exposure: 
″, f/8, ISO 400
White Balance: Flash
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Figure 19.32 Lighting diagram
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Figure 19.33 My hero shot was made with the Speedlite power dialed manually to 
.
Figure 19.34 The set was two sheets of tile board pushed up to a yellow wall.