From the course: Portrait Photography: Ten Styles with One Light
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Choosing a flattering light direction
From the course: Portrait Photography: Ten Styles with One Light
Choosing a flattering light direction
- When we talk about the direction of light, we're really talking a lot about the mood of the photograph. The position of the light has a lot to do with how the picture is portrayed and how it feels. For instance, if you shine light up from underneath, it's kind of a horror light. It looks like a scary film, it looks like a campfire shining light upward, it looks like a flashlight held under the face. So that's one way to portray mood. We can portray a beauty light, as shown directly down from above, it's kind of angelic. We can have a light shining down on the hair, giving a glow to the background, making somebody look like an angel, not just angelic. But typically, for a flattering portrait, I'm usually looking for light coming in from the side and a little bit raised up. It needs to be high enough that I'm getting shadows cast downward so it feels natural, and it needs to be around the front just enough that I get light in both eyes. This side light coming in, just a little bit…
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