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Shoot: Portrait Lighting - Silver Dish and Snoot

Lesson 19 from: Men's Portrait Photography

Jeff Rojas

Shoot: Portrait Lighting - Silver Dish and Snoot

Lesson 19 from: Men's Portrait Photography

Jeff Rojas

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Lesson Info

19. Shoot: Portrait Lighting - Silver Dish and Snoot

Lesson Info

Shoot: Portrait Lighting - Silver Dish and Snoot

Silver dish high angle somebody asked that great question fashion lighting we're going make the following market modification to this specific set of minutes turn off the background meanwhile do you have any other question dressed but we're striking the sets sure from makes the photo's going back teo lens choice do you mean our blintzes that you showed the lenses that you use or do you still or do you use primes it all even really mentioned many crimes five and the eighty five eighty five values as well as many think I have the eighty five with me I think I've got eighty five instead of the seventy two hundred by accident eighty five something I'll go to his well for kind of my walk around lens as well because it is extremely like I told you before I'm kind of lazy wanted carry things I wanna carry it is little possible prime lenses extremely light those of you that don't know what prime lenses are they don't have the zoom feature the zoom is this this's zoom this is your zoom prime le...

nses they're great to kind of picture of the way compression works and understanding lenses so those of you that are beginning photographers starting off portrait photography I'll recommend getting prime lens you can kind of understand how zooms work how compression works it makes it a little easy to understand that just very very high angle so we're going for dramatic portraiture that's gonna hurt for a little bit on if you're cold it's going to be amazing somebody took a photo of this yesterday I don't remember a person's name on the top of my head right now they were like quick draw rohaas and it was hilarious perfect okay it's gonna be very bright so I'm actually just closing down here perfect awesome I'm still having to close that I'm all the way thirteen I'm gonna go all the way is far for us I can awesome perfect so we saw the beauty dish before we saw the way that the light actually works in a beautician can I see that last image perfect so beat it just had very it was contrast it but it had a little bit of fall off as opposed to the silver of light reflected us you're just blowing light at the person so it's very very striking in regards to where the fall office so if I needed any information that's their thea this reminds me the nineties for some reason yes I remember the nineties I can say that where everybody's face was like one angle one light which is fine but there's not definition to the background if you like dramatic lighting I general would use this I'm gonna go to develop module quickly and I would do something we'll talk about black and white conversions later where it's a little more contrast let's go up go down down, down, down, down I would generally do that for more of a black and white look something that likes you look extremely dark in that photo yeah huh see something with a little bit more clarity something that has a little more panache let's say let's say something like that if I was okay with something like that, I'd keep black and white photo specifically because they're extremely contrast c they're extremely dynamic that way I still prefer that I see some of the edges in that photo because he looks so tiny in that image can we let's bring it back this way at library perfect john if I could bring her uh that white full card for me thank you very, very much awesome. Yes, I love I love your questions like you say yesterday that would this will be an instance in which you will shoot this in black and white through the camera itself so that you could see what's going on with the light and now you're saying shoot a monochrome you're so I don't know if we have the capability to do it today because I'm shooting ron jpeg to my understanding I think it's still set that way I usually shoot just wrong so just explain anybody who wasn't here I shoot generally one between fashion disorders anything I shoot monochrome as it has picture style you set the camera literally picture styles of picture settings what you want to visually see is ajay pick interpretation to the background reason being as I'm looking the camera that's er that's actually just switch this quickly uh to picture style I'm cannon, I'm switching to monochrome because my visual interest is no longer on it if it sets up as monochrome or not, it shouldn't because it's running c r two's obviously is wrong, but that's my interpretation what I'm seeing in cameras, I can tell what what's illuminating what stark if you saw that original interpretation there, I know where the light highlights and shadows are visually easier for me to see on camera. If something's too bright too dark visually, I don't need to use a history and to see that khun visually see too much of a highlight too much of a dark shadow. I can see everything right on camera color sense be very difficult even when we're talking about retouching later to visually see where the highlights and shadows are because you're getting yellows and reds and so many different very olives also many different variations of colors and tones it's very difficult to kind of see with highlights, shadows and where the gradations of skin tones are so visually it's a little easier for me to use monochrome to help me out in regards to exposure is everything exposed correctly. So yes, you know, studio, you will be shooting this monochrome anyway. Tracked okay on again. That's just personal right taste that's just visually how I see things. I forget a lot of my photos to black and white anyway. So, it's, a great way for this for me. It's okay, to have enough contrast in there to start off with a mite happy with the preliminary photo before the ending, but I still use it if I'm outdoors for contrast and seeing everything. Obviously, you shooting ross and you get all information that's there. But I wanna make sure I get everything is best on cameras. Possible highlights aren't clipped shadows not too dark. So let's, go with that again. I'm gonna keep format for many with monochrome only to make it a little easier if you bring that in. Perfect let's, look this visually that's what you say through your eye what watches it loads. I know that there's not there's. It's very flat. I can visually see it's very flat. So I don't think about colors and tones and thinking about highlights and shadows. So any I need to bring that reflector moved away quite a bit that's what I'm considering in guard, so why I'm shooting monochrome as opposed to this it's not very easy to see you can tell that that that doesn't have enough contrast that's in there so that's why I use monochrome it's a little easier to visually see so if I said john can you move that reflector quite a bit of ways so perfect one two three awesome perfect wants this and again you can do this with history rams but if you're starting off and you perfect I haven't of contrast in it at least a good image if you're starting off in photography understanding history it's very difficult there's a lot of people it'll sit there and try to understand the principle but sometimes you just don't get it some people more visual than technical so visually it's a little easier to see there's enough contrast and thereto have contrast in the image is not flat there's enough dynamic range to shoot whatever you're trying to showcase I'm going quickly go over um one last setup so when he used to barn doors from behind and a snoop on the face so temporarily while we're switching over us do you have any questions for me at all questions someone was noticing the kind of loop shadow under his nose eyes that something that you're okay with does that is that an intended feature? What what do you think about that here's here's my my disposition on loops because because it's not if they don't have a large nose you generally can't visually as clients they can't really tell the second they have a larger nose and that blue shadows like touching no cheek like that shadow that's here instead of being here it's like over here we're visually seeing it's a large nest of those people that are self conscious it really depends on the client like whatever you're trying to technically you could be technical about it or you could be artistic about it. What are you trying to do what's your final on motive how many of you guys have used smooth it seems like you guys were in deebo this's what? You shouldn't uses the hat yesterday staying there safety first john it's a little spheres because it's ah okay rental gear you sure you don't you are gonna die today it's give me another day thank you, sir. Meanwhile okay we'll start off building light again when I discuss things I don't want one set I don't tryto throw into many lights again when you're first starting off it's difficult to kind of picture where light works and how it even professional photographers it's difficult to see everything so I always recommend building light piece by piece don't throw in everything in um quickly seem work I think that worked perfect I can't promise the non death no way we're good okay so let's get this thing hits you peter, where are you can you see the red it's a depot that I'm telling you you got google that not for me just think right there perfect perfect uh problem is too dark one more time one two three thousand qin how does anybody perfect snoops snoops are going to end if you look at the modifier itself it's a very intimidating looking thing like that looks like a and like a supervillain death ray of some sort ok they're very very harsh forms light in that there's not much fall off I mean if you think about the way that it works it's just one giant cylinder moving into a specific area there's no I mean if you look at my fingers you can kind of tell with with a the highlights are and it's starting to move into light and it's automatically out of like like it's a very very thin former blight so you can either move that away it moved towards your subject to make a spot on their face for safety purposes I'm going to get relatively close as opposed to where we normally go I like the fear you have in your face right now perfect so we saw the image further away perfect notice I'm not trying to be all that much uh there's my sister jill perfect thank you perfect I can't see john the background on ly because it's very very spotted so let's look at the difference between these two men just contrast wise it's way too bright I can automatically see that mr graham wise, it will tell you that but visually if you don't understand what he has to graham does, I'm not it's super super super brights begin with so I can either go ahead and closed down on my camera so I don't have to see is much our shadows or I can lower the power of my life. I can't promise your safety any longer way have reached the point of maximum reach perfect okay, perfect so the image looks like so lower the power from the cameras sorry from the light itself sits on a specific spot which is kind of this narrow area what I want because I want his eyes, his nose and his mouth should be the only thing that I'm letting so I again it's a very, very narrow beam of light I'm gonna sharpen out his cheek sharpen his cheekbones okay, right there that's if he has any cash light if he has shark eyes perfect, awesome, perfect! So let's see where that spot is and for heavier subjects we discussed yesterday being able to do the same thing. We use a spot great yesterday, but at least you can tell if somebody was wider we don't have to see those things we're going to use it's fine that's senator terribly bad photographs from the neck I wouldn't do that to your neck whatsoever but we're gonna bring in to room lights from behind to give you a tiny bit of dimension can we have that one? Perfect. I'm gonna turn this one off for so I am can you move it a little a little further from him towards the background meaning if you can close down the front barn door from a just a tiny bit I would say a tiny bit less sorry a tiny bit like narrow from it and I'll show you guys the difference perfect stay there from a awesome get him building lights I'm watching where the light's falling and so I'm not clipping his eyebrow not clipping anything I'm just gonna give him a room light from behind trying to show edges were trying to give him death from the photo itself john can we thank you very very, very much. I already knew he uh he bumped out the power quite a bit. This is very, very dark. Okay let's look at that again it's a little too dark for me so he started to increase the brightness quite a bit. Okay next making sure that this light's still the same perfect awesome and john that last one if we can use it as a hair light like hair light towards the back of the neck and head this way okay, I'm getting a tiny bit more contrast in the image again. I'm shooting monochrome to make it a user individually sea, which is so you guys can start understanding why I do this in my studio case, I'm building light. I like the red light. That's from behind. All I need is separation from his top of his hair to the background. I'm trying to see more of a older version of lighting. The only thing that I don't like is I can't see much of a catch like his eyes. It's very, very narrow. You know, we talked about before about giant catch lights and vibrance in their eyes. Something like this is more dramatic. I would generally put this with we discuss russ yes during the shoot with the hat, because it's the type of lighting sound would you like? Almost like thirty's style lighting? That's why we go this so darker, more contrast, perfect. I'm going to turn this one off to visually see where we're seeing those room light's perfect tooth, yet definitely more power, I don't think went out just to make sure that same, uh don't think on the same channel, do you want a round one so they handles on pro photo lights you can set different channels for different studio set up so if you need it, they're not all going to go off on the same channel, but you can switch different groups, so that could be c be an a on the same channel wavelength. So those of you that our home that perfect, awesome, perfect. Okay, I'm getting really I'm starting to use those highlights to start carving out his jawline there I'm using room lights be ableto car about his hair from the background. I'm not using anything aside from two room lights, people separate from the background and even then it's still dark from behind just put that one like that's in their perfect so now they take this photo it's look, it it was my visual interest. I'm going to see a darker photograph, it looks a little more old vintage war let's go here if I go to my develop module, I'm just going to quickly show you gets more less what I would do if I had to color great something like that, I would do something a little darker, more black and white more contrast here so we can see the image itself. This is a great way to showcase someone is human, michael don't pay attention today don't look at that screen, the room lights from the hyena showing texture in the skin without without any it's not hiding any texture whatsoever we talked about before using the clamshell lighting we were able to hide a lot of features that are in the skin this is going like enhance everything that's there using lights because what you're using his lights and shadows to give you an extremely contrast the image we talked about it being more dramatic, more dynamic so that's another way we could do that by the way I just realized you had a nose ring in there you can't really tell that in the original photos that no, but I like the way it looks and we'll talk about a different variation of this full length I know everyone's kind of wondering ok, what about full length only showing portrait see only shooting this we're gonna get to the fashion sacrament in commercial segment this is more for portrait photography we discussed this's portrait lighting you can still use this full length can you do me a favor? Do you mind standing up from it? Perfect that wasn't very far. Are you really scared of this thing as I say that just crashing you're looking at you like don't fall I hope you have fast reflexes let's hope so perfect we're gonna find that out now perfect one, two three I'm not going to see john and they're only cause john's nowhere to be found perfect you don't mean they're not going to see a problem I see is his little creepy guy in the corner awesome that's the bench okay, so if we can just move the light towards him in tiny bit just so we can see that the highlights and shadows so those of you that are wondering you can do this with with body structure we're going do this during the fashion segment but we'll break it break it down quite a quite a bit more I'm gonna use a beauty dish instead of that I keep doing this this is my microphone that's not a good idea uh using a beauty a dish in the face perfect two three awesome with those highlights are again he's wearing black so it's gonna absorb quite a bit of light generally you mean it's still going to showcase is gonna be a lot contrast here but I'm losing definition in the back of his shirt so if we can move the lights towards the background of it and towards us attorney but okay, so what's happening is his left arm and his right arm. We're getting a little we're not getting separation because it's not pointing at us he's moving his arms back therefore he's hiding anything that he asking for your arms at your sides like superman yeah, I see you like that you thought about it and it happened one, two, three perfect! We'll talk about the same kind of concept later with a fitness modeling. Awesome, so we're starting to see a lot of definition. The skin was starting it room lights from behind now last thing is you asked about the face awesome too perfect if you were having, if you had a subject with a larger tour, so this would be a great way to just hide their center and I have to showcase anything can't see a thing, so I like the way that that light looks I would generally I wouldn't use this. We'll talk about this during the fitness modeling and not using that modifier, but being able to showcase different ways of giving people definition, I would use this for portrait lighting if you're into old vintage store and you wanted just a social menace facing, quote, very stylistic approach. So whatever you're trying to showcase next friend those of you that are interested in some of the some of the dramatic lighting setup, so we wanted doing, I was drinking presets and light room, mike, those are actually on my facebook page gets wanna go, they're wonderful! I loved you that way had a comment, and I had it saved, and so I'm going to try and find it here really quickly because it was great. Take w d said. I really appreciate his approach to building light, as he says, keep it as simple as possible. Bring in only what you need, jeff. I mean, that's, kind of your approach here is with men's photography, men's sports photography, in general is keep it simple. Focus on the details, the lines that we like, the angles that we like just keep it simple, is that absolutely just for me, it was always difficult to jump into different aspects when I first started, like lighting and styling and everything all at once, take everything that you're learning here and small little sections by no means am I telling you, do everything at once, like we discussed yesterday. Just take a little nuances of what you feel that you and work the same way. So that's, how I did the lighting was taking the little nuances of things that I liked and incorporating those into what I'm doing. So yes, is minimalistic is possible.

Class Materials

bonus material with purchase

Photographer's Style Guide for Men
Men's Posing Guid
Photoshop Black and White Presets
Adorama Gear Guid

Ratings and Reviews

caroline ross
 

I watched this class for free and am saving up to buy it. First of all confirmed! Sigma lens are nothing to be ashamed of and since I love my one main lens, Sigma I immediately felt a rapport. Then listening to the fascinating insights about men and their feelings when confronted by a lens and...what to do with folks who have shaved heads or a little large. Some of the tips were great! Adding a decoration on suit front like a flower or handkerchief, and how to get the suits looking FIT! and well, I plunged into man world and it was a super education. By day two I was amazed by Jeff's generosity. Basically all his experience, all his favorite lighting techniques and painstaking attention to detail. I would have to watch Day two zillions of times to actually be able to absorb all the scenarios and effects. Im going to buy some suit clips Jeff and clip a bunch of suits in back and front to gorgeous my male subjects out. Thank you again for a wonderful, wonderful class.

Lee Crow
 

I've taken a lot of photography training in the last couple of years. Jeff is outstanding. I didn't realize that this content would have such an impact on me. The lighting sections were the best I've seen and the psychological impact of us men having good photos is a wonderful subject to bring to light. The class is great. Jeff is great. CL is great.

MizUniverse
 

this course was worth every penny. Full of practical information and excellent demonstrations. Jeff needs to quit with the crotch comments though ..it was like ...really AGAIN? why are you so obsessed with saying crotch crotch crotch good God. Apart from THAT (which I think was just silly nerves) I really do recommend this class. Jeff is actually very very good. I admire his work. Thanks Jeff I learned a lot!!

Student Work

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