1 light fun with Beyonce & Botero

For a one-light setup, I like it. It definitely screams for a hairlight or some light on a non-black background. Anything to keep that hair from disappearing.

Who or what is Botero?

Botero is the maker of the background Beyonce was in front of.

This is a 5x7 reversible, collapsible background. Black and white.

I have to say Beyonce is looking a bit depressed, I think she should get out a bit more and socialize

You are right, she doesn't smile much!

OrcaBob wrote:

For a one-light setup, I like it. It definitely screams for a hairlight or some light on a non-black background. Anything to keep that hair from disappearing.

Who or what is Botero?

This one better Bob?


Here is a wide angle shot of the backdrop (the black side):

You know that last photo looks really creepy! Sometimes with photos like this of real people, I get really pixel pick'n happy and start examining individual hairs both on the head and eye lashes for sharpness. One of my many faults I suppose. These are some good shots though of your model.

MusicMan5 wrote:
This one better Bob?

[/quote]

Better than having the hair disappear into the background, but it's still flat. A second light as a hairlight will give Beyonce some depth.

If you have only one light, I'd suggest a non-diffusive reflector (metallic-coated reflector or even a mirror) as a rear-fill at about a 45-degree angle from behind. Anything to provide a source of light on the back of the head.

Desi's hair isn't black, but it does tend to disappear in the low-key shots. The hairlight prevents that. It also provides some dimensionality lost in a totally front-lighted shot.



Even if a lighter background is used and the b/g is lighted directly behind the model, that glint of light on the hair still helps.

MusicMan5 wrote:

You are right, she doesn't smile much!

Her face will never wrinkle.

OrcaBob wrote:

MusicMan5 wrote:
This one better Bob?

Better than having the hair disappear into the background, but it's still flat. A second light as a hairlight will give Beyonce some depth.

If you have only one light, I'd suggest a non-diffusive reflector (metallic-coated reflector or even a mirror) as a rear-fill at about a 45-degree angle from behind. Anything to provide a source of light on the back of the head.

Desi's hair isn't black, but it does tend to disappear in the low-key shots. The hairlight prevents that. It also provides some dimensionality lost in a totally front-lighted shot.



Even if a lighter background is used and the b/g is lighted directly behind the model, that glint of light on the hair still helps.[/quote]

I tried reflectors to light her hair but did not really care for the results. So my next experiment will be to add a second light, I'll try a boom light I think.

Edit: here is the shot using the reflectors.