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3 LIGHTING TIPS FOR PORTRAIT PHOTOGRAPHY

Quick Guide
Written by Lauren Gherardi

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 I remember the day that I purchased my very first A couple years of practice, tons of reading, and
studio strobe. I was working in a camera store, and many experimental photo shoots later, and I feel that
I had saved up money from at least two paychecks. it’s safe to say that a one-strobe setup is one of my
At the time, Annie Leibowitz was one of my biggest favorite techniques.
inspirations and the amazing work she would create
with just one light was genius! In this guide, I’m going to explore three portrait
lighting techniques using just one strobe, a beauty
I thought about how much this would up my dish, and a bounce reflector.
photography game. Getting that first light, a
reflector, and a pack of colored gels, I thought my I will show you examples of how light positioning can
photo quality would just sky rocket from there! completely change the look and feel of your final
I was soon to discover that I was not quite the image.
photography prodigy I had imagined myself to be. In this guide we will cover the following topics:
Little did I know that there was so much more to ·· Considering your space for your shoot
learn. Before I bought that strobe I had been using ·· Choosing your diffuser
continuous lighting, or “hot lights.” ·· Front lighting: how to best position your light on
What I knew about those lights was that you place the subject while still giving you room to shoot
the light where you want it and shoot. ·· Top lighting (Bohemian Rhapsody anyone?)
·· Back lighting: making your subject glow
I hadn’t taken into account the sheer power (light
intensity) of a strobe. Recommended Reading: If you’d like to
learn more about light and how you can use it
There was this tremendous amount of extraneous
to create better photos, grab a copy of Photzy’s
light bouncing around in the living room of my
premium guide: Understanding Light Book One.
one-bedroom apartment, and it would change the
amount of detail my camera would pick up in an
image, unless I learned how to control it.

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 CONSIDERING YOUR SPACE

Whether you are shooting in a low-

ceiling, one-bedroom apartment or you
have a large studio space, it’s important
to consider how the space will affect your
lighting, and also what diffuser sizes will
work best for the space that you have to
work with.

I have a few very large diffusers starting

at about 60” in size and going up from
there.

I enjoy using large diffusers, as it softens

and spreads the light out over a much
larger surface area.

However, for the shoot illustrated in this

guide, we were in my living room, and we
were mainly focusing on headshots.

I didn’t need to use something as large as

60+ inches.
Photograph by Lauren Gherardi

Example of front lighting. The light

is positioned to camera right and
45 degrees above the model, angled
downward. A white reflector is
placed to the left of the camera.

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 Key Lesson: The size of your portrait You may be surprised by how much light fills the
lighting diffuser is important. Consider the area space when it is bounced off of the ceiling and walls.
that you will be working in, as well as the area
The trick for a smaller space is to have the subject a
that you need to light. Choosing a very large
few feet away from the backdrop, the light source,
diffuser could be impractical if your shooting
and your camera, and a few additional feet away
area is small, or you aren’t lighting a large area
from the subject. This allows more room around the
(such as a full-length portrait).
subject to position the lighting in different ways.
You also want to consider bouncing the light,
especially if you’re in a tight space and you want to Key Lesson: When shooting in small
use an open-ended diffuser, such as some of the spaces, leave at least a few feet from the
adapters that simply attach to the end of a portable subject to the background. Also, give as much
electronic flash. room as you can between the subject and the
camera, as well as the subject and the light
source. You want enough room to play with the
positioning of the light.

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 CHOOSING YOUR DIFFUSER

We have our strobe, reflector, model, and

background.

We just need to figure out what lighting

effect you are going for.

Let’s go over your diffuser options.

Soft boxes, octoboxes, and stripboxes

These lighting boxes attach to your

electronic flash and are going to give you
directional soft light. They control light
spill fairly well, and they mimic daylight
by producing an even spread of light and
softer shadows on the subject.

Photograph by Lauren Gherardi

Example of front lighting.

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 Umbrellas…ellas…ellas Beauty dish

Umbrellas normally come in two styles: reflective This is the diffuser of choice for my example shoot in
and shoot through. Reflective umbrellas are black this guide. It creates harsher shadows, and the effect
on the outside, and on the inside they can be white, is somewhere between a soft box and direct flash.
gold, or silver. Some umbrellas allow you to ‘shoot The dish is reflective, and it helps to spread the light
through’ the umbrella. These models typically allow evenly over the subject. The model that I worked
you to add a black backing that turns them into a with here has very defined features, and I felt that the
‘bounce back’ reflective umbrella. The reflective harsher shadows would really compliment her look.
umbrellas are better at providing controlled lighting.
Shoot-through umbrellas produce softer light, but Key Lesson: Shoot-through white
it spills everywhere. Reflective umbrellas can offer umbrellas offer very soft light, but very little
some ‘warmth’ to portraits when the interior is a gold control over the direction or shape of the light.
surface. White shoot-through umbrellas soften the Bounce umbrellas offer better control, and you
look of the harsh strobe, but do very little to control can alter the color temperature of the light by
the direction or shape of the light. varying the interior surface of the umbrella.
Some umbrellas can be converted to bounce
or shoot-through umbrellas. Boxes soften the
light and offer a greater degree of control over
light spill. Boxes also mimic daylight very well.
A beauty dish creates a slightly harsher light
source, which can be beneficial when a subject
has very defined features.

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 FRONT LIGHTING

Front lighting was my lighting of choice

for this example shoot. The image on the
left and the ones on pages 3 and 5 all
have the ‘front lighting’ position.

The difference in the three photographs

was my direction to the model on how to
position her head, hands, and body.

I positioned the light source slightly to my

right, at a 45-degree angle to the model.

It was attached to a boom light stand.

Key Lesson: A boom light

stand allows greater flexibility in
positioning the light. You can move
the light source closer to the model,
while also keeping the stand out of
the picture area. Here is an example
of a ‘boom light stand.’

The reflector was used as a slight fill light

for the shadows. It was positioned to my
left.
Photograph by Lauren Gherardi
I didn’t want to fill in all the shadows,
Example of front lighting.

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 but add some soft, reflected light. If I filled in all of you to try first.
the shadows with my reflector, it would defeat the
purpose of using the beauty dish! Consider this: Had I used a light-colored background
instead of a dark background, it would have
lightened the entire image. The dark background
Key Lesson: In portrait photography,
absorbs the light.
considering the shadows is equally important
to your considerations on the lighting. This is the most straightforward option when you’re
starting out with portrait lighting, and it requires the
Using the boom stand, with front lighting, also helps
least amount of post-production editing.
to create more space for you as the photographer
to move around your subject while still being able to For the final images in this guide, I felt that this
have your light source directly in front of the subject. lighting really produced the look that I was going for.
Don’t own a boom stand? Note: The texture that you see in the
background of the final images is a duplicate
It’s not a problem when you’re starting out. Place the
layer with motion blur added. Perhaps I will
light source directly next to your camera and adjust
write a guide on this technique for you!
the stand upward, slightly higher than your subject,
and pointing downwards toward them.
Recommended Reading: If you’d like to
You’ll create a similar effect, and you can adjust your learn more about light and how you can use it
reflector accordingly if the shadows aren’t quite what to create better photos, grab a copy of Photzy’s
you are looking for. premium guide: Understanding Light Book One.

Out of the three lighting schemes discussed in this

guide, front lighting would be the most natural for

3 LIGHTING TIPS FOR PORTRAIT PHOTOGRAPHY // © PHOTZY.COM 8

 BACK LIGHTING

In setting up for the back lighting

examples, I created a look that ranged
from a 1970’s rock star (a.k.a. Grace
Slick) to a 1980’s heavy metal band (think
Debbie Harry of Blondie) in one quick
movement of the light source.

Key Lesson: When you’re

working with only one light source,
the source must provide the back
lighting. In general, this will not be
the ‘main light.’ The main light is
the light that illuminates to subject’s
face. With the light source being
placed behind the model, the white
reflector becomes the main light on
the model’s face.

Photograph by Lauren Gherardi

Example of back lighting.

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 You can see in the image on the previous
page and the image on the left that there
was some light spill onto the backdrop,
which took away from the intense black
that we saw in the first few images of front
lighting.

If I were using a much smaller diffuser

than the beauty dish, I could have also
placed the back lighting strobe directly
behind the model and just slightly lower.

This would have created a tighter halo

effect around the subject, and it would
have preserved the intensity of the dark
backdrop.

Photograph by Lauren Gherardi

Example of back lighting.

3 LIGHTING TIPS FOR PORTRAIT PHOTOGRAPHY // © PHOTZY.COM 10

 Key Lesson: Back lighting tends to require In the image examples on pages 9 and 10, I placed
a higher level of skill in controlling both the the light source behind the model and to camera
direction of the light source and the light spill. right. I positioned the light so as to not interfere too
much with the backdrop.
Something that I enjoy about back lighting is the The reflector (the main light) was to camera left, and I
ability to make your subject glow. had the model turn toward the reflector.
Depending on what the subject is wearing, and the When I backlight images, I enjoy seeing the light
color that you choose for the background, you can come through the texture of the clothing, hair, etc.
really have some fun and create unique effects with
back lighting. It gives the image an ‘otherworldly’ appearance.

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 TOP LIGHTING

Top lighting instantly gives me a flashback

to the Bohemian Rhapsody music video
by the rock band Queen.

Top lighting can create really dramatic

effects in portraiture.

It only highlights the horizontal plains of

the face, while leaving the rest in shadow.

For these example images, the model

worked to find the lighting by tilting her
head back.

I had the reflector beneath her to help

soften the intense shadows that top
lighting can create.

This is typically not the most flattering

light for traditional portraits, because of
the harsh shadows that it creates under
the eyes.

However, it is challenging to us as
photographers to find new ways to light
things.
Photograph by Lauren Gherardi

Example of top lighting

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 The image on the previous page has the
model facing straight on to the camera to
illustrate the amount of shadows that top
lighting can create and where they fall.

The image on the left illustrates the

model leaning back, and facing up, thus
positioning her face for more flattering
light.

In the image on the left and the one

on the next page, you can see that the
reflector is placed directly opposite of the
strobe: slightly underneath the model and
facing upward.

Key Lesson: Top lighting can

provide some really wonderful
dramatic results. However, you
must take the time to study the
light carefully, and then adjust your
subject accordingly.

Recommended Reading: If you’d

like to learn more about light and
Photograph by Lauren Gherardi how you can use it to create better
By directing the positioning of photos, grab a copy of Photzy’s
the model, I have made creative
use of top lighting that really
premium guide: Understanding Light
creates a dramatic portrait. Book One.

3 LIGHTING TIPS FOR PORTRAIT PHOTOGRAPHY // © PHOTZY.COM 13

 Photograph by Lauren Gherardi

3 LIGHTING TIPS FOR PORTRAIT PHOTOGRAPHY // © PHOTZY.COM 14

 WRAPPING IT UP

No matter which lighting set up appeals

to you, the best thing that you can do is
experiment.

Try different-colored reflectors and

backdrops, and most definitely try
different lighting diffusers. Play with
props and a colored wardrobe. Shoot in
different areas to learn how the space
affects your efforts.

Photograph by Lauren Gherardi

3 LIGHTING TIPS FOR PORTRAIT PHOTOGRAPHY // © PHOTZY.COM 15

 Once you master the one-light setup, adding more This is why, before adding more strobes to your
strobes to your shoots will start to make more sense. collection, you should consider the space that you
You will be able to see where you want to fill in the have to shoot in.
image with light or add light to a different part of the
set without compromising the lighting on the subject. Learn which diffusers will give you the desired effects
that you seek by trying out different types on a single
Shooting in my smaller apartments over the last few lighting scheme. Get comfortable with using your
years has taught me to love more simple lighting reflector for fill lighting or as a main light.
techniques, and it helped me grow my collection of
different diffusers and gels. Although a full studio with multiple strobes can
create incredible images, don’t doubt your ability to
It has also helped me to become more comfortable do the same with a more simplistic setup within your
shooting in smaller spaces, and become more own home!
prepared to use an appropriate setup for whatever
space I have to work with.

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 Self-Check Quiz:

1. Which lighting setup is the least flattering 5. How can you create a tighter halo effect
for traditional portraits? behind your subject?

2. Before setting up your strobe, you need to 6. Which music video does top lighting remind
consider your ____________ in which you will me of?
be shooting.
7. What is the difference between using an
3. Why is it important to choose the correct umbrella or a soft box?
diffuser?

4. Using a ____________ stand is an easy way

to have the light source directly in front of
your subject while still having space to move
around with your camera.

3 LIGHTING TIPS FOR PORTRAIT PHOTOGRAPHY // © PHOTZY.COM 17

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sheets that will help you the #1 thing holding your downloadable (pdf) tutorials on
understand the basics. photography back. everything you can imagine.

Download Cheat Sheets → Take Quiz → Download eBooks →

Want quick photography tips?

Check out our friends at DailyPhotoTips.com they'll send you 1 solid photography tip
to your inbox, 5 days a week. So you can start your day right, with actionable tips to
help you on your creative journey. Subscribe now →
(free for a limited time)

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 ABOUT THE AUTHOR Congratulations! You’ve completed
this Photzy guide!

If you liked this photography lighting tutorial,

check out this premium lighting guide to
help you master light and produce amazing
photographs: Understanding Light Book One.

Lauren Gherardi is a photographer and

a jewelry designer. She enjoys capturing
women as her subjects, and she is inspired
by all things retro, floral, brightly colored, IF YOU’D LIKE TO CONTINUE
and too many photographers to count.
LEARNING AND IMPROVING
You can find her on Instagram at @arlaphoto. YOUR PHOTOGRAPHY PLEASE
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