Portraits

What is Aperture?

Aperture opens the inside of a photographic lens. The size of the opening in the camera is also called the diaphragm. As this opens, this regulates the amount of light that is allowed to pass through to the camera as the shutter opens during an exposure process. It works just like an eye does. When your iris is in the dark it becomes bigger and allows more light to come inside however, when it is exposed to light your iris becomes smaller allowing only a certain amount of light in. The higher the Aperture, the lower the shutter speed and the lower the Aperture, the higher the shutter speed.

What is Hard/ Soft lighting?

Hard lighting often leaves an image looking harsh and has a lot of sharp edged shadows. Soft lighting is diffused and even. If you were to take a picture where the sun was shining over head directly, that would be hard lighting. When the sun is not as exposed, it creates softer lighting. When taking a photo we use reflectors, these control how much light reflects off of the reflector and onto the subject leaving the image with either a hard or soft result. The white side flushes the image and makes it very bright however, when using the gold side of a reflector, it makes the image look more warm and adds colour to the skin.

What is single light portait?

When taking photo's of either a person or object, people tend to use single light portraits because the main light that you are focusing on, is the biggest light. Single light portraits can be taken both in the dark and where there is already a little bit of light. They are effective when you want to achieve a natural looking portrait photo rather than when you are looking for a more creative photograph to take. Here are some examples of single light portraits that were done in the dark.

Here is one I attempted myself when I was shooting for a music video. I aimed to use both the Rule of Thirds and Single Light portrait on an object.

What is a reflector?

Reflectors come in many different styles, formats, sizes and even colour. As I have previously explained how a reflector works, I will explain the effects of how they are used and where they are placed. When using a white reflector, it is best positioned between the persons neck and face for a close up. This creates a more natural look as the lighting reflects from the side, onto the face giving it a softer feel.

What is clam shell lighting?

A clam shell is also a light, but instead of using a normal light with four covers, you can open up the covers to let a lot of light out onto the model or object or you can also reduce the amount of light that is reflected by closing them up. This is also a very popular lighting technique that is used by photographers all over the world as it gives you the chance to control your own lighting and perfect your image as to how you want it to look like. Clam shell lightings also offers a more natural look so they are mainly used to promote beauty cosmetics.

When using clam shell lighting, it is better to also maybe use a reflector as you can play around with the lighting a lot more. Not only will the clam lighting make a person look more natural but you can perfect the look by also using a reflector to bounce more colour and lighting onto the face to keep the lighting at a good level also giving the image a softer lighting.