"backlight"

[Starlite]

I have been told a little bit about a "backlight", and how it is used to create different effects and outlines for portrait photos....

Can anyone help me on the basics of what the backlight does, and if anyone has a photo or two that would illustrate examples, that would be too too cool.



thank you!!!! :bigangel:

 

[ladyphotog]

Do you mean a light to make a halo around your subject? If that is what you mean, take a look at my avatar, it uses a light aimed back at the subject.

 

[niccig]

You can also use backlighting to create a silhouette (person is completely dark, surroundings are visible). For silhouettes, you need strong backlighting and little or no keylight, and expose for the background, not the person.

 

[niccig]

Here are a couple of backlit photos (posting link only since I didn't take these - they're from my wedding).

This one isn't quite a silhouette since there's visible detail in my dress, but close:
http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j272/nicci_g/blackandwhite6.jpg

Again, even less silhouette-ish:
http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j272/nicci_g/blackandwhite9.jpg

 

[Starlite]

Ok thanks! That gives me a couple of ideas...

I just saw them and didn't know what they were used for.

Here is one that I was looking at:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Studio-Backgrou...hZ002QQcategoryZ30080QQtcZphotoQQcmdZViewItem


It's hard to tell from the picture, what kind of light would go with the stand, and if it would be a different kind of light, then the ones I have seen that are used for the front.

 

[Big Mike]

A 'back light stand'...is just a basic light stand that is not as tall as a regular light stand. This makes it easy to hide behind the subject. You would then use a light to either back light the subject, as seen in Ladyphotog's avatar...or you can use the light to light up the background...or both.

The one you linked to...looks to have a standard light stand head on it. That should accommodate any standard light or accessory.

 

[Starlite]

thanks again Big Mike!