Lighting at the beach

[psreilly]

Sometimes, I like to get a look at professionals methods when they're shooting on the beach. This isn't the first time i've noticed this, but I again recently saw a video of a behind the scenes shoot were a photographer used a strobe on the beach with one somewhat small softbox and a sun swatter that was HUGE that was above the model creating a shadow

I liked the results, and i'd post them here if I could. But tell me if i'm wrong here. Couldn't have a simple filler with a sun reflector been just as effective as a strobe softbox? Do they give different results somehow? I mean I understand that the strobe and sun are two totally different light sources. But hypothetically if the same post processing were to occur after the same shoot with a filler instead of strobe, would it really turn out much different?

 

[JustJazzie]

Im not an expert, but I will take a stab at this. Im sure the experts will correct me if I am wrong.

When you use a reflector (you are talking about a reflector, correct?) The reflector acts as a fill light, and the sun will always be more powerful. What if you wanted the SUN as your "fill light" but wanted your key light somewhere else? Since you can't move the sun, then you need to add a more powerful light.

 

[Designer]

Couldn't have a simple filler with a sun reflector been just as effective as a strobe softbox?

Seems reasonable, but I think it would be easier to get the correct exposure with something the photographer can control, like the strobe. With sunlight, he would have to meter, and set his exposure accordingly. Then the repeatability might become an issue. Also, the skill of whoever is holding and aiming the reflector would also enter into the equation. More aiming and more metering, leading to more variability in the shots.

 

[psreilly]

Solid points, and the person I was watching is a seasoned professional. For someone like myself bringing strobes to the beach isn't so easy, but to them it's just another day. It's a luxury I suppose because like you said constantly metering would be a pain

 

[KmH]

a sun swatter that was HUGE that was above the model creating a shadow

The photographer used the 'sun swatter' as a scrim or diffusion panel to not only diminish the harshness of the sunlight, but also to make the light source from above seem much larger so the shadows caused from light above the subject had softer more diffuse edges.

How far from the subject was the front of the softbox?

The strobe and softbox then allowed the photographer 2 advantages:
1. More control of the light direction and quality on the subject.
2. The ability to reduce the exposure of the background so there was a 'lighting ratio' such that the subject was brighter than the background, which is a way to make the subject 'pop'.