Strobist question

[TeomanDemirhan]

Hello, I'm slightly new to strobist photography and I want to fit more space in the photo. But if I push the umbrella back, the shadows are harsher than before. Best light comes when it is 15-20 cm away from subject. If I take one photo with lightstand than get rid of the lightstand and take another shot, and photoshop the subject to the other photo, would it work? I mean do photographers use this technique or something else? Thank you. (I'm sorry if there is a mistake, not native speaker.)

 

[tirediron]

It sounds like it would work, yes, but it also sounds like a lot of work. What is it about the situation that causes the problem when the light is the optimal 15-20cm away?

 

[TeomanDemirhan]

When the umbrella is 15-20 cm away, it gives light just the way I want. When I try to compose and I push back the umbrella, the light just becomes harsher

 

[Braineack]

I quite often have to remove rouge modifiers from my images.

 

[pixmedic]

the size of the diffuser can make a difference as well.
what size umbrellas are you working with?
i can get softer lighting with my 43" brollys farther back than i can with my 36" umbrellas.
the smaller modifiers are fine when i can get right up on top of the subject, but when the lighting has to be farther back, the larger diffusers work better.

 

[Buckster]

The problem with taking a shot of a human, moving the light, and then taking another shot, is that they will move between shots, and the two shots will then require extra work in Photoshop to get them lined up and blended in. In addition, the light falloff will not naturally blend and you'll end up doing even more work trying to make that happen.

Your best bet is to get a larger modifier that covers as much of the model as you want or need to cover in one shot, or add a second light and modifier to fill in the problem area.

If you're just talking about using photoshop to remove the light and stand, then it can work well as long as the two shots have the same lighting on the background behind the subject. If one is affected by the light you're removing and the other doesn't, then you're going to have to blend them together so they look right.

 

[TeomanDemirhan]

I am using a 42 inch umbrella.

 

[pixmedic]

I am using a 42 inch umbrella.

well, i dont know why you cant move the flash back more and still get good light.
i do 2 person portraits with the 36" umbrellas 30+/- cm away with no problems.
it could be a matter of you needing to adjust the flash power for the distance.
Or you could be getting light spillover...although i wouldn't think so on a 42" umbrella.

how many people are you trying to fit in?
what distance do you think you need?

 

[TeomanDemirhan]

I shoot with 70-200 mm lens, I want to get some space in the shoulders so it doesnt seem compressed. 2 people btw.

 

[Forkie]

When you move the umbrella back, the light source becomes smaller relative to your subject. The smaller the light source relative to your subject, the harsher the shadows become. If you want to move your light further back you'll need a bigger umbrella, or you could put some sort of diffusion in front of the umbrella to soften it further. Some tracing paper in a frame would work. Or you could try firing the strobe away from your subject and bounce it back with a large sheet of paper, card, plasterboard, polystyrene, something like that.

 

[WayneF]

The rule of thumb (for portraits) is that a 42" umbrella can properly (softly) illuminate a 42" area from about 42" inches. That is about 106 cm. You seem to want it extremely closer, 7 inches? I'm not sure I understand your numbers correctly?

Also not sure how well the rule holds up for a large umbrella at only 7 inches (seems past the point of diminishing returns), but normally, if you want a similar lighting from farther away, then you need a larger umbrella.

 

[Derrel]

At 15 to 20 centimeters distance, the rate of light fall off is very rapid. I am having a hard time understanding the OP's logic in this post....something does not seem quite right here to me. More details, more information might be helpful.

 

[Designer]

TeomanDemirh; can you post an example?

 

[TeomanDemirhan]

I am truthfully sorry, I couldn't express myself. But Forkie understood what I meant. I got my answer, thank you

 

[qleak]

If your 43" umbrella is acting like a smaller light source then you probably are setting the flash up too close to it. Do a test flash, does it light up the entire umbrella or just a portion of it?