Feeling Like My Portraits are a Bit Flat - Please advise!

[PeK77]

Hi gang!
I shot the photo below using 2 umbrellas and it seems to me to be a bit flat as far as lighting goes - do you agree?

Is this because the umbrellas are spreading out the light evenly across the whole scene? I do have a small soft box and am thinking about trying that with a bounce card.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Bossy]

Lighting can be what you want it to be, I think it looks ok.

I believe the further back the lighting is, the more flat it will be, for higher contrast go in closer,. But its been awhile since Ive worked with a light kit so I could be remembering that wrong.

Practice with a teddy beAr, see what set ups create what effects, you know?

 

[Designer]

Yes. Since you have two lights, make one your "key" light, and the other the "fill" light.

Also, perhaps select a plainer chair or some other prop, as this chair is distracting.

 

[e.rose]

Did you use one umbrella on each side? I would try playing with turning the power down a little on one to them, so it acts more like a fill, rather than keeping them the same power/distance.

 

[PeK77]

Lighting can be what you want it to be, I think it looks ok.

Thanks, Bossy! I dig the end result - I just see so many super sharp awesome photos that I'd love to be able to achieve the same.
I guess experimenting is the best way to work all of this out. Its a 2 light setup - maybe i'll try to add a 3rd for the head highlight as well.

 

[PeK77]

Yes. Since you have two lights, make one your "key" light, and the other the "fill" light.

Also, perhaps select a plainer chair or some other prop, as this chair is distracting.

Thanks, Designer. I wanted to add that he was sitting in the chair (as it was a gift) and he struck this pose so I had to go with it. Thought it was a cool pic.

 

[PeK77]

Did you use one umbrella on each side? I would try playing with turning the power down a little on one to them, so it acts more like a fill, rather than keeping them the same power/distance.

For the record, I should know better. Ha ha ha. This was a tighter space - the last time I got a much better result I was able to move the fill light back quite a bit more.

 

[e.rose]

For the record, I should know better. Ha ha ha. This was a tighter space - the last time I got a much better result I was able to move the fill light back quite a bit more.

Are you using variable power lights? Because if not, you wouldn't need more room to use it, you just need to turn the power down, haha.

 

[PeK77]

For the record, I should know better. Ha ha ha. This was a tighter space - the last time I got a much better result I was able to move the fill light back quite a bit more.

Are you using variable power lights? Because if not, you wouldn't need more room to use it, you just need to turn the power down, haha.

I am - I thought there was a significant enough setting difference when I was shooting and it looked nice through the viewfinder. I'm going to make it a rule to allow more space to work from now on. Working in such a tight space is not fun.

 

[Braineack]

moving the light back will make it a small light source...

 

[Designer]

Yup. Just as e.rose wrote; turn the power down on the fill light, don't move it.

A hair light can be quite fetching, but with children, it is difficult to get them to hold still at just the right place under the hair light.

 

[PeK77]

Yup. Just as e.rose wrote; turn the power down on the fill light, don't move it.

A hair light can be quite fetching, but with children, it is difficult to get them to hold still at just the right place under the hair light.

This is true. I have enough trouble keeping them in focus when I choose a small DOF.

Have a great day, guys!

 

[Derrel]

Yes, the lighting effect you achieved is pretty "flat"...soft, even lighting, with minimal shadows. Using two umbrellas (or two light sources) is one way to create low-contrast lighting that does not show a lot of texture. A classic method is over/under lighting, with one main light source above the lens axis, and a second light right below, which basically "fills in" the small micro-shadows created by the main light source on top; this works at the macro- and micro-contrast levels, and it's an old, old way to light people to minimize skin texture so as to alleviate the need to do a lot (or any) retouching or airbrushing. Same with the classic side-by-side, double-light source method, which is useful when photographing older people who have a lot of skin wrinkles that do NOT need "defining".

Toddlers of this age often have virtually perfect skin. If you are shooting in a smallish, low-ceilinged place, like say a room with 8 foot high ceilings, a pair of umbrellas can create a big wall of light, but they can also create a lot of what's called ambient spill, which bounces off the ceiling and walls and such, and creates a very high,high level of fill-in lighting. I've seen this many times with photos of infants and toddlers, who are literally, very "small subjects", smaller even than a smallish umbrella. If you want more shadowing, and more texture, and more 3-dimensional lighting on little kids, ditch the second umbrella in this type of situation. I mention "the situation", because say, in an apartment living room as opposed to say, a high school gymnasium, a single 42-inch umbrella in the apartment acts like a relatively large light source, whereas in a gymnasium, there is almost zero fill light created from ambient spill.

 

[The_Traveler]

A bit of sharpening o raise the local area contrast and I think it looks better

 

[PeK77]

A bit of sharpening o raise the local area contrast and I think it looks better

Hi Traveler,
What kind of sharpening tool did you use? Also, was it just a basic contrast adjustment to the whole image?

Thanks in advance!