Headshots with strobes

aheiden · Sep 1, 2011

These were done for a recent model call. The background I was given was a gray sheet, I threw a bare flash on it but it didn't really cover the entire frame I had to overexpose the background in LR to get an entirely white background. Would shooting into a reflective umbrella help spread the light in the background? It was a cramped space as well, so the flash was relatively close to the backdrop, if I were able to move the flash further from the backdrop that would've helped as well, correct?

The other light I used was a simple flash through an umbrella for the key. I'd like some critiques as this is my first time doing a headshot with artificial lighting.

pixilstudio · Sep 2, 2011

lighting looks pretty decent for your first go around but...
#1 is too blue and no true blacks .. look at your histogram
and #3 WB is a little off and i think its OOF

tirediron · Sep 2, 2011

^^ Nailed it.

aheiden · Sep 3, 2011

Thanks for those tips, can definitely see the difference.

Warmed it up, upped the contrast, upped the blacks, and lowered the exposure a bit. Still don't really like that blown highlight on his right eye and don't really know how to fix it.

K8-90 · Sep 3, 2011

Also, maybe edit-out the highlights (particularily on #1) and the acne/scars (#2 & #3). I also find desaturating and dodging the whites of the eyes looks good, too.