Natural (Window) Light as Primary Source

[kirbym2]

Hi All,

Question re subject placement relative to light source. I know this can be subjective, so generally speaking what do you do? Would you recommend positioning the subject directly in front of the window, perhaps on a 45 degree angle, or even a 90 degree angle? This is for a newborn shoot. I recognize that I may need a reflector to even things out, just not sure where to position the subject to get the most flattering look. Also, my thought on a 45 or 90 degree angle would be to position the baby with its head towards the window. Does this sound right?

This is what I'm envisioning

Subject
x
Window [ ( Reflector

Camera o


How would you position things?

Thanks!

 

[kirbym2]

Clearly my diagram didn't come out right... I'll leave that to the experts... and the heart in the title... no idea.

Thanks!

 

[kundalini]

Rembrandt painted by a North facing window. Perhaps look and study some of his work.

 

[GeorgieGirl]

Not sure how old the baby is or if the eyes will be open, but if eyes are open you might want a little catch in them....so I'd say face baby to the window to accomplish capturing that.

 

[KmH]

Lighting is lighting.

In other words, it doesn't matter if your main light is a window, or a studio strobe and a softbox, or a speedlight, it's still your main light and the basic principles of photographic lighting still apply.

North facing windows give more consistant light throughout the day, because the Sun can never shine directly into the window (in the nothern hemisphere).

Until one studies the principles of photographic lighting it all remains a mystery.

 

[gsgary]

Just make sure you keep an eye on your shutter speed because that is one of the biggest mistakes i see on here, you will probably have to shoot at ISO400 to get a nice shutter speed to stop camera shake

 

[KmH]

Some 'principles of lighting' resources:

Digital Photography Lighting - The Basic Principles

Light Science and Magic, Fourth Edition: An Introduction to Photographic Lighting

The Art of Photographic Lighting (English and English Edition)

 

[kirbym2]

@gsgary - what shutter speed would you recommend to control camera shake and blur? I was going into this thinking 1/250, but maybe I can get away with a little slower?

 

[KmH]

The rule of thumb for camera shake is 1/focal length.

If the lens focal length is 50 mm, you don't want to go below 1/50 shutter speed. If the focal length is 200 mm, you don't want to go below 1/200 shutter speed.

For subject motion blur 1/250 will stop slight subject motion. For things like action sports 1/500 is about the minimum for stopping subject motion.

A speedlight at full power has a flash duration of about 1/1000, and at less than full power the duration of the flash gets even shorter. A Nikon SB-800's flash duration at 1/16 power is 1/11,000 of a second.

Using strobed light has many, many technical and artistic advantages over using available light.

 

[gsgary]

The rule of thumb for camera shake is 1/focal length.

If the lens focal length is 50 mm, you don't want to go below 1/50 shutter speed. If the focal length is 200 mm, you don't want to go below 1/200 shutter speed.

For subject motion blur 1/250 will stop slight subject motion. For things like action sports 1/500 is about the minimum for stopping subject motion.

A speedlight at full power has a flash duration of about 1/1000, and at less than full power the duration of the flash gets even shorter. A Nikon SB-800's flash duration at 1/16 power is 1/11,000 of a second.

Using strobed light has many, many technical and artistic advantages over using available light.

Thankyou, saved me a job :thumbup:

 

[kirbym2]

Awesome. Thanks for the advice. I know lighting is the key, but I always cast additional lighting aside with excuses like setup time, getting the right equipment, getting the right flash output, etc. I'll take a look at your links. Here's hoping I get a little confidence in that department.

 

[bazooka]

Keep in mind that 1/shutter speed is the minimum IF you practice good stability practices. You also have to include your crop factor if you have one. So a 50mm on a Canon 1.6 crop, you need minimum 1/80 IF you can shoot with good stability. Of course, some people in some situations can handhold slower than 1/ss, but this is the general rule.

 

[KmH]

Actually, if you have really good camera handeling skills you can do less than 1/focal length