Umbrella help please...

[JeffieLove]

Okay, so I did my studio shoot with my daughter...

Here's my lighting set up (suggested by Kundalini):

The hair light (camera left in back) is snooted. Everything else is as it looks. Large softbox to camera right in back of subject, reflective umbrella to camera right in front of subject.

The initial idea was to have the subject facing the umbrella and looking at me with just her eyes. Well, my daughter didn't understand this.

So, here is my result:

And here is my question:

What could I have done or changed in order to get better catch lights in her eyes?

 

[eric-holmes]

How far is the umbrella from the subject? I could only suggest moving it closer and making it a shoot-through as opposed to a reflective.

 

[Dominantly]

I wonder what the benefit is of placing both lights on the same side of her body, IE the soft box and umbrella. It appears to have given you some hot spots, but that could have been adjusted with power I would assume.

For atchlights, I would start with having her chin up "basking" in the light from the umbrella, and bringing it closer in. It's probably safe to say the further you put the light source, the smaller the reflection will be in her eye.

 

[kundalini]

Sarah, I think you did good for a first try at a new light arrangement. I can only imagine trying to get your daughter into position as I suggested. Hell, I have a 50 year old GF that can't take direction.

I believe that had she raised her chin and pointed her nose towards the fill light, you would've gotten the catch lights. Also by turning her body away from the main light at 45° to the camera, you would create a better depth in the transition from lit to shadowed side.

What were your lighting ratios?

One small detail........ the strap on her right shoulder.

 

[JeffieLove]

Sarah, I think you did good for a first try at a new light arrangement. I can only imagine trying to get your daughter into position as I suggested. Hell, I have a 50 year old GF that can't take direction.

I believe that had she raised her chin and pointed her nose towards the fill light, you would've gotten the catch lights. Also by turning her body away from the main light at 45° to the camera, you would create a better depth in the transition from lit to shadowed side.

What were your lighting ratios?

One small detail........ the strap on her right shoulder.

Yeah I noticed the strap after the shoot as well. I think I can take care of that in post though...

What do you mean by lighting ratios? I don't remember the EXACT settings on my strobes, but the umbrella light and the snooted light were both 800w lights and the softbox light was a 1200w light.

 

[Big Mike]

The first thing to catch my eye, was that the 'hair' light on the left side, is catching her nose...usually you want to avoid that.

Also, the biggest issue is the lack of light in her eyes. Not just catch lights, but overall, here eyes just aren't getting enough light. Since she is facing to our left, it would probably have worked better if the umbrella was on your left. (but then she probably would have looked to your right )

What do you mean by lighting ratios?

Lighting ratios are the difference between the bright areas and the shadow areas (usually on a model's face). There really aren't hard rules, but you could probably find a chart or list somewhere, that might say that a 1:2 or 1:3 is good for basic portraits, kids & women. 1:4 & 1:5 are more edgy and 1:8 is down right dramatic.

The best way to determine your ratio, is with a light/flash meter.