Help with lighting for digital photo portraits

I have a pair of professional photofloods that my father left me and
I'm looking for some guidance with setting them up for portraits. I
know that they should be spaced on either side of my subject, bu tI
don't know how to balance them . . . seems like I remember from a
photojournalism class I took MANY years ago that one shoulld be
approximately twice the distance from the subject as the other, but I
don't really remember the formula. And now I'm using digital instead
of film.

Anyone know of any sites I can visit for a little guidance with
lighting?

TIA

On January 01 2004, BC wrote:
I have a pair of professional photofloods that my father left me and
I'm looking for some guidance with setting them up for portraits. I
know that they should be spaced on either side of my subject, bu tI
don't know how to balance them . . . seems like I remember from a
photojournalism class I took MANY years ago that one shoulld be
approximately twice the distance from the subject as the other, but I
don't really remember the formula. And now I'm using digital instead
of film.

Anyone know of any sites I can visit for a little guidance with
lighting?

TIA

www.lightingmagic.com

Most of his photos in the photo galleries have "lighting diagrams" that
show how they were lit. Spending the money on his Studio Lighting book
is also not a bad idea. But there is a ton of free info to be had from
his website.

--
Carl Miller

---------
Using: OUI 1.9.2 Pro from http://www.ouisoft.com

Try this site it has been helpfull to me in the past.
http://www.vividlight.com/articles/412a.htm

The main light should be one stop brighter than the fill for the most
part, and they should both be on the same side of the subject. But
there is so much more...

THANK YOU. This is exactly what I was looking for.

On Wed, 31 Dec 2003 22:43:37 -0600, (Carl Miller)
wrote:

On January 01 2004, BC wrote:
I have a pair of professional photofloods that my father left me and
I'm looking for some guidance with setting them up for portraits. I
know that they should be spaced on either side of my subject, bu tI
don't know how to balance them . . . seems like I remember from a
photojournalism class I took MANY years ago that one shoulld be
approximately twice the distance from the subject as the other, but I
don't really remember the formula. And now I'm using digital instead
of film.

Anyone know of any sites I can visit for a little guidance with
lighting?

TIA

www.lightingmagic.com

Most of his photos in the photo galleries have "lighting diagrams" that
show how they were lit. Spending the money on his Studio Lighting book
is also not a bad idea. But there is a ton of free info to be had from
his website.

Thank you.

On Thu, 01 Jan 2004 08:54:49 GMT, "Vernon Petty"
wrote:

Try this site it has been helpfull to me in the past.
http://www.vividlight.com/articles/412a.htm

your library will probably have a few good books on the subject, whether
pixels or grain, lighting still works the same.


I have a pair of professional photofloods that my father left me and
I'm looking for some guidance with setting them up for portraits. I
know that they should be spaced on either side of my subject, bu tI
don't know how to balance them . . . seems like I remember from a
photojournalism class I took MANY years ago that one shoulld be
approximately twice the distance from the subject as the other, but I
don't really remember the formula. And now I'm using digital instead
of film.

Anyone know of any sites I can visit for a little guidance with
lighting?

TIA

On Thu, 01 Jan 2004 10:17:48 -0800, Randall Ainsworth
wrote:

The main light should be one stop brighter than the fill for the most
part, and they should both be on the same side of the subject. But
there is so much more...

That's right, but there's so much more. And there are no hard and
fast rules, either. Fortunately there are lots of great books and
websites that have lighting diagrams to help in arranging lamps.

Actually hot lamps are great for digital photography, since you don't
have the critical color demands of color film to deal with (and that
usually means using flash). The most impressive glamour portraits of
all time were done by the great Hollywood photographers that used
hotlights exclusively, and with large format cameras. They'd use
upwards of five lights, and the settings and exposures were very
deliberate. I found a really interesting view on this type of
photography from buying the videotape "Hollywood Style" by Alexander
and also Hurrell's "Hollywood Portraits." These studies of classic
hollywood photography will really be an inspiration to achieve a
glamorous quality in your portraiture. Interestingly these were
almost entirely lit by fresnel spotlights, not big softboxes or
diffused light sources.

Actually hot lamps are great for digital photography, since you don't
have the critical color demands of color film to deal with (and that
usually means using flash). The most impressive glamour portraits of
all time were done by the great Hollywood photographers that used
hotlights exclusively, and with large format cameras. They'd use
upwards of five lights, and the settings and exposures were very
deliberate. I found a really interesting view on this type of
photography from buying the videotape "Hollywood Style" by Alexander
and also Hurrell's "Hollywood Portraits." These studies of classic
hollywood photography will really be an inspiration to achieve a
glamorous quality in your portraiture. Interestingly these were
almost entirely lit by fresnel spotlights, not big softboxes or
diffused light sources.

Average people off the street can't handle that type of lighting.
You've gotta deal with zits and wrinkles and everything. Plus, the
style looks out of date.

On Wed, 04 Feb 2004 21:22:32 -0800, Randall Ainsworth
wrote:

Actually hot lamps are great for digital photography, since you don't
have the critical color demands of color film to deal with (and that
usually means using flash). The most impressive glamour portraits of
all time were done by the great Hollywood photographers that used
hotlights exclusively, and with large format cameras. They'd use
upwards of five lights, and the settings and exposures were very
deliberate. I found a really interesting view on this type of
photography from buying the videotape "Hollywood Style" by Alexander
and also Hurrell's "Hollywood Portraits." These studies of classic
hollywood photography will really be an inspiration to achieve a
glamorous quality in your portraiture. Interestingly these were
almost entirely lit by fresnel spotlights, not big softboxes or
diffused light sources.

Average people off the street can't handle that type of lighting.
You've gotta deal with zits and wrinkles and everything. Plus, the
style looks out of date.

Yes, it looks out of date, that's true. Damn it, I love it so...