high-key portrait w/ B&W

I'd like to know how to make a "high-key" portrait using traditional B&W
film and darkroom techniques. I only have a white wall and a
strobe/reflector. I also have some cheap $2 hardware-store light fixtures.

I know that I need to make sure the white wall is blown. Should I try to
provide extra lighting to the white wall (with standard light bulbs) and
then overexpose? Should I extend development as well to raise the shadow
levels even more?

Thanks,
M&M

The background should be 2 stops brigher than the subject.

In article ,
M&M says...

I'd like to know how to make a "high-key" portrait
using traditional B&W film and darkroom techniques.

Easy. First of all you should have little to no
dark tones in your image. Blondes work better than
dark haired people. White clothes, white walls,
white furniture, and a soft lighting that creates
as little hard shadows as possible.

The often heard advice to "blow out" a background
or to overexpose is pure rubbish. A high key shot has
the majority of tonal values in the right third
of the histogram, flat, soft lighting and little
to no visible shadows.

Expose correct (meaning you don't let the camera
meter decide for you), zone system helps.

Develop like normal, and print like normal.
Unless you do something wrong, the proper
lighting and camera setting should enable you
to print high key shots with the same settings
as low key shots. Do your homework before and
set camera and lights right, then you don't have
to fumble around in the lab.

--
Michael Quack

http://www.photoquack.de/glamour/1.htm
http://www.photoquack.de/fashion/1.htm

The background should be 2 stops brigher than the subject.

You may risk lens flare with a 2 stop brighter background. I do all my high key
at 1/3 stop over the mainlight. Works perfectly with no lens flare. ie: loss
of contrast.

The background should be 2 stops brigher than the subject.

You may risk lens flare with a 2 stop brighter background. I do all my high
key
at 1/3 stop over the mainlight. Works perfectly with no lens flare. ie: loss
of contrast.

Anything less than 2 stops and it won't be white but gray, more than 2
stops and you blow it out.

I'd like to know how to make a "high-key" portrait using traditional B&W
film and darkroom techniques. I only have a white wall and a
strobe/reflector. I also have some cheap $2 hardware-store light
fixtures.

I know that I need to make sure the white wall is blown. Should I try to
provide extra lighting to the white wall (with standard light bulbs) and
then overexpose? Should I extend development as well to raise the shadow
levels even more?


You want a smooth wash of light from one end to the other. fall off in one
corner or side will cause a few irritiations when printing, especially if
you ever shoot color.

I used to bounce a couple heads into the upper side walls of the studio,
sorta like making the walls and ceiling a huge umbrella. Ideally you would
have four lights crossing the background, just like lighting art work with
heads all around.

I had plenty of room to move the subject away from the wall.

Light your subject. It seems folks think that they don't need much light
cause of all the spill bouncing off the back, probably the same folks who
expect the spill from their lights to light up a dark background on low key
images.

Anything less than 2 stops and it won't be white but gray

simply not true.

If you take a incident reading at the dimmest portion of your white background,
and maintain this to be 1/3 of a stop over your mainlight, you will get a pure
white background. You don't need multiple flash heads on the background. I use
one or two depending on the size of the group. It is not necessary to have your
white background absolutely evenly lit, variations of 1/3 of stop are fine.
What is important is that your dimmest area needs to be 1/3 F-stop over your
mainlight. It works everytime. Now, if you are using a reflective meter..that's
a different story.

BTW this technique works with color or B&W

In article ,
Randall Ainsworth says...

The background should be 2 stops brigher than the subject.

Nope. Just dead on plus 1/3.

Anything less than 2 stops and it won't be white but gray,

If it is gray than it is underexposed. Incident reading
by a pro versus (P)rainless mode and matrix image ruining.

--
Michael Quack

http://www.photoquack.de/glamour/1.htm
http://www.photoquack.de/fashion/1.htm

On Sat, 24 Jan 2004 21:16:37 -0800, Randall Ainsworth
wrote:

The background should be 2 stops brigher than the subject.

You may risk lens flare with a 2 stop brighter background. I do all my high
key
at 1/3 stop over the mainlight. Works perfectly with no lens flare. ie: loss
of contrast.

Anything less than 2 stops and it won't be white but gray, more than 2
stops and you blow it out.

Let's not forget that it's possible to make a high-key portrait using
a dark background as well. It's all a matter of clothing and
lighting.

The only problem with a 2 stop difference is kickback onto your subject. It
is most notable in the hair. I have the room and go 1.5 to 2 stops with
great results. If I go a third or even a half hotter the background just
isn't clean enough for me. I have never gotten lens flare at all. I keep
the background even with 2 lights and no more than 1 or 2 tenths variance
across the whole background. My subjects are on a white platform that has
just enough spill to wipe out the edge. Hope this helps. "KBob"
wrote in message
...
On Sat, 24 Jan 2004 21:16:37 -0800, Randall Ainsworth
wrote:

The background should be 2 stops brigher than the subject.

You may risk lens flare with a 2 stop brighter background. I do all my
high
key
at 1/3 stop over the mainlight. Works perfectly with no lens flare.
ie: loss
of contrast.

Anything less than 2 stops and it won't be white but gray, more than 2
stops and you blow it out.

Let's not forget that it's possible to make a high-key portrait using
a dark background as well. It's all a matter of clothing and
lighting.