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How to create 5 cinematic looks with 2 lights in under 3 minutes

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People always go on about 3 point lighting setups. They’re a staple amongst photographers, cinematographers, and even CG work. Or people talk about shooting with just a single light source. The two light combo, on the other hand, is often neglected. Personally, 2 lights is the route I take most often in my own work, for both photos and video.

In this two and a half minute video, Nerris from the A-Team walks us through five different lighting setups. Each uses only a pair of lights. Many of them are quite common in higher end production from commercial advertising to Hollywood cinema.

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6 ideas to help you start using color gels

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The use of color gels expands the possibilities and helps you create plenty of different looks. If you’re just discovering color gels, Ted Sim of Apurture shares eight ideas for using them. These will give you some inspiration why and how to add color to your shots. And while Ted focuses on moviemaking, you can also use gels to add color and change the mood of your photos.

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Spekular is the light that does it all for photographers

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Spekular is spectacular! Hmmm – a little over the top? Not really. I recently had the opportunity to put this new LED lighting system from Spiffy Gear to the test. Spiffy Gear are the folks that brought us the Light Blaster (buy link).

Spekular is a modular lighting system that can take on all kinds of shapes depending on your needs and this can save you money and the time needed to pack and set-up light modifiers especially when you are working on location. Spekular comes as a kit of 4 LED sections. Each section is built with aluminum and ABS plastic. The sections can be configured using the included hinged connectors or with the accessory extension kit.

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7 ways to improve your portraits with a reflector and white foamcore

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5-in-1 reflector is a super-handy tool for both bounding and diffusing the light. Arron Nace from Phlearn shows you seven different setups you can create using a single light, with the addition of a reflector or even simple foamcore. Both the reflector and the foamcore are pretty cheap, yet they are versatile and can help you create a whole lot of lighting setups. Check out some of Arron’s suggestions for using them for portrait photography, both in the studio and outside in the sunlight.

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Coloring shadows can make your photo, this is how you do it with gels

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Do you use gels to add color to your photos? Jay P. Morgan shows you four different ways to use them, but with a twist – he focuses on adding color only to the shadows. By using gels, he achieves the desired effect in camera. Some of these four methods can work for you too, and they’re great ways to minimize the time you spend editing the photos.

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Using natural light to slim down and shape people without photoshop

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In today’s modern photography there can be a stigma that almost everything seen in magazines, online or in editorial publication has been photoshopped to make the models look slimmer, softer and more shapely. What if with a few simple “in camera” steps you could minimize the amount of work that needs to be done in post-production. Here are a few simple tips to remember when shooting on location that will save you time and increase your productivity in post production.

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Use polarized lighting techniques to capture cool color effects

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Polarized light is light that has waves oscillating all in the same direction. There are two basic ways to get polarized light, from reflection or by using a filter. When light reflects off water or any other flat surface the light becomes polarized in one direction. It is common for fishermen to used polarized glasses to block the reflected polarized light (which causes glare) so they can see below the water better. The second and most common way to produce polarized light is with a polarizing filter. Polarizing filters were invented by Edwin H. Land in the 1930’s. Land developed an inexpensive process to align polarizing crystals and fix them into position with a binder. This polarizing filter became the standard for photographic and industrial processes.

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See How Lighting Position Affects The Mood and Perception of a Scene

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Lighting is hands-down one of the most important elements in visual production and has the power to single-handedly alter the mood and perception of an entire scene.  On a more macro level, lighting position, more so than diffusion or tone, is probably the most vital aspect to control.  Lighting affects our moods, distorts space and time, and alters our perceptions of what we see, which is why optical illusions can be so baffling to the human mind.

While we have previously published a very helpful portrait lighting cheat sheet, visual creator Nacho Guzman gives us a real-time look at the varied impact of light positioning on the human face in a segment of his music video for Opale.

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