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Check out this amazing one-light portrait setup you’ve probably never even considered

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Portrait photographer Jiggie Alejandrino is a big fan of shooting with just a single light for portraits. He’s already shown us some pretty cool and dramatic one-light setups in the last few months. But now he’s back with a very interesting setup that most of have probably never even considered. And that’s bringing the softbox overhead pointing straight down.

It’s certainly not something I’ve usually considered. At least, not for portraits. It’s a technique I use often for small products to simulate a big cloudy sky, but with larger subjects like people, that cast some pretty obvious shadows, how well does it work? Well, looking at Jiggie’s demonstration, it works pretty well!

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Watch these four awesome one-light portrait setups in just 10 minutes

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Most of us end up getting so bogged down with gear at some point that it can be difficult to choose exactly what gear we’re going to want to take to a session – especially when it comes to lighting. I’m sure I’m not the only one whose bags are comprised of 20% gear we’ll use and 80% “just in case” gear that we hardly ever use.

Sometimes, though, it’s nice to bring it down to the bare basics, carry less gear, and keep things simple with just one light. And for those just starting out, perhaps one light is all you may have. But fear not! In this video, photographer John Gress walks us through four very effective lighting setups that each use only a single light.

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How to turn one light into several for dramatic black and white portraits

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When it comes to using just a single light source in the studio, there is a lot of great content out there, and we’ve covered some of it here on DIYP before. Often, when you want one light to look like several, though, you usually need to think about multiple shots and compositing in post – whether it be for stills or video. But you don’t have to.

Photographer Jiggie Alejandrino recently showed us one way to shoot dramatic portraits with just one light but now he’s back again with a new tutorial. This one adds even more drama and produces some very impressive results that most people would guess used at least two or three lights. But nope, he just uses one speedlight for these.

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How to photograph artwork like a pro with just one light

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Scanning artwork certainly has its advantages, but it also has its limitations. Brushstrokes can benefit from a more unidirectional light source. Photographing in a controlled environment allows for fine-tuning of texture and shadows.

Until the past few years, photographing artwork required either a larger sensor or stitching together multiple shots to get printable resolution. With the advent of pixel shift technology in full frame cameras, medium and some larger artwork can be reproduced allowing for better workflow and hence, better value.

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These are the best and the worst ways to use a single-light setup

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Although a single light doesn’t seem like much, there’s a lot you can do with it. From some more traditional setups to unusual horror setups, a single light can really be extremely versatile. In this video, Manny Ortiz will show you the best, but also the worst ways for using a single-light setup in only three minutes.

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How to make just a single light look like many for photos and video

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For some of us, especially when we’re just starting out, we’re limited on gear. Maybe we can only afford a single light or perhaps we can afford more, but we want to experiment with just one before laying down a huge amount of cash. Either way, having just a single light for our work is not uncommon. It is possible to make one light look like many though.

In this video, filmmaker Brandon Li shows us a technique for multiplying a single light using multiple takes and compositing. It’s a technique that we’ve seen used a lot in photography, particularly product photography, but not that often with video – especially when you’ve got a moving camera.

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Learn three dramatic portrait lighting setups with just a single speedlight and a 5-in-1 reflector

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The last few months have been a challenging time for photographers the world over. Some are now able to start getting back out and trying to lead somewhat of a “normal” life but others are still stuck at home. Whatever your case may be, many of us have somebody we can still point a camera at, and shooting portraits is a great way to practice and improve your skills when you can’t shoot your normal subjects.

While many portrait photographers will have a whole ton of lighting gear, many other photographers don’t. In this video, portrait and wedding photographer Jiggie Alejandrino shows us three very effective lighting setups we can do with just a single speedlight and an inexpensive 5-in-1 reflector.

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How to turn your single light into a multi-light setup… sort of

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If you don’t own several strobes or simply don’t feel like making complicated lighting setups, you can use just one light and still get professional shots. In fact, you can turn this single light into two, three or even more lights. Well – kind of. It’s pretty simple, but you’ll need some Photoshop magic. In this video from Adorama, Gavin Hoey will show you how.

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How to shoot professional editorial portraits with only one or two lights

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You may think that a single light isn’t enough to shoot magazine-worthy and professional-looking editorial portraits. But in this video, Elaine Torres shows you how to pull it off. She demonstrates a photo shoot with a single light and a two-light setup, so you can pull it off in a small studio or even at home.

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Here’s how to light a product with only one or two lights

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Light is one of the key elements of photography, and product photography is no exception. If you’re just starting out, it’s certainly good to learn how to work with light and get the look you want. In this video, Jay P Morgan shows you how to create simple lighting setups with just one or two lights and how to control the light so that you achieve different results.

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