Kate’s top ten tips

1

In terms of posing people in relation to the light direction think ‘nose to light’. This will help remind you that side lighting requires the subject to turn their face towards the light source.

2

Back light almost certainly needs some kind of fill lighting. So, the ‘nose to light’ approach should act as a reminder here to consider this!

3

The contrast of an image often relates to whether the light is hard or soft. You can tell immediately by the edge of the shadows – how hard or soft is the transition from light to dark?

4

You may want to focus the light source to avoid too much spill in the rest of the frame. High and low contrast lighting can be further modified with barn doors or grids.

5

As well as the direction of the light, you need to consider the height of the source. Too high and the eyes will not be lit and cast into shadow by eyebrows.

6

Mix up your sources! I often use a combination of natural and artificial lighting – just make sure you are matching the colour (Kelvin) of each light source.

7

Remember that side light casts shadows – enhancing lines and skin texture – so remember to be kind in postproduction with skin softening/ retouching.

8

Backlight from the sun varies according to the time of year and day. Try to time it so it isn’t too high/strong or too low because you will struggle with excessive lens flare.

9

Backlight requires you to expose for the shadows so you will probably need to overexpose according to the camera’s light meter.

10

Sidelight is easiest to achieve by starting with a dark frame and introducing a controlled light source by using grids or similar.