Photography News Issue 29

Photography News Issue 29 absolutephoto.com

Technique 24

Lighting academy Spotlighting flash effects Channel the light and put your subject centre stage with these easy tips

Spotlight accessories

Light needs to be restricted in some way to form a spot, but the size of that spot varies depending on the type of modifier used, the zoom setting (if you’re using a speedlight with a zoomable head), and the distance between

the light and the subject. Most of the time you’ll need some sort of light shaper to force the light into shape; fortunately these exist to fit any shape light you might be using. We used a MagMod

Basic Speedlight Modifier Kit (£71.96); the kit includes a MagGrip silicone rubber mount that stretches over the speedlight’s head, and to this the honeycomb MagGrid is attached (the kit comes with a filter holder and gels).

Most modifiers have their effect described by an angle, so on the grids (honeycombs), spill-kills or snoots that you’d use to channel light, you’ll see ratings like 15° or 30°. This angle of illumination will depend on the distance from the light to the object it’s hitting, but broadly, the lower the number, the lower the spread and therefore the tighter the spot. So, a grid with a 30° angle will have a tighter spread than a 40° grid. Snoots offer even smaller spreads of light, and the MagSnoot (£39.96), which fits onto the MagGrip, provides four settings thanks to its clever folding design, 12.5°, 15°, 20° and 40°. essentialphoto.co.uk

Left Using an accessory flashgun on the camera, along with a grid, can provide striking and stylish portraits.

gives a hard, direct look which is quite striking, so it suits fashion subjects and contemporary styles. The methods used can of course be applied to spotlighting from any position; spotlighting from off-camera flash works in the sameway. Cut down to size Whatever type of flashyou’reusing, the first step increatingaspotlighteffectistochannelthelight, cutting its spread right downand focusing it into a tightened beam. However, given that much of the time photographers are looking to diffuse and soften light to make it more flattering, you might not have the required modifiers to hand straightaway; for instance, many lighting kits come with umbrellas and softbox diffusers, but they lack the gear for more specialised effects. If you’re using studio-style flash heads they will likely come with spill-kill reflectors included, and while those will direct the light, they’re not focused enough on their own to make a spot as they still spread the light widely. Placing a grid (or honeycomb) in the reflector cuts down the light to an angle more suited for spotlighting. Grids can be fitted to speedlights, creating the same effect, which is what we did for the images in thismonth’sLightingAcademy, adding a MagGrid 40° honeycomb to our flash.

Words by Kingsley Singleton Pictures by Kingsley Singleton &Will Cheung

Flash at 24mm zoom setting, with grid

Flash at 105mm zoom setting, with grid

Spotlighting is a great style to applywhen you’re looking to create a dramatic portrait. Of course, that’s not really surprising considering that most of the time we see spotlighting in dramatic productions, film, theatre or stage lighting, where the effect is used to isolate the subject and give them impact. It could be an actor, a singer or a dancer, but the purpose is the same. Tocreateaspot,thelightfromyourflashneeds to be restricted and directed, so that it strikes only the subject, and/or the area immediately around them, leaving the rest of the scene unlit (or certainly darker than the focal point where the spot is directed). In that way high contrast is achieved across the frame and the light can be directed exactly where it’s required. With a very small spot it’s also possible to light only part of the subject, for instance the eyes; or the restricted light can be used from behind the subject to form a hairlight. It can even be used on the background itself while the subject is lit separately (see panel). In this month’s Lighting Academy we’ve created a spotlighting effect by modifying an accessory flashgunmountedonthecamera. This

Flash at 24mm zoom setting, no grid

Flash at 105mm zoom setting, no grid

Above To showhowa grid and the zooming function of the flash can affect the light, we shot a plainwall with a 50mm lens on a full-frame body at 3ft. Without the grid, the difference in zoom is clear, with the 105mm’s spread clearly vignetted. It alsomakes a differencewith the grid fitted, with the 24mmsettingmore even and slightly textured.