Studio Lighting for Headshots – Tutorial

Or, The Other Money Shot

There are at least as many ways to shoot a headshot as there are ways to skin a cat.  We won’t go into WHY someone would want to skin a cat, but I can tell you why people would want to shoot headshots.  This is a great basic skill to have in your repertoire.  Think of it as The Little Black Dress of photography.

It’s amazing at all the different types of people and professions who need headshots; realtors, editors, authors, entertainers, models, CEOs, dancers, moguls, rock stars, travel agents, ministers, entrepreneurs, business owners, internet marketers and even the occasional porn star, just to name a few. Being able to shoot reliable, polished headshots can bring in infusions of cash, and hey, who doesn’t like a little infusion, from time to time?

Studio Lighting for Headshots - Photography Tutorial[…]

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How To Photograph Large Groups in the Studio

This past weekend I had the COMPLETE pleasure of working with a group of people so warm, vibrant and energetic I may be walking on cloud nine for weeks to come.   It’s shoots like this that keep me highly enthusiatic about photography in general.   I really do have a dream ‘job’.

I could take this post in any number of directions. I could talk about bold color in portraiture, how to transform virtually any place into a photography studio, how to work with children of varying ages or how to work with a larger group of people. Let’s roll with the last one.

How to Photograph Large Groups in the Studio - Photography Tutorial

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Using Bold Color in Portraiture – Tips and Techniques

Do not be afraid. Come on in. Shut the door behind you. Put on your shades, if need be. Throw caution to the wind as you enter the High Color Zone. Two of my absolute favorite things in life are color and photography.  Let’s combine them and see what happens.

There are several ways you can create a rich, saturated backdrop. Many of them involve multiple light heads, specialty brackets and hardware, and colored gels. I will focus on the easiest and most economical way to do it, which is with a basic, one light set up. You don’t need to light your background and can just let the light fall off. This will render your backgrounds richly saturated. You can view the basic lighting set up in my Photographing Young Children with Low-Key Lighting tutorial and view suggestions and links in How To Set Up A Photo Booth In Your Home.

Using Bold Color in Portraiture - Tips and Techniques

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How To Set Up A Photo Booth In Your Home

Or, How To Set Up A Photography Studio In A Small Space

This tutorial is for those of you who would like to go a step further in polishing your photography skills.

In this tutorial, I will give you a list of all the items you will need to set up a small, functional photo booth in your home.  What is a photo booth?

A picture is worth a thousand words.

How to Set up a Photo Booth in Your Home

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Low Key Portrait Lighting Tutorial

Studio Lighting for Small Spaces – Part 2

In my last post I discussed a classic four light, high key on white, lighting setup.

“But Deborah,” you say, “I don’t have four lights.  Or three.  Or really, even two.  I just have the one.”  No problem.  You’re perfectly outfitted to do a beautiful, classic low-key lighting setup.  Your camera’s dedicated flash unit could even be set up off-camera to achieve this result.

Low key portrait lighting tutorial.

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High Key Portrait Lighting Tutorial

Studio Lighting for Small Spaces – Part 1

This is the first in a series of lighting tutorials. I think it’s a good idea to understand the basics of a thing. Learn the rules first and then break them with impunity later.

I offer this lesson freely from the bottom of my heart to the world at large, because frankly, bad lighting makes me cranky.

I have been setting up functioning, working studios in sometimes surprisingly small spaces over the span of two decades. My last camera room measured approximately 12’x16’. This lighting ‘recipe’ worked great there:

High Key Lighting Tutorial

What is high key lighting?[…]

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