Low-light portrait shooting skills

Lead: Next, aiming at the easy-to-use indoor high-contrast low-light environment and outdoor diffuse low-light environment, put forward shooting suggestions and share works. Next, we will tell you how to use these shooting techniques to take good photos in the world of low-light portrait photography.

Dare to challenge the low light environment!

There are many weak light environments and the light changes greatly. The day and night conditions are different, so are the indoor and outdoor conditions. A slightly brighter day will be introduced below. In terms of equipment preparation, the higher the available ISO of the camera, the better. The larger the aperture of the lens, the better. If possible, try to shoot with RAW files, and the space can be larger later. For photographers, the steadier the hand, the higher the success rate. If you feel that you are not stable enough, remember to find something nearby to support your hand and improve your chances of success.

Suggested equipment

Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II, Nikon D700 or above.

Lens: large aperture lens, each system has a lens with a focal length of 50mm/ 1.4, and the price is relatively flat. You might as well start with this shot.

Basic skills of low-light photography-learn to measure light.

When shooting portraits in low light environment, it is suggested that the average metering mode should be taken as the main metering mode first. Why is this suggestion? Because if you use spot metering or center focusing metering, the measured aperture shutter value will be extreme, which will easily lead to overexposure or underexposure of the picture. For example, if the background of the picture is dark (when the sky is dark), use spot metering or central key metering to shoot. When the metering position is on the face, the metering value may be what we want. If the light spot happens to be in the background, then this face must be overexposed. On the contrary, if the background of the picture is white (rainy or foggy), a silhouette will be taken. If it is a photo taken by average photometry, although the face will be underexposed, the general RAW file can add or subtract 1~2 from the photo EV without distortion. If the metering error can at least be remedied, the later stage will be easy. If you want to get the correct exposure value when shooting, you must shoot in M mode.

When the proportion of light and dark in the picture is not much different, P mode combined with average metering can mostly get good shooting results.

Conquer low light with full manual and P mode

In the weak light environment, the distribution of light varies greatly, so it is suggested to use M mode. Many novices will have inexplicable fear when they encounter M mode, and they don't know how to set the aperture shutter. Actually, it's not difficult at all. The low light environment will probably be a slow shutter. We can test our own safety shutter value first. We can set the shutter to 1/30 seconds when the hand is not shaking, and115 seconds when the hand is steady.

Then, after using the TV shutter premise mode to set the shutter to its own safe shutter value, the photographer can measure the light to obtain the required aperture value, and can adjust it according to the situation if it is too bright or too dark. If the aperture value obtained after photometry is small, the aperture can be enlarged to moderately increase the shutter speed, and it is not necessary to keep the shutter value at a slow shutter all the time. The above situation only provides a way, remember that you can be flexible.

If the scene light changes constantly, it may be too late to adjust with M mode. You can use P mode to add and subtract EV exposure compensation to get a more correct aperture shutter value, but with P mode, the combination of aperture shutters may change constantly. Exposure compensation needs to be readjusted whenever the composition or shooting position changes. I suggest you check your photos every few days, so the error will not be too big. Although it is troublesome to operate, it is a safe way to operate in the harsh environment with changing light.

Use P mode to check the results every few shots, and adjust the exposure compensation appropriately.

Gray density bar (1 1 step)

Midtones are just colors that are neither too dark nor too bright. If this color is desaturated, it will turn into gray with moderate concentration. The importance of intermediate tone is closely related to the camera metering method. Because most people's subjects are mainly portraits and landscapes, and the ratio of reflected light between skin color and green plants is about 18%, which is about five orders, so the camera exposure meter also takes the reflectance of the subject as this. Finding the middle tone of photometry is the basis of learning accurate exposure.

Overcome bad weather and dark outdoor environment

In addition to the indoor environment in Gao Fancha, there is another kind of dark light during the day, which is in the dark outdoor environment. Such as heavy rain, fog or when it is going to rain. At this time, it is difficult for the naked eye to feel the directionality of light. When we find the direction of light and shoot portraits, we will have different aesthetic feelings. If you can't find it, you must rely on photometry to get the correct imaging.

This photo shows that the light comes from the right side of the model, and the left side is dark, which is the result of moving observation.

Shooting information: Canon EOS 5DEF 50mm F 1.4. Aperture F 1.6, shutter1100s, ISO800, M manual mode, automatic white balance, RAW to JPEG.

Photometry is a very important link in this environment. In such a dark environment, because the background is mostly white, it is easy to deceive the camera metering system to darken the photos, and it is also easy for photographers to be at a loss because they can't find the direction of sunlight with their naked eyes. It is suggested to take more photos from different angles. If the exposure is insufficient, you can also increase the aperture, lower the shutter, and even improve the ISO to shoot. When the shutter speed has dropped below the safe shutter speed 1/60s, remember to find something to support your arm, such as a telephone pole or a street tree. Of course, it is also a good idea to mount the camera on a tripod, but pay attention to whether it will affect the rhythm of taking pictures and the flexibility of framing and composition, so as to avoid unnatural portraits.

Because the contrast of taking pictures on cloudy days is not strong, we should pay attention to the collocation of clothes when taking portraits, and try to wear bright clothes, so that the main body of the characters will be more prominent in the picture.

Shooting information: Canon 5D EF 50mm F 1.4. Aperture F2.2, shutter1/60s, ISO200, M manual mode, automatic white balance, RAW to JPEG.

The flowers in the hands of the model are in sharp contrast with the background. In a foggy climate, the background is almost white, and bright colors will become conspicuous in the picture.

Shooting information: Canon EOS 5DEF 50mm F 1.4. Aperture F 1.6, shutter1100 seconds, ISO 100, m manual mode, automatic white balance, RAW to JPEG.

In order to let the model have light, please ask her to stand at the junction of the forest and light. The model is more stereoscopic because it is illuminated by light.

Shooting information: Canon EOS5DEF 50mm F 1.4. Aperture F 1.6, shutter1160s, ISO 200, M manual mode, automatic white balance, RAW to JPEG.

Shooting focus:

The background of dark environment is mostly white, because rain and fog will reflect light, which will make eyes feel white from a distance.

Portable hand-held exposure meter can quickly obtain more accurate aperture/shutter value.

Use a monopod to find a balance between stability and maneuverability.

Using the camera LCD to see if the photo exposure is correct, it should be noted that the brightness of each camera screen is different, which is not necessarily accurate and is for reference only.

If there is rain or fog at the shooting location, the weather may be cold. It is suggested to prepare more warm clothes, towels or ginger tea, be considerate of others and take care of yourself.

Conquer high contrast environment and daytime window environment.

Life is full of photography environment in Gao Fancha, such as floor-to-ceiling glass doors and windows. The light in these places is not very good, and many people have never taken photos in these places. In fact, they can also take photos in these places, and the effect may be unexpected.

If you want to use the light from the window as the main light source for indoor photography, you must first confirm the range of light irradiation. Because this kind of environment is mostly in Gao Fancha, most of the light is clearly visible, so it is not difficult to confirm. There is no limit to how wide the scope needs to be, basically as long as it can meet the needs and possibilities of photographers.

The shooting environment is beside the patio. Let the Model stand in the corner of the light irradiation range of the patio, so that the light has obvious directionality, and the white wall behind it produces the background light effect. Using a simple background and putting her in the center can strengthen the visual focus and highlight personal characteristics and clothes colors.

Shooting information: Canon EOS 5D Mark IIEF 35mm1.4l. Aperture F2, shutter1100 seconds, ISO400, M manual mode, automatic white balance, RAW to JPEG.

Next, pay attention to the path of light irradiation. Compared with ambient light, many light sources in Gao Fancha environment are quite intense. In this case, it will be quite obvious if the light is blocked. Although the viewing window has a view of more than 95%, it is sometimes difficult to notice so much when taking pictures. Some shadows may not be easy to find, but it is quite clear to see photos on the computer screen. If you can pay attention in advance, you can avoid more shadows when shooting. For example, if we want to shoot the front of the subject along the light, it is easy to accidentally block the light source, thus creating unnecessary shadows. If there is more than one photographer, it is easier to block the light in a narrow space, and it is necessary to take turns to block the position to shoot smoothly.

If all the external factors mentioned above are noticed, then the internal factor to be considered is the camera metering problem. In the environment of Gao Fancha, it is suggested to use M mode as the shooting mode. You can adjust the combination of aperture and shutter through the exposure meter, or use P mode to measure light first. This is because the aperture shutter value measured by average photometry in low light environment is easy to overexpose the subject we want to shoot. Because it is average metering, the metering system will calculate the part without light in the picture together with the subject. Assuming that the aperture measured in P mode is F4 and the shutter is1125 seconds, you will find that the photos taken are too bright. You can manually dim an aperture to F5.6 to try. If it is not enough, you can adjust it again, which makes it easier to measure the really needed aperture shutter value and make the photos look better.

In this photo, in order to expose the model to oblique light, the model must sit on the ground. Because the indoor space of the bathroom is quite small, it is necessary to avoid blocking the light when shooting, so as not to produce unnecessary shadows and destroy the whole picture.

Shooting information: Canon EOS 5D Mark IIEF 35mm1.4l. Aperture F 1.4, shutter110 second, ISO 1600, m manual mode, automatic white balance, RAW to JPEG.

Moderately adjust the angle of the model's face, and use the light and shadow effect to make the three-dimensional sense more obvious.

Shooting information: Canon EOS 5d Mark IIEF 35mm1.4l. Aperture F 1.4, shutter 1/30 seconds, ISO 1250, m manual mode, automatic white balance, RAW to JPEG.

Shooting focus

Portable hand-held exposure meter can quickly obtain more accurate aperture/shutter value.

The indoor environment is narrow, and a small amount of natural light overflows into the room, which is easily blocked by the photographer himself, so special attention should be paid to the surrounding environment of the picture when shooting.

Try different composition directions and use outdoor light sources.

The two walls in the corner, if white, can be used as reflectors to reduce the contrast.

The broken ceiling of the ruins will have the effect of concentrating light on the top, which can capture the feeling of bathing in the light beam.