![]() ![]() Even though that bracket is relatively smooth and has no sharp parts, if this were my Eyelighter I would paint the bracket (on the subject’s side) red or white to remind them not to get too close.įor the next setup, my main light remained the AlienBees B800 but I placed the Westcott Strobelite Plus behind the subject. I started by asking Colleen to stand close to the Eyelighter but she wasn’t close enough to touch the support bracket that sticks out slightly from its edges of the Eyelighter. Next, I worked with Colleen Breanne, a model who has appeared in my lighting reviews in the past and I was looking forward to photographing her again, initially with a lighting setup similar to Mary’s but also experimenting with broader light sources and different light placements. Camera was a Panasonic Lumix GH4 with an Olympus 45mm f/1.8 lens exposure was 1/125 sec at f/13 and ISO 200. In all my testing it appeared that bigger, softer light sources worked best with the Eyelighter, such as the Apollo Strip softbox. Me? I was happy with both the lighting and the catchlight. Then again, maybe you only care what the final result looks like. But it also points out that with subjects of different heights, raising and lowering the Eyelighter has a distinct effect on the shape and look of the catchlight and overall lighting effect. You might like the feathered look it produces I did. ![]() Also using that diffused AlienBees B800 as the main light, I added Westcott’s 400 ws Strobelite Plus as a side/backlight placed as shown in the illustration, producing results with a slightly different looking catchlight than my initial test. In addition to lighting the area under a subject’s face, the Eyelighter solves a major problem with deep-set eyes, especially with male subjects, by fully illuminating the eyes, all that catchlight hoopla notwithstanding.īecause of her travel schedule, I haven’t used my wife Mary as a model for a long time but drafted her for this test. Our initial conclusion was that a broad source placed near camera position and the Eyelighter produced better than acceptable results. Here’s what we found: Using an AlienBees B800 with an Omni reflector (see article in the 2014 Expert Photo Techniques) the results looked good and we were getting the characteristic catchlight so we broadened and softened the source by attaching a diffusion sock to the reflector. My friend, photographer Cliff Lawson and I fine-tuned the first setup using ourselves as models. Making it work, on the other hand, takes a little time as you experiment with different light sources and placement of both the Eyelighter and the main light. Not so large that you wouldn’t mind taking the Eyelighter on a location shoot when you had more than a few headshots but I’m guessing it will spend more time as a dedicated headshot setup in a studio, even a small one like my 11x15-foot home studio.Īssembling the Eyelighter is simple, whether you use the supplied directions or not. As you can see from the illustrations, it’s also big. The Eyelighter measures 58x33x23.5 inches, comes with a carrying case for storage and transport, and, like most Westcott products, is ruggedly constructed. Unlike three-piece, multi-reflector kits, this catchlight is seamless, without gaps. Specifically designed for beauty and portrait photography, the Eyelighter reflects an arched light up toward your subject, producing not only flattering light but also a catchlight that follows the natural curve of the iris. Westcott’s Eyelighter Reflective Panel addresses the problem by providing an arc-shaped surface that matches the natural curvature of the human eye. Traditional flat reflectors do a good job of bouncing fill light when placed under a subject’s chin for portrait lighting but catchlights in their eyes can sometimes appear less than natural. Camera was an Olympus OM-D E-M10 with a Tamron 14-150mm lens (at 61mm) exposure was 1/125 sec at f/11 and ISO 200. Here’s a headshot of my wife Mary made with the Westcott Eyelighter and the lighting setup shown.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |