Ever since posting the photo of Mirasa as “Rosie the Riveter,” (middle photo) on Instagram, I’ve received one common question. What’s the light source? This was all part of our Photoshop World Precon and its exploration in the qualities of light to tell a story. It’s very indirect courtesy of an aircraft hangar which is a favorite light source of mine. You can actually see a example of how I make use of this gorgeous light in my Pilot Portrait class, Inside the Hangar. Now just being in a hangar is not the trick, there is more to it than that!
Mirasa “Rosie the Reverter”
captured by D5 / 105f1.4 AFS
The hangar at Stallion 51 is large and that’s part of the secret! It’s 85′ door opening and 85′ depth permits placing the subject at the right spot for the best light for them. In the top photo, Mirasa is very close to the hangar door opening. The light is very even this close to the door which doesn’t work for the structure of Mirasa’s face. Now shooting with the D5 / 24-70VR doesn’t help the light either. The 24mm is taking in more light on the sides and that brightness “flattens” the overall feel to the light. The middle photo here, the change up was moving Mirasa back in the hangar about 20-25′ from the door. I then switched up to the spectacular 105f1.4 AFS (I so love this lens!) shooting at f/1.4. The combination of moving back changed the light on Mirasa showing off her great cheek bones and letting light just skim over to the left eye. Shooting at f/1.4, I was able to grab a darker corner of the hangar setting off the light on her face. The whole thing took less than a minute but when working in a hangar as much as I do, it’s real simple for me to use that gorgeous light coming in from that huge door!
Mirasa “Rosie the Reverter”
captured by D5 / 105f1.4 AFS
Just for comparison, I wanted you to see this photo taken outside about an hour after the one from above. Once the God scrims came in, we took the models outside to continue our lesson in light. Mirasa is on the wing of a T-6 Texan so we are picking up a little reflected light from the fuselage. In addition, there is a gold reflector bringing up the light level and some warmth on her left side. Using a backlight pattern for separation, the lighting solution worked OK for a quick pick up shoot. But when you compare the light from the hangar in the middle shot to this one, the drama and quality and most importantly, the storytelling, the hangar light beats this all to pieces. The moral … always be looking at light because the best light can come from the most unlikely places. And that’s the secret of light!