How can I avoid shadows in my pictures?

Question

I just recently started photographing models. Can anyone give me some tips on avoiding "bad shadows" in my pictures?

Answer 1

if you are photographing outside, photograph against the sun, or at noon. inside, try adjusting all the lighting so that it comes from a single focus point, or put lights EVERYWHERE. i personally enjoy light just from one direction; it gives your photos an extra artistic touch, without requiring the models to put on lots of make-up so as not to look pasty if there are lots of lights.

Answer 2

So my guess is that your shadows must be pretty dark to the point you can't see any kind of details in the shadows whatsoever. As other people posted, shadows aren't necessarily a bad thing, in fact shadows help to delineate and give shape to our faces. However, I am guessing that your shadows are just too dark, and maybe perhaps you want to soften the shadows with some fill light.
To begin I am not sure what kind of lighting conditions you are shooting in? Is it ambient light i.e, available outdoor lighting? Studio lights(strobes or hotlights?), a combination of ambient and flash?
Since I don't know I will give you some basic tips that work for almost all situations. If you run into issues where you are getting really dark shadows then simply bounce the light using either a simple white sheet of presentation board, or get yourself a professionalcollapsible photo reflector disk such as the ones you can find here http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=NavBar&A=search&Q=&ci=1327
The concept is quite simple using one of these products. If you have ever used a mirror to reflect light into someones face, the concept is exactly the same. You take the reflector and bounce the light into the shadows of your subject to either negate or lessen the shadows. Also if you are shooting mid-day when the sun is really strong, you can use another reflector like thing called a diffuser which basically softens the light around the subject. The link I sent you has diffusers for sale as well. Either way these types of light modifiers can be used in studio just the same as they can be used outdoors with ambient light.
Now if you are using an on camera flash then I would suggest you get a professional flash or perhaps get yourself a flash diffuser which softens the light of the flash and lessens the shadows.
Anyway I hope this helps somewhat.

Answer 3

Shadows are great if properly used and if your brief calls for shadows,because they creat certain moods. They are produced by three basic factors. 1 The source of the light. 2 The angle or direction of the light striking your subject 3 The distance of the subject to the background.
Lets take the first one, the source. If you are using an on-camera flash you will cast a shadow if the flash is not bounced from the ceiling or any other reflector. Your best bet is to buy strobes or studio lights. The second factor is the angle of the light, If you were to have a light source directly above your subject you would not see any shadows except a tiny one around the feet area.But this would not be a good photograph unless you wanted to achieve that particular effect.If you must shoot with one light source, place it at an angle above and infront of yor subject. Do some test shots to see where the shadow woul fall and see if you can crop it out of the shot when taking the photograph. A simpler solution woul be to have another light behind ,an above your subject to eliminate the shadow cast by the first. Mind you the stronger light ought to be in front of your subject and above.
Third factor is the distance of your subject from the background, move your subject away from the background and the shadow from the light above and in front will fall on the ground. Or take the easy way out, take your photographs outside where you have sufficient light without flash.
I am a photographer and would like to know if these tips have been [e-mail]

Answer 4

Forget the flash (exception when the flash is for "fill in" = contre-jour). Balance the light: Left - Right, Top-Bottom with spots and use diffusers. A nice trick: add a spot behind the subject. If you really need to use the flash: diffuser + bounce it to the ceiling.

By the way ...before start photographing models ...go to library and check a book about basic photography techniques. ;-)

Answer 5

DONT photograph at noon. You'll get the worst lighting at that point of day. If you want softer shadows, use screens over hotlights in the studio or portable ones outside.

Answer 6

Use multiple sources of light - one main source and two minor or use reflectors to direct light into the shadow areas.

Answer 7

are you using a digital camera or film. If film, use more lighting. if digital.....avoid the flash and check if there is a "back-lighting" option to reduce shadows on their body and face.

Answer 8

use brighter lighting..