*For more information visit AdoramaTV YT page, and of course you can keep up with Vanessa on Instagram @VanessaJoy
Today we are learning new techniques of shooting portraits/beauty shots in a studio environment, with the help of strobe light and a 5-in-1 reflector. Awesome photographer from New York, the AdoramaTV ambassador Vanessa Joy with share her tips on the topic.
Vanessa shares: “I’ve got the Canon 1dx mark 3. I’m using the new 70 to 200 lens and we have a pro photo trigger and 3 Pro photo lights. Lastly we’ve got a lovely reflector – this is the adorama 5 in 1 42 inch glow reflector. You want to start with a dark frame so that you know that only the light that you’re using in the studio are what is affecting your shot. Go into TTL and just take a picture and start adjusting from there.”
“Right now we’ve got a really nice clean background and I like to turn on my highlight alert so that I can tell that the background is completely completely white. So that’s our starting point. Now let me show you what it looks like with different things happening as far as reflectors underneath. This is important for filling in a face. Let’s do no reflect there first.”
“So with no reflector you can see that we can see eye circles. We’ve got kind of a dramatic shadow happening underneath her neck. If she has any skin texture it’s going to show that off a little bit more. So we’re gonna throw in a reflector to hide these things.”
“Let’s start with a white reflector first. You want to get it as nice and close as you can not only to her but also to this light. I like using the modeling light so you can see that it’s bouncing off.”
“Now you can see the shadows starting to fill in we can see and we have a little bit of a shadow underneath her chin which I actually like. And I like that I can see her cheekbones. Let me show you what it looks like with silver.”
“Now with a shot like this you’ve got pretty much no shadow at all. I kind of like the way it looks – it’s nice and clean. Maybe I want to see a little bit more next shadow just to separate her face from her neck, and the tones between the two. To do that we can just lower the reflector a little bit.”
“Look at these three pictures side by side and just notice the way that the shadows change depending if there’s no reflector, white reflector or silver. It’s not only about the shadows but it’s all about the way the skin looks – the quality of it, the tonality and filling it in a little bit.”
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Watch the full episode with Vanessa Joy and Adorama TV: