Business Portrait Lighting Setup for On-Location Shoots | Easy Lighting Tips for Professionals

[@steveh8658]

Great content! Thank you Gary!

[@emcorporatetx]

Stiffany!!

[@JamelDeCasseres]

Now that's a solid tip! Thank you Gary!

[@GaryHughesOfficial]

Any time!

[@LastXwitness]

GARY!!!! lets GOOOOO

[@GaryHughesOfficial]

Just trying to use TTL like you!

[@ourPPA]

🥳✨

[@drmichaelwright]

So easy and helpful. Thank you!

[@GaryHughesOfficial]

absolutely!

[@Flamamacue]

Top-tier tutorial! Not only is this a great technique, it's a swiss-army-knife type setup to basically always have handy, and even if you have a more complex/elaborate setup that isn't working it's so confidence inspiring to know you can fall back on a simple, minimal setup.

[@GaryHughesOfficial]

So glad you like it, thanks for watching!

[@JosephRossPhotography]

I loved your posing hands in pockets crossed legs while standing everyone is not doing the same thing I love it!

[@seanraz]

I am going to try this out! I can see this coming in handy on-location. Thanks.

[@GaryHughesOfficial]

No worries!

[@antondymkovych6150]

Love that. And it's just one bounce light, which proves once again that more important than gear itself is to know how to use your gear. BUT "The more gear you use, the more you get paid» - Quote by one & only Daniel Norton))

[@GaryHughesOfficial]

The more I master my gear and techniques, the more I seem to fall on simplicity. It is true though that clients are pretty impressed by gear and it can add some perceived value. Thanks for watching!

[@steveh8658]

I stopped the video because I realised (I can be a bit slow) that the PPA have been pumping out regular helpful videos for beginning and developing (I know...) photographers for ages, but I've only just started getting them in my feed the last month or two. With there being so much gate-keeping (too strong?) in the industry the PPA is truly a stand-up organisation by sharing their knowledge for the benefit of us, clients, and the future of photography. I'm not from America but I will seek to join them if I can. Thank you!

[@ourPPA]

We hope you decide to join the community! Please let us know if you have any questions. 🤗

[@trmbtrmb]

Really enjoyed this tutorial. Very straight forward and the results are stunning. Going to try this out. Thanks again!

[@GaryHughesOfficial]

Very cool, good luck!

[@charliegreen1989]

Great video Gary, saves a question I was going to ask you as well.

[@GaryHughesOfficial]

Thanks for watching Charlie!

[@HeadsUpHeadShotsMedia]

Yes, last week I used this very same setup with the Godox AD200 Pro and the same ring mount along with the Xpro trigger on my Canon R with a 24 - 70 EFL for an editorial shoot. Then yesterday I shot a corporate event with an on camera V1 using ETTL and my Canon RP with the same 24-70. Thanks for the tips, I generally use the Magsphere for most of my on camera stuff and a 32inch soft box for the portrait and editorial stuff. 📸👍😁

[@GaryHughesOfficial]

Great point! You could 100% do this with a flash on-camera as well

[@HeadsUpHeadShotsMedia]

@ you’re right. And your point about the bounce is so important. I will try the bounce more in order to simplify.

[@igibbs2000utube]

Great idea! One question though - what metering mode are you using in the camera to determine 1 stop under? Spot metering? Matrix metering? Also, how does the distance between flash and wall and between wall and subject come in to play in TTL? If you're in an office and the bounce wall is 8 feet away I'd expect the flash to be brighter than if you're in a large meeting room with the wall 20 feet away.

[@GaryHughesOfficial]

The great part is that the flash sends out little tests at the speed of light to determine the final flash power. Regardless of distance, the exposure should be correct but the quality of the light will change depending on distance. A couple of feet either way shouldn’t change it that much in most cases.

[@davemil716]

Great video, Thank You. I have two questions... What if there are no light colored walls, and many times black ceilings. Can this technique with manual and ttl work with a large umbrella? Say a 60inch? Also how far from the bounce surface was the flash? Thanks Again!

[@smalltalk.productions9977]

great questions! i look forward to gary's response. (and if you don't know gary's headshot work, his YT channel is fabulous!)

[@GaryHughesOfficial]

Couple of things here: the truth is that not every situation is a good one to use this technique. Sometimes it just won't work. That doesn't mean it's not a good technique to have in the old tool box, right? That being said, I have rarely ever been in a situation on a location where there isn't any neutral colored surface to bounce off, most commercial spaces tend to go pretty neutral on wall colors. As an alternative, you could use a large umbrella, the light wouldn't likely be as soft, but it would work. The light was maybe 10 feet from the wall here :) Thanks for watching!

[@GaryHughesOfficial]

@@smalltalk.productions9977 thank you! Happy that you found me here too :)

[@Flamamacue]

This is why I keep a big reflector (one of the 6'/people sized ones) in the car at all times, it's like a little portable wall you can either bounce off or shoot through. super quick to setup and very portable

[@GaryHughesOfficial]

@@Flamamacueabsolutely! If done this with a v-flat before, works well :)

[@JosephRossPhotography]

I use this technique in corporate conference situations when I have rooms with white walls!!

[@GaryHughesOfficial]

Very cool!

[@MrIowahawks77]

Thank you

[@GaryHughesOfficial]

:)

[@JeahnLaffitte]

Remembering walls exist is so smart! I get stuck in my studio head too much.

[@GaryHughesOfficial]

Same!

[@billtotolo]

I’m curious about your approach to using a speedlight to spread more light across the environment. Typically, focusing the light helps draw the viewer’s attention to the subject, but maybe there’s a creative reason behind your choice?

[@GaryHughesOfficial]

Great question! It’s all about what you are aiming to achieve. In a case like this, I might want the lighting to look as natural as possible, like I was using a big window. In any situation there are loads of ways to handle it. If I wanted a punchy, dramatic look with hard shadows and a greater fallow of light to the background, I might do exactly as you suggested :) I might do both in the same shoot just for variety! That’s why photography is cool, right? Masters of light and shadow!!!!!

[@mikel5094]

Does this work in aperture priority ?

[@GaryHughesOfficial]

Great question. I do believe that the camera and flash would come up with a slightly different recipe in that case. The camera might just adjust itself to a correct exposure and the flash would fire at a different power level. Your exposure would likely be correct but the lighting ratio would be different :)

[@mikel5094]

@ thank you

[@Garbid]

I used to have a medium size reflector 5 in 1 in the car just in case if walls are all colors of rainbow)

[@GaryHughesOfficial]

Greta idea :)

[@AngelaSnow-jy4su]

So this needs a white or near-white wall to pull off? Aren't you worried about ambient colour casts?

[@GaryHughesOfficial]

Depends on the room. I would probably also shoot a color target so I could correct any weird colors more easily afterward :)

[@annharrison1701]

Are you bouncing the light to the side, not behind you?

[@GaryHughesOfficial]

That’s correct. It created really nice, directional light. You could definitely bounce it behind you and get flat light if you wanted to :)

[@ritrattoaziendale]

I would have gone even 2 stops under, as I find the bounce back too bright and flat

[@GaryHughesOfficial]

That would make a cool comparison for a video on shooting TTL, good idea!

[@AR-vf7vg]

The principles conveyed are wrong. I'm not disputing esthetics. The "locked into underexpose.." such as "TTL knows" etc. About that flashing direction : sure, that is indeed logical and perhaps not intuitive: the "softness (spreading)', recreating ambient light. (A single flash only, for an environmental portrait) But that is/was ONE thing. The other : If You were to expose "correctly" (jet still without flashing, meaning: not "too dark" as you choose, but "correctly"), and then add the flash in TTL mode, the TTL will "flash less" (because compensating less since you already manually locked sufficient light). Hence: (flash orientation unchanged and "not bang on to the subject") such exposure will be even less "a flashed face". (Jet here you would not "underexpose" ) Meaning : The more You do not expose enough (manually) ; the more the TTL will compensate with more power output, and the light from the "flash" will risc to be more perceived as an added (flash) light. Example: Say you underexpose (your reasoning) but by 5 stops : Then you'll "feel the flash in the picture", for sure. (The discours has nothing to do with softness or hardness by the orientation of the flash.) However, if You manually "overexposed" by only 1 stop, then the added TTL-flash will still fire, but flash (compensate) with less output power, thus perhaps only lighten up a bit the darker areas. (I'm not saying it as a recepi, only for debunking your explanations..)

[@GaryHughesOfficial]

Hey sorry about that, but it sounds like you are close to getting it. In TTL, the flash will always try to add the amount of light needed for a correct exposure. That’s why having the camera in manual is important. My ultimate goal is to create an image with a 2:1 ratio, and this technique kind of “tricks” the flash into giving me that. My suggestion is to give it a try and see what results you get, good luck!

[@AR-vf7vg]

@GaryHughesOfficial My advise is : think differently.

[@GaryHughesOfficial]

@@AR-vf7vgsorry you don’t agree, you just keep doing you :)

[@AR-vf7vg]

@@GaryHughesOfficial I do not only not agree. Can't You also acknowledge that I go through the trouble to give arguments that I state to be facts - and (in a way) that you in turn could easily argumemt on (or against) ?

[@GaryHughesOfficial]

@@AR-vf7vghonestly? I think it’s semantics on your part. Is everything I say to explain the concept 100% technically accurate? Nope, never is. Does the technique work if you follow my directions? Yep. 100% of the time. Appreciate you taking the time to comment and I hope you have a great day!