In fact, it’s often not obvious to the untrained eye, until you see the same image taken without a hair light. That’s not to say that all hair lighting is always subtle these days, only that we’re no longer as rigid in how we light portraits. These photos were lit from the front by direct sunlight. In the first image there’s no hair light (even though you can actually see my lightstand at the left edge of the image, but the light was turned off). The hair light (a bare bulb studio light) fired for the second image and it lifts the hair slightly and adds a layer of depth to the image. Why use a hair light in studio photography? If you’re looking for photography strobes that even out the scene’s shadows, particularly those created by other light sources, try a fill light. As the name alludes, a fill light fills in the shadows from other lights (often key lights) with a soft, diffused glow. Where you place your fill light depends on the scene and shadows; it may take some practice shots to determine the best strobe location. Red: “This acts directly on the cells that help to support collagen production, which helps provide structure to the skin. Red light is therefore used to help reverse some of the signs of ageing,” explains Dr Fabusiwa. Hair lights are a subtle, but important light in portrait photography. While they’re used just as much in studio based portrait photography as they used to be, HOW we use hair lights in photography has relaxed quite a bit from the classical portrait photography style. These days, it’s often a subtle addition to the lighting set up, rather than the very obvious and strong hair light of a few decades ago.

A rim light should be positioned behind your subject, but can be positioned in a few different ways partly depending on the length of the subject that you are desiring to include. Behind and to the Side of Your Subject Consultant dermatologist, Dr Sharon Wong, explains: “LED can potentially have some beneficial results for certain issues, such as reducing sebum in oily skin, reducing the amount of acne-inducing bacteria, or providing anti-inflammatory support." Light from the hair light shouldn’t strike the lens, otherwise it’ll cause lens flare, which will wash out contrast and colors in the imageIf the thought of putting a high-tech helmet on top of your head makes you nervous, you don’t need to worry. “It doesn’t get any safer. For one thing it is just light, which is natural. It doesn’t penetrate deep into the skin. We have plenty of studies to support the use of red light to help with inflammation and signs of aging, so there is that added benefit, compared to some of our topical options that can create inflammation. I will often recommend these devices in conjunction with a topical routine. Not only do we have studies to support synergy between the two, if you were to get any irritation from a topical, the red light could help ameliorate it!” says Dr. Finney.

Now let’s look at how to set up a hair light… Portrait lighting diagram showing 3 examples of hair light placement, as seen from above Where to position a hair light I had a scalp condition that caused horrible itching. The itching stopped after the first few uses. I'm no longer taking oral prescriptions or topical creams. I told my doctor I don't need them anymore. I showed her the brush and told her about it. I had the name of the brush, the item number and Shoplc.com written down on paper for her before my appointment. I told her about the other products, even though I hadn't tried them yet. If NASA created the lights for their needs, they had to work for mine.

Leave a comment

Photography strobes don’t just come in all shapes and sizes; each style of light brings a unique type of illumination to set. This includes: