How should I mix natural and artificial light sources?

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How should I mix natural and artificial light sources?

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Utilising extensive natural light always preferred for abbywinters.com shoots. However, in winter months, natural light may not be available in suitable quantities fully illuminate the model and Setting across a full shoot day.  In most shoot situations, a mixture of natural light mixed artificial light is required.

When that’s not possible, we aim to use high-key lighting and emulate natural light from large windows.

Natural light is particularly good for adding highlights to a model but care must be taken to avoid contact with direct sunlight in most circumstances – such high contrast between light levels can not be exposed for correctly, and results in missing details – and ultimately frustrated customers!

ABOVE: Amelia was shot on a sunny day, with no clouds to diffuse the sun – a harsh and specular light source from camera right. From camera left, we see a diffused flash. Observe the hard dark shadow on the back of her knee, and the blown out details of her lower back, thighs and buttocks (bad).

There are two approaches to mixing natural light with artificial light:

  1. Using an artificial source to boost the natural light
  2. Using an artificial source in parallel with the natural light, with the artificial light filling in the areas that the natural light cannot

Using artificial light to boost natural light

On paper very simple:

  • Step 1 Find the natural light
  • Step 2 Place an artificial light so it’s beam follows the same direction as the natural light – boosting what is already there.

The potential issue is diffusion. The supporting artificial light needs to be modified to prevent it from being a direct and specular source (as that will lead to hard dark shadows and will not look natural, will not be flattering, and is off-paradigm).

ABOVE: The lighting on Laura N is great in this image. The even is even but not flat, texture and form are clearly visible (observe the cure of her shin), and the natural-appearing highlights not only define the shape of her body but give the appearance of a carefree sunny day (on-paradigm).
ABOVE:  In actuality it was a cold grey Amsterdam day when Laura N was shot, with very low levels of natural light. The SP selected a setting where the natural light was coming from and then used artificial lights to boost those levels up to that of a sunny day. Initially a flash head was placed on the small balcony outside of the window and that light was passed through a taut white sheet to defuse it. When ever there is an opportunity to place a light outside of a window it should be explored! Unfortunately it began to rain, leading to a slightly more complicated lighting set up where the artificial light was channeled behind the white sheet within the room, angled so that enough light bounced back into the room, as if it were natural light through the window.

Using artificial light to fill in the gaps

ABOVE: Model Ana is principally lit using artificial lights within the room, but natural light is wrapping around the model’s body adding in highlights. These highlights emphasis the model’s texture and form, make the lighting overall appear to be from a natural source and in general just look naturalistic. This light was achieved using a bare flash head, pointing into the corner of a room (where the ceiling and two walls met), making circle with a 5-foot /  150cm diameter, set to the lowest power (ideally an even lower power would have been used but the flash head could not do it). The artificial light is coming from camera-left in the above image.

Ana’s Solo shoot (made in 2004) came at a pivotal point in the abbywinters.com journey. It was produced by the Creative Director, long before any assessment areas have been devised, really before what abbywinters.com is all about had been fully defined.  At the time, Garion was pushing himself with lighting and trying to master mixing two sources – flash and natural light. This shoot was an instrumental turning point, the first time he mixed sources to (we think) excellent effect. It was around this time that the value of producing light that appeared natural (regardless of the reality) became apparent within the abbywinters.com brand.

Don’t show the source

ABOVE: The mix of natural light and flash works very well in this image of Ana. Her tummy and breast are perfectly highlighted, emphasising her feminine curves. Unfortunately, the background is blown out which is poor, and there’s a shallow depth of field. 

While overall the lighting in Ana Solo is excellent, some of the framing is problematic, with washed out backgrounds detracting from strong lighting on the model. An epiphany saved for another day, Garion soon came to the conclusion that similar to how it is detrimental to show the light stands and flashes in a shoot, so to is it bad to show the natural light source.

Kenji’s excellent outdoor Solo shoot (captured by SP Misha) holds lots of great examples of how natural light can be used to strong effect, being most successful when the light source is omitted from the frame.

If the sky was able to be exposed correctly (either blue, or textured clouds), including the sky is encouraged. When the sky has to be over-exposed (“blown out”), always frame it out.

Related topics

While the simple rule is to ‘not include the light source in frame’, there is value in showing bright skies and interesting views outside of the window during shoots, it is just not easy to do.  FAQ – How can I expose images to include the view from the window? – documents how to approach this.