Breaking Down the Lighting of a Studio Portrait

Photographer Karl Taylor made this 7-minute walkthrough video after people asked about his lighting setup for a commercial studio portrait he shot and posted to Facebook.

Taylor explains why he does things a certain way. “I argue why I find lighting ratios a waste of time,” the photographer tells PetaPixel.

Here’s the diagram with Taylor’s scribbles showing how things were lit:

…and here’s the finished portrait that resulted from the shoot:

“Ignore lighting ratios,” Taylor says. “Concentrate more on looking at the light itself.”

“So many variables mean that lighting ratios go out the window […] I concentrate on looking at the light, looking at the result, looking at the reflection, looking at the amount of light, and making your decision visually based on what looks right.”

---

Image credits: Video and images by Karl Taylor and used with permission