Shooting an evenly lit portrait in backlight is a bit of a challenge. Photographer Daniel Ceapă has created a wonderful, balanced portrait in conditions like this using a two lights setup. He has shared his image and some BTS shots with DIYP, along with a detailed explanation how he took the photo. So, all of you searching for knowledge and inspiration in OCF portrait shooting, this will certainly be a valuable resource.
Camera settings and equipment
Camera settings and equipment
For this image, Daniel used his Canon 5D Mark IV. As the lights were very close to the model and he wanted a wider field of view, h paired the camera with a Canon 24-70mm f/2.8 II lens at 24mm.
As I mentioned, he used a 2 lights setup. The key light was a Godox AD600BM in an Elinchrom Rotalux 100cm, at 2-2.3m high on the camera right. For the fill light, Daniel used Godox AD600BM in a Dynaphos softbox umbrella 105cm, at around 1m high on the camera left.
The camera settings: were as follows: 1/400, f/2.8 and ISO 160. In order to take the shot, Daniel had to stay down, on his chest (like a sniper), to project the model onto the sunset sky.
Finding the location
Finding the location
What’s interesting about this show is that it was just a test shot while Daniel was location scouting for a future shoot. He didn’t know the place before, but it turned out to be a great location: Here’s the final shot: So, once again, spotting locations while driving turns out to be a successful formula.
And another shot from the same set:
About the Artist
About the Artist
Daniel Ceapă is a Romanian photographer, currently living in Brasov, Romania. Although he’s been into photography for about 5 years, he likes to think of himself as a beginner, an enthusiastic learner, a portrait and fashion photography lover, who enjoys shooting weddings as well. If you’d like to see more of his work, visit his website, like his Facebook page and give him a follow on Flickr and Instagram.
