Jason Christopher, LA Commercial & Fashion Photographer Bio

So I just shot some new beauty photos. Most photographers use a beauty dish, however they can be expensive, especially for a photographer who is just starting out. What is the solution ? This photo was shot with just one small umbrella, a small silver reflector at breast level, and a strobe hitting the background with it’s regular 7 inch reflector attached for separation. I placed the umbrella camera right about 2-3 feet above model’s eye level. Of course you need to tell the model to be aware that this is her ONLY light source so do not turn your face away from it. Any good model of course would know this. This was shot at 125th @ F/8 , 100 ISO. The make up and hair artists were standing by right next to the model ready to jump in and make tiny little adjustments to hair and make up. When shooting beauty like this, it is VERY important to pay attention to EVERY detail, thus my team was stepping in every couple of minutes or so adjusting something.

This was photographed with a Canon 100mm F/2.8 macro lens. As you can see from looking at the catch light in the open eye, I used one light source which was a small umbrella. I placed it just above the model and a bit in front of her. When shooting a beauty editorial it is wise to get up close and pay close attention to detail. Of course you lose depth of field the closer your lens is to the subject therefore you must use a very small f stop. Remember, the larger the number, the tighter your aperture will be.