High Key Fashion Capture

It wasn't the original intent; that is, to do this capture in high key. But after seeing her in this bebe cocktail dress it became inevitable.

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Such phenomenal skin beckoning a white on white scene so as to keep the distractions minimal and focus chiefly on the model (as if that would be a problem); and do to such a nearly flawless caramel complexion, even against white on white that dress screamed with it's silvery highlights and accompanying silver heels.

This was a three light setup if memory serves and I didn't spend a great deal of time pining over the metering. Amazing how that happens; those on the fly captures giving even more than I could ever have imagined.

It certainly doesn't hurt that she's beautiful; being next to flawless. 

When is a Photographer considered a "Professional" Photographer?

On a past "day job" nearly nine years ago a familiar customer approached and asked me without context if I knew anyone who could do photography. Before I even had a chance to reply she went on as to the reason for her inquiry which happened to be to photograph the interior of her newly constructed alleged "mansion" of a home. Five minutes later I simply said that I understood what she was looking for. Mind you I'm on the "day job" and not in the habit of even bringing up that I too had fairly strong photographic experience and knew what she needed. I don't solicit work on someone else's dime, not even as a volunteer; never have and never will. I didn't want to invite the request or go there. But as if she read my mind, she asked point blank "are you a photographer?" She already knew that I have a design background. Of course I answered honestly (another policy of mine) and said yes. Then she followed with "but are you a professional photographer?"

Given that I knew her fairly well and being within the context of her inquiry her question was not if I am a professional photographer but more accurately are my pictures of such a quality that I would be considered a professional by a peer or maybe just another average everyday person. It set me to thinking in what we be a lifelong quest to answer that question. I've even researched the question without end for my own curiosity as to what the photographic industry and it's forerunners considered a Pro. Guess what, after almost ten years it still isn't clear.

By some definitions it is a person who supports themselves financially practicing photography exclusively. Other definitions say that at least half of your income has to come from photography. Some even say that you need to be published and recognized in a prominent industry publication. The aforementioned customer could have cared less about how I feed myself. Her inquiry clearly leaned toward quality and not quantity or the source of my income.

Since that time I've done photography full time, part time, occasionally not at all and often just because I love it as a hobby. Does that mean I was a professional by definition and then I wasn't and then I am again? Does that mean that a high school history teacher who is also a weekend photographer that sells thousands of dollars of landscape prints from a self-published website isn't a professional photographer; yet, the bulk of his/her income still comes from teaching? What about someone that has a degree in photography? Are they instantly a professional?

Living at a time when everyone with a digital camera and off-the-shelf editing software thinks they're a photographer doesn't help either. In the last decade there have been more photographers (or people claiming to be) than ever. Even people that have spent twenty or thirty years running a photography business have found their business encroached upon by newcomers which they say have at best novice skills. Newcomers are telling everyone they're a professional photographer without an inkling of an idea about what that implies - without any appreciation of design principles like composition line and form - without any regard to shape and light beyond the technical definitions. But does that mean they're not professionals? They may or not be.

Strap a lens onto your new digital SLR, luckily capture a stunning award-winning landscape shot on auto-settings, get the shot published in a national magazine and suddenly you're a professional? True? It depends on your definition of "Professional Photography." The label is in broad use and expanding exponentially and in my opinion creates a false perception in consumers' minds as to the quality of work. I say drop it altogether, lose the stigma it has wrought and let the images say the thousand words they were meant to say.

I wouldn't say that I'm a professional photographer and some people by definition would probably agree. But nor would I say that I am not. It's a rapidly changing and evolving field and I am changing and evolving with it.

The Beauty Dish

The beauty dish is one of the most popular light modifiers in use. It is the preferred piece of equipment by amateurs and professional photographers alike.

Mola Beauty Dish

Why is it called a beauty dish? Largely it is called a beauty dish due to its shape and its resemblance to a bowl or dish. That shape attributes largely to the structural characteristics of the light cast. Light from the strobe strikes a central flat and often reflective disc that sits in the center of the dish and bounces omnidirectionally back into the bowl and out again into the dish's outer edges in a conal pattern.

The light cast is considerably more directional and specular than a softbox. While softboxes (as their name denotes) is far softer and generally wrapping but with significantly reduced gradient lumen transition from highlight to shadow. The falloff, as observed in light from a beauty dish, possesses a far shorter specular transition along its edges. While the transition from highlight to shadow is markedly short and evident, it is very mellow along the fringes of lumen dissipation giving the light a spherical characteristic. 

The specular quality of the light is observable in the reflective highlights falling upon the subject. The illumination nears zero as it approaches the outer edges of the cast conal light pattern. So why a beauty dish? Many photographers prefer the directional control and spherical light quality as it falls across a subject. This creates an observable transition within the context of a small frame. While softboxes create a greater spill, beauty dish lumen transition can be seen in a relative small area.This offers a significant degree of creative control for fashion photography and beauty. However, due to the light's swift falloff it is generally preferred with subjects where stronger contrast are more flattering as opposed to broader light sources that create less emphasis on irregular surfaces such as less than perfect skin.

The spherical nature of the light is clearly seen in this capture. Most photographers as do I, try to identify a sweet spot where the transition is perfectly placed. It varies depending on the conditions as well as the subject since the strength of reflection is governed by available light, exposure, DOF, and distance from the light source. Most might say that area is slightly outside of the physical center of the light source; catching the inner rim of falloff. This adds a layer of dimensionality to the shadow cast against the subject, creating more depth. 

Catchlights in the subject's eyes is also an attractive feature of the beauty dish's light. Most find that spherical conal pattern highly appealing. This spherical shape adds more life in the eyes, more specifically, depth created by the transition.

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That pattern can be seen in this image. As aforementioned, the subject lies just slightly off center of the reflective middle. For me this was the "sweet spot" for this particular capture. The falloff is clearly observable on the model's shoulder and this multifaceted characteristic is seen again on her nose bridge while the sphere is evident over the entire frame.


Again, this type of light is often used with subject's with above average skin and complexions. Be mindful that it will emphasize even the slightest irregular surface as seen on the wall the model leans against.

Like many other modifiers the beauty dish has accessories of its own including a sock and/or grids. Grids usually set into the outer rim of the dish and can be purchased in varying degrees often from 15 to 40 to control direction. Socks are made of a diffused fabric material that filters the light and softens it further, creating characteristics more like a softbox but with slightly more direction.

The beauty dish is certainly my preferred modifier and it is available in several different sizes. My personal favorite is the Mola beauty dish as seen above.