I think the 3rd shot is both the strongest from a posing and comp standpoint and also blends the lighting with the low key look in a very effective way. In general, I'm less fond of low key shots that have very frontal lighting and lower light ratios as they tend to feel less natural, while shots with more oblique lighting and stronger ratios are a natural fit to dark backgrounds.
Personally, I think you could keep the background dark but add some nuance with a gradient and texture. You also seem to deliberately be playing with loss of separation with the backdrop, in which case I'd be tempted to add some flags to really make her melt into the darkness... or else go the other direction and add either subtle accent lighting or else a subtle background light to create some very subtle separation.
Edit: Regarding the pupil debate... the biggest issue with catchlights in the pupils is if the catchlight is centered in the pupil creating a bullseye effect or else eliminates the pupil for a sort of Little Orphan Annie look. A catchlight bisecting the border of pupil and iris is its natural position in most standard studio lighting.
Evan Baines wrote:
I think the 3rd shot is both the strongest from a posing and comp standpoint and also blends the lighting with the low key look in a very effective way. In general, I'm less fond of low key shots that have very frontal lighting and lower light ratios as they tend to feel less natural, while shots with more oblique lighting and stronger ratios are a natural fit to dark backgrounds.
Personally, I think you could keep the background dark but add some nuance with a gradient and texture. You also seem to deliberately be playing with loss of separation with the backdrop, in which case I'd be tempted to add some flags to really make her melt into the darkness... or else go the other direction and add either subtle accent lighting or else a subtle background light to create some very subtle separation.
Edit: Regarding the pupil debate... the biggest issue with catchlights in the pupils is if the catchlight is centered in the pupil creating a bullseye effect or else eliminates the pupil for a sort of Little Orphan Annie look. A catchlight bisecting the border of pupil and iris is its natural position in most standard studio lighting....Show more →
Thanks for the insightful comments - I'll bear them in mind for future projects.
Now I learned the right way to call it " catchlight"
The only ones bothered me are showing a ring light in the pupil. At least I don't feel disturbed at all with this set. They just reminded me how difficult to take them off without PS.
Swissblad wrote:
Thanks for your kind comment.
There seems to be some debate concerning catchlights - I was taught that they added life and sparkle to a portrait......
