Lighting the Face in Corporate Headshots
Here are examples, purely for discussion purposes, today of what is popular/trendy among some corporate / business headshot photographers. I’m talking about 3 frontal lights in a triangle or 4 frontal lights in a rectangle.
Their goal is to avoid nasty shadows on the face. And yes, this does eliminate shadows and provide even lighting, BUT OVERLY even lighting. It looks unnatural, AND it leaves very weird specular highlights on the eyes, just like RING lighting does.
Well-known headshot photographer, Peter Hurley, loves this multi-front light approach. It delivers “beauty” only in that there are no shadows on the face. But your eyes – the most important part of all – looks alien and unnreal. (some of his headshots are retouched into oblivion, others are not)
If the facial skin looks nice but the eyes are freaky — looking like they are out of some horror or science fiction movie — this is ultimately a FAIL as a headshot, in my book. Are you trying to look like some possessed doll? Moreover the sterile face is that much more artificial by the stark and sterile white beyond even the white you’d find in some hospital or morgue.
Movie directors literally use glowing contact lenses in their vampires and other monsters for an other-worldly effect. And while glowing eyes might get your attention, it does not make you want to TRUST the person. Just the opposite in fact. And as a business photographer and corporate portrait studio, I know that trust is the key to a successful headshot!
Ring Lighting
Lighting the face with a “ring light” is even worse! Want to look freaky and scare people away, then don’t bother to learn professional lighting and simply go with a ring light.
WHY, when this lighting sabotages trust, is it popular among lesser photographers? Because it is brain-dead simple.
Just put these multiple lights (or ring lighting) in front of the face, and voila, no more shadows! Just throwing a bunch of light from multiple angles at your face is SIMPLE and FAST for photographers who don’t understand lighting or don’t want to have to think about it.
But this makes them look less real. I LIKE some amount of light coming from above, SOME amount of shadow under the chin and a little shadow under the nose. Remove the shadows on all sides and it looks flat, fake.
My own system of lighting accomplishes minimal facial shadows, but without this unnatural look, and the freaky highlights in the eyes
With 20+ years professional experience, I don’t like overly-shadowless lighting. To me it is inferior. You are not a clone or synthetic icon for some beauty product; you are a professional business person after all!!
Why does facial lighting even matter?
Because, although a brightly lit face will stand out as a little thumbnail on a computer screen, a flatly lit face with no shadows will make the person less real, and thus business prospects are LESS LIKELY TO RESPOND TO THEM, as that real person they can reach out to and do business with.
In contrast, here are 4 recent business headshots in Dallas by myself. We see faces that are overall still well-lit, but not so evenly lit as to become flat, sterile / synthetic. We see a little bit of facial shadow that gives it more depth and authenticity, and also intentional shadow under the chin that defines the face (separates it from the neck).
I’d say the smart money is to invest in the best image of you that people will want to connect with, do business with, and respond positively to. If authenticity and trust is what you want in your headshot — your representation of yourself to your business peers and prospects, then this is what we deliver to executives in the Dallas, TX service area at www.DallasBusinessHeadshots.com
