Even though I know I look like thirty something (oh, thank you!), I've been at this game for some time. OK, over 30 years. OK, I don't look like Dick Clark either. But sometimes having all those years of background (I think some people call that experience) comes in mighty handy. It helps put things in historical perspective. And while 30 years isn't exactly an eon, in terms of the history of photography, I guess you could say I've been in photography for about 20% of it's life! Plus, we all know, unless we've been tucked away in our safe room for the last five years, that photography has done a complete about face from film to digital in the last few years! With that as a background, let me give you a look at how lighting style has changed almost as dramatically as our medium of choice.
Go into any portrait studio nowadays, mine included, and you'll probably see big white gobs of material everywhere. Umbrella shaped gobs on the end of rods. Big square gobs that cover black nylon boxes. Gobs that cover PVC piping that we stick in front of lights. It looks like someone cut up a parachute and threw pieces of it over the front of lights. Why is everyone doing this? To see why, let's look at the history. I ain't been around since the dinosaurs, but I have seen a few things.
I started my photography career in the mid 70's. Like most photographers of the time, I wore flared pants and platform shoes, kept my 'disco shirt' unbuttoned dangerously low, had enough hair to make several sweaters, and used parabolic light sources. 'Whoa there' Steve, what are you talking about! Well, let me explain. Regular readers of my articles know I keep things pretty simple and unlike some writers, who sling around three dollar words like a cook slings hash at Denny's, I like to be pretty direct. And just to be sure I was using 'parabolic' correctly, I 'Googled' it. Yeah, I'm right. You see, parabolic is a shape. More specifically, it's a curved shape, like the curved flank of a Ferrari GTO or the swimsuit model thrown on top of the car. Parabolic shapes are used for radio and TV satellite dishes, stock charts, Chinese Woks, and, hey, photography! And while there are formulas that can figure out how much light will go in what direction, for our purposes, we'll just go back to our usual formula. It goes something like this, go get your highlighter. The larger the light source in relationship to the subject, the softer the light and the more gradual the transition of highlight to shadow area. So it would make sense that the smaller the light source in relationship to the subject, the less gradual the transition of highlight to shadow area. Practically speaking, small lights will give you brilliant highlights, crisp shadow lines, and a dramatic transition from highlight to shadow area. Reverse that for big lights. With that in mind, let's go back to that decade with perhaps the worst music ever, the 70's.
Picture this. You're in a typical 70's photo studio. You hear 'Kung Fu Fighting' followed by 'You Light Up My Life'. (I warned you about the music!) You check out the light setup. A bank of lights bounce into a back wall for fill. A light on a small stand with a metal tube sliced in half lights the background. Another light on a boom with a metal tube about the size of the cardboard roll from your Charming T.P. looms overhead. And what is going on with that main light over there! It looks like someone shoved a three foot Wok over the light, put some plastic over the face, and then cut a hole in the middle of it! What the heck kind of light is that! Well, my friend, that is a parabolic light at work! And I can tell you that used properly, it will create some of the most beautiful portrait lighting you will ever see!
Let's ignore the other lights for this article and focus on the main light. Here's what's going on. The main light is being shaped by the parabolic reflector. It is controlling on of the 'Q's' of light, quality. Used alone, it creates a pretty hard edged light source. The plastic diffuser covering it softens it quite a bit. The hole in the middle? Glad you asked, parabolic breath. That throws back a little more 'punch' to the center of the light, creating a little more intensity a sharper shadow. Since these lights created a much narrower beam of light that softboxes, much greater care had to be taken in aiming them.
While we've had a trip down memory lane, is there anything to say you can't use parabolic light sources now? Of course not, you usually get one with each light you buy and either never use it or use it to stick your umbrella shaft through. Dig it out and give it a shot.
I believe there are a couple of reasons why 'hard light portraits' have fallen out of style. First, a great educator, the late Dean Collins, showed generations of photographers how to create wonderful light with big light sources. Second, digital cameras do not have the dynamic range of negative film and can more easily capture both highlight and shadow detail from the use of softer lighting.
That doesn't mean it's not right for you. Give it a shot, I think you'll like it!
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