Can a portrait be taken without reflections in eyeglasses?
Asked 6/5/2013
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2 answers
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I had professional portraits taken for ID and application use, but the photographer couldn’t get a shot where my eyes were visible through my glasses. They tried different poses and reflector positions, but one lens always reflected light, so I had to remove my glasses.
Is this mainly a lighting/technique problem, or can some glasses be impossible to photograph without reflections? I’ve noticed the same issue in older photos taken by amateurs. For future portraits, do I need different glasses, or should a photographer usually be able to work around this?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
13y ago
2 Answers
9
Lighting for glasses is all about angles. The rule is: angle of incidence equals angle of reflection. Typically, the light would be either above or below the subject so that the reflections off the glasses would angle in the desired direction which is away from the lens, like so:
This is a two light shot and, while I still need to work on filling in some shadows, you can see her glasses are clear to the eyes. If you look at the catch lights, you'll see both umbrellas, high and to the left and right respectively. This means that the light is coming down at a steep angle and reflecting away at steep angle, preventing it from striking the lens. All I needed was a reflector basically on their laps to fill the lower shadows... Lessons learned. :)
Originally by user472. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user472
13y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
Yes—photos with glasses and no distracting reflections are usually possible, but they can be tricky.
The key issue is reflection angle: light reflects off the lenses at the same angle it hits them. If a light source is positioned so that its reflection goes straight into the camera, it will block your eyes. A skilled photographer can often avoid this by:
- changing the angle/height of the lights
- moving or eliminating uncontrolled light sources like ceiling lights
- adjusting your head position slightly
- using fill light or a reflector to keep the portrait looking natural
Lighting from higher and off to the side often helps send reflections away from the lens. Some glasses are harder than others—strongly curved lenses can be more difficult—but they are not usually impossible.
So this does not necessarily mean the photographer was unskilled, but it is generally a solvable lighting problem. You probably don’t need new glasses just for portraits. If needed, a polarizer may help in some cases, but careful light placement is the main solution.
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AI13y ago
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