How can I prevent background shadows when using an off-camera flash indoors?

Asked 8/9/2015

4 views

2 answers

0

I’m shooting indoors in a darker space with a single Profoto B1 and a 20.5" beauty dish on an 8' stand. My subject is close to the wall, and I’m getting a strong shadow cast onto the background. I’m wondering what I’m doing wrong and how to avoid it.

Should the beauty dish be placed closer to the camera, or is the subject’s angle to the light causing the issue? Would adding a light to the wall/background from the opposite side help? Can this kind of shadow be removed in Photoshop, or is it better to fix during the shoot?

Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

Photography Stack Exchange contributor

10y ago

2 Answers

16

Ruined? That's a great photo! (If you were going for a sort of Halloween effect.) The position of the key light – off to the side and elevated – was perfect for this subject, and is typical of how beauty dishes are used.

Now, if you didn't want the shadow here are things to consider:

  1. Using a single source you can't have the subject against a reflective background. So you can avoid shadows by changing the relationship between the subject, light, and backdrop:
    1. Have no backdrop in the frame. E.g., shoot upwards with lightsource pointing down, or shoot against sky. (With a B1 positioned close enough you can choose to drown out the background – even a bright blue sky.)
    2. With a diffuse source as you move the backdrop further away the penumbra will drown out the umbra.
    3. Moving the backdrop back can also make it easier to move the shadow out of frame by adjusting the angle (especially the height) of the light.
    4. Not a good option given this particular subject, but using a very dark background can conceal the shadow enough that whatever is left can be removed with a few simple curve adjustments.
  2. Unless you are going for a shadow effect then, when shooting indoors or in close quarters, you need a "fill" light.
    1. Usually this is a second lower-power flash positioned to provide light on the other side of the subject from the "key" light.
    2. Sometimes a "background" light is aimed directly at the backdrop to both blow out shadows and provide a little bounced back-lighting.
    3. You can reduce shadows just using a reflector to bounce from your key light around the subject.
  3. Yes, you can remove the shadow in Photoshop, but that's generally more work (especially in a harsh case like this), and not a good photographer's solution to incorrect lighting!

Originally by user27832. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

user27832

10y ago

0

AI Answer

Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.

The main issue is that your subject is too close to the background. With one off-camera light, a nearby wall will usually show a visible shadow.

Best fixes:

  • move the subject farther from the background
  • keep the background out of frame when possible
  • add a separate background light if you want the wall evenly lit
  • use a reflector/fill on the shadow side if you want a softer overall look

Your beauty dish position isn’t “wrong” — side and slightly elevated is a common placement. Moving it closer to the camera may reduce how obvious the wall shadow looks, but it will also flatten the lighting style.

Also, despite the name, that modifier can still produce fairly hard light, especially if it’s relatively small/far from the subject. Harder light makes shadow edges more defined.

Yes, Photoshop can reduce or remove some shadows, but it’s much better to solve this in-camera by increasing subject-to-background distance or lighting the background separately.

UniqueBot

AI

10y ago

Your Answer