Photographer Manfred Jasmund has been working as a photographer for 15 years, for 5 years also in his own photo studio near Cologne. With his work, in which he focuses on the photography of character portraits specialized, he has already been able to achieve various awards. Since he had previously worked exclusively with studio flashes for his work, he was very excited Weeylite ninja 400 II LED steady light to test when working with us. Learn more about working with the continuous light here his experiences during and after the test.
The goal of the shoot
To put the continuous light to the test, the photographer invited two different models. Jasmund is happy to work with you a light source in the style “the old masters”, as he calls it. What he means by that can be seen very clearly in the following picture.
From his point of view, it often doesn't take more to photograph an impressive portrait. Next to the Weeylite ninja 400 II he used one for the shoot reflector and a soft box, which he attached to the permanent light. He also worked with a Canon 5D Mark IV camera with a Sigma 28-70 2.8 Art lens. All with the aim of photography style, which can be seen in the following picture, with a Continuous light instead of a studio flash implement.
Working with a permanent LED light
Right from the start of the shoot, Jasmund was able to see a major benefit in working with continuous LED lighting. What you can see is what you get., says the photographer. It's through the e constant illumination good to see how the exposure will be in the final photo. That's how it works Adjust the light in a targeted manner.
Already during the first setup, the photographer was able to determine that working with LED permanent lights compared to studio flashes comfortable features offers. That's how it was White balance with the camera For example, it was child's play, since the specified color temperature of the continuous light could simply be adopted in the camera settings. For the recordings themselves, the brightness of the light between 85 and 90 percent set with the aim of keeping the camera's ISO value as low as possible.
For the design of his light setup, he was also positively surprised that he brightness of the light could be regulated so that the setup was also comfortable for the model.
The position of the light was at an angle of 45 degrees on the model directed so that the halo appeared on the shadow side of the face. This light setup will also be Rembrandt light called.
In the character portraits that Manfred Jasmund photographs, he particularly likes the light reflection in the eyes important. From his point of view, shots without this reflex appear demonic or even a bit dead. This effect can be achieved thanks to the constant control over the illumination with the Weeylite ninja 400 II precisely, as he proves with this result with model Thomas.
| focal length | cover | ISO | exposure time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 70mm | F/7.1 | 640 | 1/100 seconds |
Model Vanessa's side parting posed a challenge for the photographer in another melancholic portrait. Because of her hairstyle own light effect revealed, the continuous light had to be adjusted again to this situation. In the final result, the shadow of her strand of hair in the portrait looks like a teardrop running down her right cheek.
| focal length | cover | ISO | exposure time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 64mm | F/5.6 | 640 | 1/80 seconds |
The summary of working with the ninja 400 II
As soon as you unpack the LED permanent light, which is very valuable impression made on the photographer, it could collect plus points. From Manfred Jasmund's point of view, that is also the case adjustable performance of the light great feature. Painting with light becomes easy, says Jasmund. After the recordings, only minor retouching in photo editing software is necessary, as required. Post-processing is therefore kept to a minimum. The strong light output makes it possible to t ISO ranges to work that guarantee optimal results. With an open aperture, you can even work with the lowest ISO values. For Manfred Jasmund that is Weeylite ninja 400 II hence a clear one Recommendation for work in portrait area. He was also able to perfectly implement his photography style with a continuous light, as can be seen from the results.
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