GHOST STORY FACE

I grew up camping and holding flashlights up under my face while I told ghost stories. If you've ever seen someone do that, you know why people do it to bring out the mood in a ghost story, it just looks creepy. There's no other way around it. Shooting inside with huge windows and bright floors will run the risk of giving you what I'll now be calling "Ghost Story Face" (yes you can use that term, you're welcome). Ghost Story Face is what happens when you're shooting inside with your subject facing the window (front lit) and the light comes in the window, bounces off the floor, and shines up into your subjects face. It lights the bottom of their chin, under their nose, and takes away the bone structure that light typically defines. Luckily, there's an easy way to fix it! When I shoot inside (it's rare), I always bring a black sheet along and this is exactly why. If you're shooting with your subject facing the window, place the black fabric on the ground between the window and the model. The black will absorb the light that was bouncing up and now you will be left with a soft light that comes from the top/center instead of the bottom. Peace out, Ghost Story Face.

5d III + 50L

These two frames were shot with her back to a wall and the light coming in from a window to her front/right. Light is a puzzle to me... you show up, see how it's falling, and then play with the pieces to make it work how you want it to. That bit of black fabric on the ground in front of her to stop the light from bouncing up under her was just the trick I needed to keep the light looking soft and natural while still defining her bone structure how I wanted it to. Without that fabric on the ground, the shadows under her chin and cheekbones would've been flooded with light and her bone structure would have been completely flattened out.