# Flash Studio Light Positioning



## Jenna09 (Dec 7, 2011)

Hi Everyone

I am really having a hard time figuring out how to position my lights. I am looking to take pictures of my snakes sitting on the table (shown in second picture) and I keep getting two light reflections in the snakes eyes for every picture.











Any help would be greatly appreciated.

EDIT: I usually have both lights positioned in the same way as the light with the umbrella.

Thanks
Jenna


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## Jenna09 (Dec 7, 2011)

Here are some examples of the two flashes in each eye:


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## MLeeK (Dec 7, 2011)

Create yourself a table top light tent


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## Jenna09 (Dec 7, 2011)

I have a light tent. 




But the problem I will be facing is that I will be shooting snakes that are in excess of 8 feet long and will not fit into a light tent.

Should I get softboxes?

My local camera store is not helpful at all and when I have posted my pictures on my reptile forum the main critique I get is that you can see the flash from both lights in each eye.

Jenna


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## MLeeK (Dec 7, 2011)

If they aren't fitting in your light tent you can then make a diffuser screen to go in front of the flashes-light box with no fixed dimensions or use a soft box. 
I'd think that bounced flash would work well too as it is no longer one small light source  but a large source of diffused light. Bouncing from a white wall or white diffuser screen to the sides? 
This is a tough one and it's kind of backwards from everything you USUALLY want... Usually you WANT those catch lights in eyes... In this case you want to have an all around flat light source I'd guess. Making your light bigger (softbox or huge diffuser screen) will definitely eliminate the SPOT kind of catch lights but I am not sure what you will get beyond that... 
Hopefully someone else can give better pointers??


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## KmH (Dec 7, 2011)

Make or buy a bigger light tent.

I make a 40 foot deep by 40 foot wide by 20 foot high light tent to shoot cars in.


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## Tiberius47 (Dec 7, 2011)

Honestly, those photos look fine.


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## Jenna09 (Dec 7, 2011)

> I make a 40 foot deep by 40 foot wide by 20 foot high light tent to shoot cars in.


That is a little too much for me right now lol (even if it was scaled down to a 5ftx5ft box).  I plan on taking pictures at other people's homes eventually and maybe if it takes off I will try that out.

I guess my concern was that I am planning on taking pictures for peoples websites and someone kept tell me that my pictures weren't properly focused and that there shouldn't be any light flashes seen in the eyes.  I purchased my lights "used" and the person had no idea how to use them and I felt completely lost.  I have only had them for a few weeks and try and practice once everyother day.

I have mastered my light tent and can take excellent pictures in there, but I guess if you think that my pics look fine I won't worry about it.

Thanks
Jenna


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## MLeeK (Dec 7, 2011)

Um, light in the eyes is HIGHLY desireable. The reflections in the eyes are called "catch lights" and in portraiture it's something you WANT. Not PIN lights which are just little white dots, but a nice, shaped catch light is perfection in eyes.


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## Big Mike (Dec 7, 2011)

The highlight you see in the snakes eyes, is a result of direct reflection.  You see direct reflection in a photo when the light source is inside the 'family of angles'.  The family of angles it the angle from the lens, to the subject and reflecting off at the same angle.  
Imagine that you are shooting a mirror.  If the camera can see the light in the mirror, that is a direct reflection.  It's the same with the snake's eyes, but the eyes being spherical, the family of angles is basically everywhere in front of the snake.
So long story - short...it would be very hard to 'hide' your second light so that it doesn't show up as a catch light in the eyes.  

But the good news is that it would take about 5 seconds to get rid of the unwanted catch light.


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## jme_cay (Dec 8, 2011)

I personally love the catch lights. That's just my unprofessional opinion.


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## Village Idiot (Dec 8, 2011)

I'll spell out what Mike is suggesting. Photoshop.

Heal tool, clone tool, pattern replacement tool, whatever. There's probably 5 different ways to do it and it can be done in all of 5 seconds.

The problem with the snakes eyes and moving the light outside of the family of angles is that the shape of the eye and how far it sticks out from the head compared to other animals. Think about how a 180 degree fish eye can see.


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## c.cloudwalker (Dec 8, 2011)

KmH said:


> Make or buy a bigger light tent.
> 
> I make a 40 foot deep by 40 foot wide by 20 foot high light tent to shoot cars in.



:thumbup:

I had to make an even bigger one when I got a contract to shoot firefighting vehicles 


To the OP, the point is you can make a light box/tent any size you want. You don't say where you are but you seem to have US plugs, so go to Lowes and you'll find everything to make the frames in the plumbing department. Then go to a cheap fabric store to find sheer material. Make sure you have enough for the entire light box so that you don't have material of somewhat different colors. Then go home and put it together. I would make it about two/two1/2 times the size of the animal.

Then you need to decide if you want one catchlight or none and set up your lights accordingly.

Of course, you could also just remove one or both of the catchlights with Photoshop...


Now, on another subject. Long time ago I knew a herpetologist who made quite a lot of money with his shots of snakes. But he recreated the subject's natural habitat to shoot them in. Back then, when you saw a picture of a poisonous snake (that's all he handled,) there was a 50% chance it was his.


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## MissCream (Dec 8, 2011)

Just an FYI Softboxes will still give you catch lights, they will just be square.


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## Jenna09 (Dec 8, 2011)

Thanks for the replies everyone!

I think I will keep working with my studio flash lights and with my current light tent.  In the new year I might try making a bigger light tent and now I know what materials to use.

Thanks again
Jenna


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## Big Mike (Dec 8, 2011)

FYI

The idea behind using a light tent, still has to do with the 'family of angles' I was mentioning earlier.  The ides is that by surrounding the subject with fabric and lighting the fabric from the outside, you are turning the tent/fabric into your light source.  And because it's all around (large, in relation to the subject) you are essentially 'filling the family of angles' with a light source.  So instead of a small spot (catch lights) as your direct reflection, any part of your subject that can give you a direct reflection...will.  Which means that the highlights will be spread out and not just spots.  

Sometimes this gives you the photo that you want....sometimes it doesn't.  But it all breaks down to your decision to fill the family of angles or not.


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