As a lover of portraiture, I am sure that at some point you are or will be 😉 the normal thing is that you start your walk with little or nothing, that you start to become fond of photography with a compact camera, a mobile phone camera or a camera that fell into your hands by chance, the one your grandfather used back in the days of chemical developments and silver halides. Or maybe not, maybe you always knew you were destined to be a “soul collector” and asked for your first camera right after saying mom or dad. 😉 Be that as it may, you started with nothing, or with very little. As the hobby became a passion, everything you earned was saved to acquire that filter that you were missing for landscapes, that bright lens that you dreamed of, that tripod, that camera.
After the “essentials” you got fed up with that the light will dominate you, and you decided learn to master it, to the photographic essence, to the soul. So you locked yourself in the house and racked your brain, you learned some lighting schemes, you hammered your relatives by making them pose mysterious or happy, haggard or spooky until you managed to understand what hard light was, how it influences the shooting angle, the bounced flash, the windows of light and many other words that the first day make you think that you will not get past the fill flash 😉
If that day has already arrived, here comes tomorrow, the day of the Beauty Dish, the reason for this article and if you like the portrait you will love it 😉
What is a Beauty Dish?
It is a reflector or flash light modifier (of study) that is used almost exclusively for portraits, and especially in “beauty” portraits, where what we usually want to highlight is the beauty of features of the model, hence its name.
Due to its size and its not very “portable” structure, it is usually an exclusive element of photographic studios, although it can be seen in some outdoor portrait shots.
Its main characteristics
What makes this light modifier so interesting is the kind of light that it creates thanks to its structure, which is characterized by its circular shape, and by having a shallow depth and a large diameter. That is to say, similar to a somewhat deep dish, hence its name, we suppose 😉
The light that reaches the model, and that characterizes the Beauty Dish, is hard in the center Y softer as you walk away from it towards the edges. Also, it produces a round reflection in the eyes much more aesthetic than the usual square reflections in the studio, and a contrast very nice and valued in this type of photography.
Another of its characteristics is the way it enhance skin textureso it is always recommended to use it on models with very good skin or very well made up. In these cases the beauty of it is accentuated, but in people with “defects” in the skin, these will be accentuated even more. As always, it depends on what you want to achieve.
The light hardness stands in one place intermediate between the softness of the Softboxes and the hardness of the light umbrellas.
Types of Beauty Dish
They differ from each other mainly because of the size thereof; that is, by the diameter of the “plate”. Depending on the diameter, light will behave differently. The most common are usually those of 40, 42, 56 or 70cm.
How much more little Whatever the diameter, the smaller the illuminated area will be and the more contrast you will have between lights and shadows. How much more great be, on the other hand, the wider the area illuminated with hard light and the less evident the gradual effect towards the shaded areas. The most standard are those of an intermediate diameter, which are the ones that achieve a more “compensated” effect.
Likewise, you can find them in finished white or silver. White is somewhat more uniform and less contrasty than silver, which produces more contrast and somewhat harsher light.
How is it used?
Like any type of lighting that you can use, the final result will depend on several factors. In this case, it will mainly depend on the diameter of the Beauty Dish, as I have just commented, of the position or angle of placement and the distance between the model and the light.
How to calculate the ideal distance
To calculate the “ideal” distance between the light source and the model, you must calculate approximately the diameter of your Beauty Dish multiplied by 1.5. This will give you the approximate centimeters that should separate light and model. For example, if you have decided to work with the 70 cm Beauty Dish, you will have to do this simple multiplication: 70*1.5= 105 cm. Of course, if the result does not convince you, do several tests, remembering that the further you go, the more diffuse the light will be (less hard) and the closer you get, the harder it will be.
Where do I point the Beauty Dish?
Remember when we talked about the center of interest of an image? What we want to highlight in an image, its meaning and how to guide the viewer’s attention to that point, right? Well, there are many ways to do it (composition, lines, etc.), but in this case you will do it through light. Orient the Beauty Dish, to that area of the face of your model that you want stand out. That will be the area that will take on the hard light and from there the image will gradually soften, losing some prominence as the light is lost.
Do several tests, it’s not always easy to get it right the first time 😉
Beauty Dish DIY or what is the same, homemade
Are you one of those who enjoy doing things by themselves, one of those who have set up a complete studio for less than 10 euros? Well congratulations, because making a Beauty Dish is apparently simple even for someone not as handy as you 😉
I leave you this video that shows you step by step how to make a Beauty Dish in a simple and economical way:
And if you don’t dare, you can find them on Amazon 😉
How about? Do you dare to try a Beauty Dish? Do you dare to set up one with a basin? 🙂 The dramatic effect that you can achieve thanks to its light, the textures, the contrast… I think they make it worth at least giving it a try 😉
And you know, if you found it useful, interesting and you think someone else might be interested in trying the benefits of a Beauty Dish, share it on Facebook, Google+ or Twitter. And as always, thank you! 🙂