What’s the best lighting to separate a subject from the background?

Question

Todd Glaser · Answer

The question is, what's the best lighting to separate a subject from the background? And the best lighting would be an edge light. So if you were to put the subject, let's say up against the sunset, or if there's a big wall and the Sun is peering over the wall or through trees, if you put the subject in front of that light and then either use a fill card or strobe or if even there's a natural white wall as a fill, you can create a ratio Of creating an edge, which you'll see a lot in cinema film, it called Edge lights, and then you want to fill in the face, if that's the aesthetic that you're going for. But the best way to create a separation from subject, to the background is an edge light, or by using very shallow, depth of field which will then have the focus be on the subject, not on the back of it while not highlight in the background but I always try to shoot with the cleanest background. Is the cleanest backgrounds as possible. That's kind of the first thing I look for is how can you tell the story by eliminating any busyness in the background? Hope it helps. Thanks.

Ryan Miller · Answer

If I really want to make a subject popped off the background, I will try my best to go light on dark. So the subject super well lit and the background, a couple stops darker. You know, with me doing surfing photography action sports stuff? I'm using natural light, so that's super hard. But when I get it, it's some of my favorite light of all time, it'll happen for me when there's a huge Passing through and blacks out the background, or makes the background darker, but the sun is still popping on the, you know, the foreground subject or the athlete. I'm trying to shoot. So, you know, think about a scene where rolling through thunderstorms out to sea, is really dark and black rainy, and we have holes in the clouds. So, the sun is hitting the, the lineup or the Surfers. Riding the waves, really light in the foreground and dark in the background, some of my favorite lighting too. But yeah, really makes this subject pop from the background.

David Zammit · Answer

I think this depends on whether one is going for natural light or artificial light definitely. When so, let's start with natural light which person is what I love to wear love to shoot. Definitely want to create a decent amount of space between the wall and, and the subject. And if the, you know, the best light of all this, Is not giving you that, that pop and that kind of shop separate space between the subject on the wall. I would definitely first go for something like a reflector, you can get something like a V flat, which is, you know, it'd be a great rectangular reflector which, which has various kind of reflection intensities that that one could use. That's, that's always a very effective way of of creating very good kind of contrast between the subject and the background, you know you can you can also add a bit of a diffuser on top and to create some softer light. If then one is more into artificial lighting, I would say strobe lighting is definitely but that's a whole other beast in. And of itself personally if I'm shooting with a strobe I always like to use an OCTA diffuser just because it gives that really nice shot soft shape and creates a deep separation between the subject and the background. I mean, all of that said from experience I feel like Best lighting. There is no one best light approach. It all depends on the situation hand, especially if you're shooting with natural light, but I feel like, you know, experience allows one to identify what the optimal setup is in a moment. So, my advice, keeps you think, keep trying different ways of lighting and the answer will come To you.

Jasin Boland · Answer

So the best lighting to separate the subject from the background, it's so simple, just a little bit of backlight. Now that can be in the studio, actually you can see it here, you know, I've got some backlight going on there so it's giving me a little bit of a rim around my hat and my shirt and my unruly hair. And you know, if you're outside in natural light you can do the same thing, get a mirror, punch or reflector, punch some backlight in, some light from behind in, especially if you're backlighting I should say. Also you know, keep an eye out for light bouncing off walls, glass, windows, buildings, absolutely anything, you know. But yeah, just give it a little bit of a punch from behind and it'll separate from the background.

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"What’s the best lighting to separate a subject from the background?"