Glance at the summary firstThe summary from the end of the lesson, as a road map before you start reading.
A reflector is a fill light source that, without any light of its own, sends the main light back to the shaded side; the spot of light is brought onto the face by tilting the reflector so that it looks at the middle of the angle between the main source and the face, while distance decides the strength of the fill and the difference between the two sides of the face. The white surface gives a soft and neutral fill, silver a strong and hard one, gold a warm one; because these surfaces produce different results on different skin tones, like turning orange, shiny spots or a beautiful warmth, they should be chosen by looking at the screen. Under fill opens the area under the chin and the eye sockets and adds a second glint to the eyes, but when it isn't kept light, it makes the face look strange, as if lit from below.
Learning goal
You will be able to send light back with a reflector to the side of a face left in shadow, without changing the main light, and deliberately adjust the amount, direction and color of this fill light. You will understand at what angle the reflector reflects light and tilt it to bring the spot of light onto the face, change the strength of the fill and the difference between the two sides of the face by moving the reflector closer and farther, compare how the white surface gives a soft and neutral fill, the silver surface a strong and hard one, and the gold surface a warm one, see how under fill opens the eye sockets and the area under the chin and how too much of it makes the face look strange, and check what color and brightness each surface produces on different skin tones.
The question
Under the lamp, the cheek of your friend posing alone that faces the light is warm and detailed, while the other cheek has sunk into darkness. You can't move the lamp; if you turn your friend toward the light, the depth that half shadow gives will be lost. You take out the white back cover of the notebook in your bag and hold it at arm's length on the shaded side of your friend's face. On the screen the dark cheek slowly opens up, and a small, second glint appears in their eye.
What is a white card good for? And what would change if you used a silver or gold surface instead? In this lesson we will talk about the reflector, that is, the simplest and most powerful natural light tool, which fills shadows by redirecting light.
Context
In natural light the main source most often can't be moved: the sun is in the sky, the window is in the wall, the streetlamp is on its pole. But redirecting that source's light is always possible. In Lesson 5.6 we saw softening the shadow by holding a white card on the side opposite the window light; that was a beginning. This lesson turns the reflector into an adjustment tool: deciding how much fill will come, from where and in what color by changing its angle, distance and surface.
A reflector works like a second light source beside the main light, but it has no light of its own; it only sends the main light back. That is why the stronger the main light, the more effective the reflector, and the light the reflector brings is always weaker than the main light. This makes it an ideal tool for softening shadows rather than erasing them completely.
Simple explanation
How is fill light directed?
Fill light is secondary light, weaker than the main light, that opens the shadows the main light leaves without erasing them. The reflector takes this light from the main source and sends it back to the shaded side. The angle of reflection is the angle at which the light arriving at the reflector bounces back; on a shiny surface light bounces back, as in a mirror, at an angle equal to the one it arrived at. That is why the face of the reflector should be tilted so that it looks exactly at the middle of the angle between the main source and the face.
The easiest way to find where the light falls is to watch the bright spot that appears on the ground or on the face while slowly tilting the reflector. When the spot reaches the shaded side of the face, you have found the right angle. Because a matte white surface scatters light in every direction, it is less sensitive to angle and gives a soft fill; a shiny surface, on the other hand, sends light in a narrow beam, and even a small tilt can make the spot miss the face. Taking someone along to hold the reflector, or leaning it against a chair, lets you keep both hands for the camera.
How does distance change the fill?
Moving the reflector closer to the face strengthens the fill, moving it away weakens it. The inverse square law from Lesson 18.2 works here too; but a wide reflector very close to the face behaves like a large source and its light decreases more slowly. Still, the rule can be used simply: as the reflector comes closer, the shaded side brightens and the difference between the two sides of the face shrinks. Bringing it too close, on the other hand, can almost erase the shadow and flatten the face.
Measuring the difference lets you adjust the fill deliberately. If you metered the lit cheek and the shaded cheek separately before the reflector came in and found, for example, a three-stop difference, bringing in the reflector and metering the shaded cheek again shows how much light the fill adds. Bringing the difference down to one and a half stops gives a soft but shaped face, bringing it down to half a stop almost flat light. Which one is chosen is a matter of taste and expression; but measuring takes the choice out of guesswork.
How different are the surfaces?
Many folding reflectors come with a few surfaces, and each surface gives a different fill. The white surface gives the softest, most neutral and weakest fill; it doesn't change color. The silver surface is a shiny metallic surface that scatters light less and sends it back more strongly; its fill is stronger and harder, and in the sun it can dazzle the person's eyes and make them squint. The gold surface is a metallic surface that adds a warm, yellowish color to the light it sends back, and it is used to imitate the warmth of a sunset. Some reflectors also have a black side; it sends no light, but deepens the shadow by cutting the light coming from the surroundings.
These surfaces give different results on every skin. The gold surface can easily push light skin toward orange and an artificial tan; on dark skin it can turn the warmth into a beautiful copper glow, but too much of it can make the skin look oversaturated and reddish. The silver surface can create shiny, oily-looking spots on the forehead and cheekbones of dark skin; on light skin it can open the shadows with a hard coolness. The white surface is the safest start on every skin. You need to decide which surface to choose by looking at the screen, and if needed by asking the person too.
What is under fill for?
Under fill is the reflector being placed below the face, on the lap or at chest level, sending light back up, under the chin and into the eye sockets. It is very effective for opening the dark shadows left under the eyebrows and the chin in overhead sun or in skylight under eaves; it also creates a small, second glint in the lower part of the eyes and brings the gaze to life.
But light coming from below is rare in nature; the eye finds a face lit from below strange. When the reflector is too close or too strong, the face looks like someone holding a flashlight under their chin: the inside of the nostrils lights up, the shadows stretch upward. That is why under fill should be kept light, stay noticeably weaker than the main light, and be done with a white surface instead of silver. The aim isn't to change the light, but to open the darkest part of the shadow a little.
Visual evidence
The next day in the afternoon, in the same park, in the clearing between the trees, you shoot a portrait of two of your friends. The sun comes from the three o'clock direction and a little above; the left side of the faces is in shadow. With spot metering you find a three-stop difference between the lit and shaded cheeks. You first hold the folding reflector with its white side, from arm's length, and tilt it until the spot of light reaches the shaded cheek; the difference drops to one and a half stops, the faces are still shaped but there is detail in the shadow.
Then you try the surfaces. With the silver surface, the shadow side of your light-skinned, freckled friend is lit harshly, and they squint. With the gold surface their face turns orange and an artificial tan; you go back to white. On your dark-skinned friend, the gold surface adds a warm copper glow to the brown of their skin; when you show them the screen they like it, but you notice a slight reddishness on their forehead and move the reflector a little farther away. Finally you put the reflector, white side up, on their lap, at chest level: the shadow under the chin opens, and a small glint appears in the lower part of their eyes; when you bring the reflector a little closer and see the nostrils light up, you pull it back.
Common mistakes
Common mistakeHolding the reflector at a random angle and not checking whether the light falls on the face.
The spot of light goes to the ground or into empty space. The fix: tilt the reflector slowly and bring the bright spot onto the shaded side of the face.
Common mistakeAssuming a silver or gold surface will give the same result on every skin.
Light skin can turn orange, shiny spots can form on dark skin. The fix: start with white, compare the surfaces on the screen and ask the person if needed.
Common mistakeMaking under fill too close and strong.
The face looks strange, as if lit from below. The fix: keep under fill light, with a white surface, and weaker than the main light.
Summary
A reflector is a fill light source that, without any light of its own, sends the main light back to the shaded side; the spot of light is brought onto the face by tilting the reflector so that it looks at the middle of the angle between the main source and the face, while distance decides the strength of the fill and the difference between the two sides of the face. The white surface gives a soft and neutral fill, silver a strong and hard one, gold a warm one; because these surfaces produce different results on different skin tones, like turning orange, shiny spots or a beautiful warmth, they should be chosen by looking at the screen. Under fill opens the area under the chin and the eye sockets and adds a second glint to the eyes, but when it isn't kept light, it makes the face look strange, as if lit from below.
Mini assignment
In this assignment you will fill a shadow with a reflector while measuring.
- Place someone so that sun or window light falls on one side of their face; meter the lit and shaded cheeks with spot metering and note the difference.
- Tilt a white card or reflector until the spot of light reaches the shaded cheek; hold it at three different distances and meter the difference again at each.
- If you have them, try the silver and gold surfaces too, and compare the color and brightness of the face with white.
- Bring the reflector to chest level and do under fill; see the difference by holding it first lightly, then too strongly.
Check yourself
- As you brought the reflector closer, how much did the difference between the two sides of the face change?
- Which surface showed the skin of the person you photographed in its most natural color?
- Were you able to see when under fill brought the face to life and when it made it look strange?
Glossary
| Term | Short definition |
|---|---|
| Fill light | Secondary light, weaker than the main light, that opens the shadows it leaves without erasing them. |
| Angle of reflection | The angle at which light arriving at a surface bounces back; on a shiny surface it equals the angle of arrival. |
| Silver surface | A shiny metallic reflector surface that scatters light less and sends it back strongly and hard. |
| Gold surface | A metallic reflector surface that adds a warm, yellowish color to the light it sends back. |
| Under fill | The reflector being placed below the face and sending light back under the chin and into the eye sockets. |
Mini quiz
1. How should the face of the reflector be tilted so the spot of light falls on the face?
- A) Exactly perpendicular to the main source
- B) So that it looks at the middle of the angle between the main source and the face
- C) Parallel to the ground
- D) Turned toward the camera
2. What does moving the reflector closer to the face do?
- A) It strengthens the fill and shrinks the difference between the two sides of the face
- B) It weakens the fill
- C) It switches off the main light
- D) It changes the color
3. Which surface can push a light-skinned person's face toward orange and an artificial tan?
- A) White
- B) Black
- C) Silver
- D) Gold
4. What happens when under fill is too strong?
- A) The eyes go dark
- B) The face's detail increases
- C) The face looks strange, as if lit from below, and the nostrils light up
- D) Nothing changes
Answers
- B — On a shiny surface light returns at an angle equal to its arrival; a surface looking at the middle sends the light to the face.
- A — A reflector coming closer sends more light to the shaded side.
- D — The gold surface adds a warm color to the fill and easily pushes light skin toward orange.
- C — Light from below, rare in nature, makes the face look artificial as it grows stronger.
Summary card
- A reflector, without light of its own, sends the main light back into the shadow.
- Angle: the middle between source and face; bring the spot of light onto the face.
- Distance: the closer, the stronger the fill; measure the difference.
- White neutral and soft, silver strong and hard, gold warm; look at the screen on every skin.
- Under fill: light, white, weaker than the main light.
Bridge to the next lesson
The reflector opened the shadow; but when you shoot in the noon sun the next day, the problem isn't the darkness of the shadow, but the light itself: the sun is overhead, the shadows are sharp and short, there are shiny spots on the face, and the reflector only answers this hard light with another hard light. Is there a way, instead of sending light back, to soften it or keep it from arriving at all? How do you soften harsh sun? The next lesson talks about the diffuser and the black flag, spreading light and cutting it.