Who says white has to be boring?
December 29, 2009 by Joe Edelman
Filed under Lighting, Photography
I admit that at some point in the late 1980′s I swore that I would never shoot a model on a white background again. My reason… it was boring! Modeling portfolios had become a boilerplate template of standard poses on plain white backdrops and the images were nothing more than PG versions of cheesy glamour poses with the model smiling at the camera.
The image that started it all...
Don’t get me wrong – there is a very good reason for standardization in modeling portfolios. This is something that is not understood by many agencies and most photographers today, but we will save that discussion for another blog post.
Two years ago I built a studio in my home and created a “white room” if you will at one end of the studio (2 white walls, white floor and low white ceiling) After I set up the new space and started using it I remembered how much I hated white backgrounds. Fortunately instead of painting over the white, I procrastinated and just worked around it.
Finally about 8 months ago – I decided to do a back lit, window light type shot on the white background. Not only did I fall in love with the shot, but I had a creative epiphany at the same time.
My photographs are generally not voyeuristic. My images are the result of an interaction between myself and my model and I seek to allow the viewer of the image to share in that relationship. I had written off white because I found it boring. I did because I overlooked two of the most important elements in all of my photographs – eyes and expression.
This brought me to the realization that for years now while bright, bold primary colors had become my trademark, they had also become somewhat of a crutch. I also realized that while my images were all about eyes and expression I was forcing a third element into my image as if it had equal importance – the color.
I pride myself in my ability to use and manipulate light but at this moment I became aware that sometimes the best solution is not to manipulate it at all but to dig deep into the shadows and explore what light lurks there.
What I have found as I have used and abused this lighting concept over the last few months is that the white background when used properly provides a purity that is unparallel in scenic, textured or bright colored backdrops. When the pose is right and the eyes and expressions come together the result is exquisite.
I hope you will agree. I have posted a gallery of images below and will add a new blog post later this week with the technical details.
In the meanwhile – try it out – let me know what you think.
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