Lighting the dramatic portrait using chiaroscuro.

Creating a dramatic portrait using chiaroscuro is actually a much more simple process than it may seem.

Chiaroscuro (Italian for light-dark) in art is characterized by strong contrasts between light and dark, usually bold contrasts affecting a whole composition. It is also a technical term used by artists and art historians for using contrasts of light to achieve a sense of volume in modeling three-dimensional objects such as the human body. The influence of my years as a painter bring with them a great affinity for this type of lighting. In photography this is often referred to as low key photography. When used in portrait photography, the term “Key” refers to the overall tone of the final photograph. The elements of the portrait that play into the tone of it are the color of the background, the color of clothing used and the color of any props or foreground elements. Portraits that have a consistent key generally have much more of an impact that those whose elements are not consistent.

There can be a great deal of variety in the approach to this lighting style. The level of drama or intennsity is directly related to the angle of the light in relationship to the subject. The more towars the front of the subject tje less dramatic the image will be. As you move more to the side the drama increases. The mood of the shot can also be greatly affectedby  the vertical relationship of the light and subject.  The portrait above uses a frontal light just slightly above the subject. This is on the low end of the dramatic scale.

Don't be confused, This is not the only way to create a dramatic portrait. I am just focusing on the use of chiaroscuro as one of the many ways to create a photgraph filled with drama and intensity.

Beautifully dramatic portraits (such as the above) can be created using fullilumination and very little use of shadow.

The use of this method can vary from a slight emergance of an image from the shadows to a brightly illuminated image that cuts through the darkness like a knife. I like to span the range from sublte to intense.

Ok now that I have blabbered on about what I love so much we can get back to the actual subject of this post. Any camera that has the ability to shoot manually can do this with ease. It is doable with just about any camera but of course like everything some tools make the job easier. With your light source (strobe, lamp, or even the sun) posotioned to one side of the subject. Ofcouurse you cant position the sun so you will  have to position the subject. A dark background or setting aides greatly in this endeavor. Your exposure settings should be adjusted for the brightest portion of the image. You are essentially shooting what your camera will mosstlikely recognise as an underexposed image. Your image can span the whole range brom black to white  but it will generally weigh heavy on the darker side with hints of light to shape and reveal the subject.

Next post I will discuss high key photography which is the counterpart to what we focused on today. Thanks for reading. Just remember keep shooting and developing your creativity.