Lighting to make muscles pop?

I have a woman physical trainer coming next week to have a shot taken for the

newspaper. She wants an upper-body shot with her curling a dumbbell. She wants

her skin and muscles to look good, with some "gleaming" or shine to highlight

the contours of her arms. Is there a simple setup that will accomplish this? I

have backdrops and several flashes, umbrellas and softboxes.

 

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mike elliott

You want specular highlights. Baby oil and direct flash would be the ticket.

Thank you, Michael. Okay, so I might try a direct flash or small softbox somewhere close to the camera for the specular highlights, and then position some soft fill light to lift shadows as needed.

 

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m.e.

Don't use a flash at camera position as this will create very flat lighting and won't show much definition. Place the flash about 45 degrees off axis from the subject and use a reflector for fill if required. Cross lighting with a flash directly opposite the key would make for a more dramatic effect.

I would agree with the 45 degree angle to make the photo more 3dimentional. I personally would use at least 3 lights in a triangle with the main lights at a 45 on either side and one light behind and to the side, making it a bit asymetrical. the baby oil is necessary, and also spraying her skin with a water spray-bottle will also help bring out sheen. I would also recomend diffusing one side and not the other if you want to use high key lighting so that one side is brighter than the other. I'm attaching a portrait that i used and also a diagramof the lighting (minus the light from above).

photo here

Michael and Caleb -- thank you! The photo and lighting diagram make it very clear. Baby oil, check. Water shpritzer, check.

 

One thing: If I could grow my hair like Tony's, I totally would!

that makes 2 of us...Good luck with your subject. YOu should suggest also a shot that plays with her feminity...what about curling something super feminine as well, or a flower in the dumbell...depends on how good her sense of humor is.

All of the photo advice above is great.

 

As a former competitive bodybuilder I can tell you that baby oil is not the best choice. The whole idea of lighting and oil in a bodybuilding show is to do exactly what you are trying to do: emphasize the muscles by defining them. The lighting needs to be exactly as others have described because soft, head-on lighting will flatten the muscles by removing all the shadows. Shadows are what creates the peaks and valleys you are looking for, just not enough shadow to notice.

 

The oil thing: baby oil turns shiny and hot in photos which is not what you want... big white hot spots. On stage they use posing oil, which is largely glycerin. It's stickier and thicker and goes on very thin leaving a sheen on the skin, but not being shiny itself. Being thick keeps it from pooling in the valleys and making a hot spot on film. If you can't locate posing oil you can definitely get glycerine. Mix it with water in your spritzer. Less is more. If you cannot locate posing oil or glycerine, suntan OIL (not lotion) like coppertone tan works fairly well. RUB IT ALL THE WAY IN. You want to notice the skin, not the oil.

 

Give her about five minutes with the weights to pump up. That will make her skin tighter and the blood will add color if she is very pale. When she gets pumped, wait two minutes if she wants the veins to subside a little. If she is a bodybuilder her desires will be different than if she is a fitness model and vice versa.

 

If she is very pale, use skin bronzer to give her a tan look. Than apply the glycerine or posing oil.

 

For backdrops, use a gym! That's the idea! If the shot is at your home, shoot in the kitchen with lots of fruit/veggies/etc. arranged on the counter around her like well-prepared dishes. She can still be curling the dumbbell as before. It's about creating a 'fitness idea' not reality as if she weight trains in her kitchen, LOL.

 

The only other thing I'd add is to go hard with the light instead of soft. You want hard shadows. Umbrellas / soft lighting will flatten her out. You want drama. You want edge. Backlight her with an off-camera flash if you can. (In addition to the main lighting.)

 

Go pick up some fitness and muscle mags for ideas. IronMan has the best photography in my opinion.

 

Don't discount Black and White. Very dramatic for muscles and lighting.

Thank you, John. Advice from someone who has been there -- a fellow can't ask for better than that!

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m.e.