No practical knowledge, but just thinking through: I would think you would want the room dark, with a single focused light source (flashlight, spotlight, bullet lantern, that kind of thing) pointing at the subject, who is sitting in front of the desired medium. (Spotlight would not be my first choice unless it's dimmed down, as you want neither your artist nor your subject to be blinded.) The light source should theoretically be even with the subject's head, and the subject should be as close to the medium as practical, to minimize angular distortion. The medium should be secured as tightly as possible to avoid movement while transferring the projected silhouette onto it.
A single light source with as little outside light pollution as possible is crucial, as additional light sources will cast additional shadows and possibly muddle the crispness and clarity of the finished product.
Possibly a single light set up from behind the subject? (I say this same as Trevor... no practical knowledge whatsoever, but I think I've seen this done.)
Wait wait, back up... what is this silhouette being used for?
Camera, subject, light behind (or behind and above) subject that is soft, pointing at subject, light pointing away from subject and hard, then a backdrop.
If you don't want the halo effect around the subject, only have the light pointing away from the subject onto the backdrop.
This will be hard to take with an automatic camera (or any camera set to automatic). You'll need to manually decrease the exposure by as much as 3 or 4 stops.
That being said, as long as you have a bright background and underexpose, you should be able to take a decent silhouette.
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A single light source with as little outside light pollution as possible is crucial, as additional light sources will cast additional shadows and possibly muddle the crispness and clarity of the finished product.
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Wait wait, back up... what is this silhouette being used for?
-WF
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Camera, subject, light behind (or behind and above) subject that is soft, pointing at subject, light pointing away from subject and hard, then a backdrop.
If you don't want the halo effect around the subject, only have the light pointing away from the subject onto the backdrop.
This will be hard to take with an automatic camera (or any camera set to automatic). You'll need to manually decrease the exposure by as much as 3 or 4 stops.
That being said, as long as you have a bright background and underexpose, you should be able to take a decent silhouette.
Reply
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