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Midnight Studio
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Chapters
Overview
Read the light
The set-ups
Painting and photography
In the studio
Keep reading
3D Light Study
1. The four basic forms2. The values of light3. Where the light comes from4. Hard light, soft light and distance5. Cast shadows and lamp height6. Portrait lighting patterns7. The planes of the head8. Hands and feet9. The figure and the mass10. Colour, temperature and the second lamp11. Composing a still life with light
VOLUX Academy — 3D Light Study

The figure and the mass

Light on the whole body: big shapes first
Lesson 9 of 11Hands, feet and figureAcademy and Pro
Overview

On a whole figure the light shows the big masses before any detail: the torso, the pelvis, the legs, the arms as separate volumes that turn away from the lamp. Top light makes the chest and shoulders bright and the eyes and the underside of the arms dark.

None
100° toward the picture’s left, 10° above · values on the form 32% to 73%

Side light divides the body into a lit half and a shadow half. Back or rim light draws the outline and is the favourite of illustrators for heroic figures.

0°90°180°-90°CAMERATHE SET-UPS FROM ABOVE: + IS TOWARD THE PICTURE'S LEFT3/4 HIGH 55°SIDE 100°RIM 160°
· · ·
Read the light

What to look for

With side light, the figure divides into a lit half and a shadow half; look for the core shadow down the torso.
100° toward the picture’s left, 10° above · values on the form 32% to 73%
1

With side light, the figure divides into a lit half and a shadow half; look for the core shadow down the torso.

FROM ABOVEFROM THE SIDECAMERACAMERA
AZ 100° EL 10°
darkest 32%average 43%brightest 73%lit 21%
With top light, the shoulders and head are bright; the legs fade into shadow.
55° toward the picture’s left, 40° above · values on the form 37% to 78%
2

With top light, the shoulders and head are bright; the legs fade into shadow.

FROM ABOVEFROM THE SIDECAMERACAMERA
AZ 55° EL 40°
darkest 37%average 57%brightest 78%lit 56%
Rim light separates the figure from the background with a thin bright edge.
160° toward the picture’s left, 30° above (behind the subject) · values on the form 33% to 49%
3

Rim light separates the figure from the background with a thin bright edge.

FROM ABOVEFROM THE SIDECAMERACAMERA
AZ 160° EL 30°
darkest 33%average 39%brightest 49%lit 25%
The cast shadow on the floor shows the pose as a flat, stretched version of the figure.
55° toward the picture’s left, 40° above · values on the form 35% to 76%
4

The cast shadow on the floor shows the pose as a flat, stretched version of the figure.

FROM ABOVEFROM THE SIDECAMERACAMERA
AZ 55° EL 40°
darkest 35%average 57%brightest 76%lit 56%

Light a whole figure and ask where the large masses are: head, chest, hips, legs. Side light separates them; frontal light flattens them.

Standing figure
Standing figure
Seated figure
Seated figure
· · ·
Set-ups

The set-ups, with numbers

Each card is one lamp position: the picture it makes, a diagram of where the lamp stands (azimuth is measured from the camera: 0° is a lamp at the camera, positive turns it toward the picture’s left, 180° is straight behind; elevation is the angle above the table), and the values measured on the form itself.

3/4 high
3/4 highFROM ABOVEFROM THE SIDECAMERACAMERA
AZ 55° EL 40°
darkest 37%average 57%brightest 78%lit 56%
Load in the room →
Side
SideFROM ABOVEFROM THE SIDECAMERACAMERA
AZ 100° EL 10°
darkest 32%average 43%brightest 73%lit 21%
Load in the room →
Rim
RimFROM ABOVEFROM THE SIDECAMERACAMERA
AZ 160° EL 30°
darkest 33%average 39%brightest 49%lit 25%
Load in the room →
· · ·
Two traditions

In painting and in photography

In painting

Classical figure drawing begins with a few large masses of light and shadow, and only then moves to the parts. The mass comes first, the muscle second.

None
55° toward the picture’s left, 40° above · values on the form 37% to 78%
In photography

Full-length shooting uses large sources and distance so the light stays even from head to feet. A lamp placed near the head lights it far more strongly than the feet.

None
160° toward the picture’s left, 30° above (behind the subject) · values on the form 33% to 49%
· · ·
In the Light Study Room

Now you

Pick any of the 42 poses (male and female, standing, sitting, lotus, running). Keep the lamp at 3/4 first, then move it behind. Use Turntable to see the same light from every side of the body.

Open this lesson in the Light Study Room

The room opens with the shape and the first set-up already loaded, and the same diagram you see here follows your lamp as you move it. Drag the lamp’s marker on the picture, or move it on the pad, and switch between Picture, Light only, Surface and Shadow. Or open it from inside the studio: the Study button in the bottom bar, then Academy lessons. The Light Study Room is a separate classroom for learning light on 3D shapes; when you are ready, “Send to studio” takes the shape into the main editor.

Exercises

  1. Use Turntable to see the same side light on all four sides of the standing figure.
  2. Place the lamp above and ask where the eyes are.
  3. Switch between standing and lotus: where does the cast shadow tell you more about the pose?
· · ·
Keep reading

The masters of this idea

Michelangelo →Frazetta →Alex Ross →

← Hands and feetAll lessonsColour, temperature and the second lamp →