Good portraits require a lot of practice and also the right hardware. As far as accessories are concerned, ring lights and stick lights have become particularly popular in recent years. With these gadgets and a specific technique, photographer Martin Schoeller, for example, has gained considerable recognition. We had professional photographer Mario Dirks explain this technique to us.
1. Why is the Martin Schoeller effect so exciting to look at in the eyes and how has it contributed to the photographer's success?
2. Why is light in the eyes so important for portraits in general?
3. What does the studio setup look like to achieve such an effect?
4. What post-processing would be necessary for this type of portrait?
5. What factors determine whether to use a ring light or a stick light?
6. What technical requirements should the respective lights meet?
1. Why is the Martin Schoeller effect so exciting to look at in the eyes and how has it contributed to the photographer's success?
Martin Schoeller became famous for his portrait series of famous personalities.
With this technique, he has portrayed many celebrities around the world. Bill Clinton, Angelina Jolie, Sting, Jack Nicholson, and also George Clooney and Angela Merkel, to name just a few.
These are close-ups. The faces in the photos fill the frame and appear very intense due to the frontal and emotionless gaze into the camera.
Schoeller's technique for this effect is always the same: he brings the camera to eye level and uses two fluorescent tubes that softly illuminate the face from the right and left.
The light reflections make the eyes appear cat-like, magically attracting the viewer's gaze. This fascinating look is enhanced by the shallow depth of field, which places a strong focus on the eyes.
2. Why is light in the eyes so important for portraits in general?
Highlights in the eyes make them appear lively. Eyes without light reflections often look dull, gloomy, and lifeless – almost as if the person were already dead.
When shooting with continuous light, the pupil usually contracts more than when shooting with flash. Therefore, the eyes and the iris, with their color, appear much more intense with continuous light.
3. What does the studio setup look like to achieve such an effect?
It's actually relatively simple.
You need a stool for the model and a white background. For the lighting of my set, I used two Lumen Sticks from Rollei, which I positioned quite close to the right and left of the model. This made the light reflections in the eye visible directly to the right and left of the pupil.
I set the color temperature of the LED lights to daylight (approx. 5600K). How bright or dark the background becomes depends on how close I place my model and the lighting in front of it.
I photographed with 85 millimeters and apertures between 1.2 and 2.0 to achieve the shallowest possible depth of field. Because the focus must be on the eyes.
4. What post-processing would be necessary for this type of portrait?
Actually almost none; the photos already look impressive straight out of the camera. In RAW development, you could make minimal adjustments to exposure, white balance, or contrast.
But to my knowledge, Schoeller doesn't edit the images either, because he says they should be honest.
5. What factors determine whether to use a ring light or a stick light?
I think it depends on the result you want to achieve. The ring light provides very soft illumination because the light falls evenly on the subject from all directions.
If I photograph or film centrally through the ring light, then I also have virtually no visible shadows on the photo or video.
A ring light can, for example, be used perfectly to shoot YouTube videos with little effort or to optimally illuminate products, for instance for online sales platforms.
If I photograph portraits with a ring light, I get an intense, round light reflection in the eyes. This should, by the way, be placed so that it ideally encircles the pupil.
6. What technical requirements should the respective lights meet? (Regarding CRI and co.)
They should be continuously dimmable in intensity. The color temperature should also be adjustable, for example, to match the ambient light.
In the past, when I photographed or filmed indoors during the day with available light (incandescent bulb), the automatic white balance adapted to the relatively warm light. However, as soon as a window became visible in the picture or daylight entered, I immediately had a blue cast in the image due to the different color temperatures.
All settings should be easy to read and the light should be controllable remotely. Ideally via a remote control or, even better, with a smartphone app. The lamps should be able to operate both with mains power (studio) and with a battery (outdoor) and still be as light and compact as possible.
Additionally, they should be able to shine in all colors so that they can possibly be used as effect lights.
Note: Please note that the Lumen Stick RGB shown in the photos is the previous version without an integrated and non-removable handle. The technical specifications of the new model with integrated handle are identical. You can use the new Lumen Stick RGB for a shoot in the same way as described and shown here.
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