Lighting setup

Dramatic Portrait with Gridded Softbox and Blue Gel

2-light Two-light setup with gridded key and gelled background. lighting setup for catalogue / fashion with a Artistic and dramatic with contrasting cool and warm tones. mood using Softbox, Grid, Blue gel.

2 lightsTwo-light setup with gridded key and gelled background.Artistic and dramatic with contrasting cool and warm tones.catalogue
Lighting diagram
Dramatic Portrait with Gridded Softbox and Blue Gel — lighting diagram
Setup PDF

Complete setup guide

What this setup creates

A two-light setup featuring an overhead gridded softbox as the key light and a gelled background light to create a dramatic and artistic portrait with cool and warm tones.

Light placement

Key light overhead camera-left, background light low camera-right.

How to build it

Key light is an overhead softbox with a grid, positioned camera-left. Background light is a strobe with a blue gel, placed low and camera-right, facing the backdrop.

Lighting style
Two-light setup with gridded key and gelled background.
Key light
45 degree
Light quality
Soft light, Low contrast
Shadows
Clean shadows, Moody
Background
Colored gel, Seamless backdrop
Colour
Cool tones, Warm tones
Visual mood
Dramatic, Cinematic, Fashion-forward, Commercial clean

Camera settings

Suggested starting point
Aperture
f/8
Shutter speed
1/160s
ISO
100
Focal length
85mm
White balance
Flash

Inferred typical studio portrait settings for a clean, sharp image with good depth of field and ambient light rejection.

Gear & modifiers

  • Softbox
  • Grid
  • Blue gel
Watch tutorial
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