Working out flash setups in advance

Monday 31 May 2021, 20:20 by Nando Harmsen | 5,095 views | 4 comments

This article was translated from Dutch with the help of AI. Read the original.

Creating a good lighting setup can be difficult. It is not much fun working it out once your model is already in the studio. What if you could do it beforehand? You can, with software such as Set.a.light.3D.

Setting up the light in the right or desired way can take time. Especially if the result is not quite what you wanted and you have to adjust the position or height of your lamp or lamps. You would not be the first person to feel rushed because of this.

It is a shame if that unjustified feeling makes you settle for a lighting setup that is not quite right, or if you use the wrong softbox or light modifier because you think choosing another one will take too much time.

Madouc in my own living room studio. I hung a large softbox directly above her. But what if it is not quite right? Work everything out again with the model there?
Wouldn't it be useful to come up with a good lighting setup beforehand? With the right lamps, the best position, height or light modifier? Of course, you can look for examples online in advance. Or you can choose a programme such as Set.a.light.3D.

Set.a.light.3D

I came across Set.a.light.3D by Elixxier Software by chance. It is a German product, but fortunately the programme is also available in English.

The programme is not free. There is a basic version and a studio version, both available for Windows and Apple. With a trial version, you can try it out without restrictions for 15 days.

This screenshot from Set.a.light.3D gives you an idea of how extensive the programme is.
With this software, it proved relatively easy to see how the light changes when you place and move lamps, and how the shadows fall in your studio and even on your model. You can recreate your own studio and choose from a wide range of different models. In the programme, that is.

You can adjust poses, use one model or several, add props, backgrounds... the possibilities seem endless. With a bit of practice, you can create several lighting setups in a very efficient way.

Once you have created them, it is simply a matter of arranging the lamps and other equipment in the way you worked out in the programme. Fine-tuning is all that remains when your model is ready for the shoot.

In practice

I prepared several photo sessions with this programme, including the session I had with Iris for the recording of the Advanced Focusing course on Photofacts Academy. A session in my own living room studio was also very easy to prepare.

The lighting setup I came up with for Ilke, and the result next to it.

A free alternative

Not everyone has 80 euros to spare or available for a programme such as Set.a.light.3D. Of course, there are alternatives to be found as well. The Online Lightning Diagram Creator is one of them.

This online programme is nowhere near as comprehensive, but it can certainly help you build a list of several good, working lighting setups.
However, it does not show the results of placing your lamps. It gives you the option to create a sketch of a lighting setup. This can be useful when you want to build your own list of setups, if necessary including examples.

This allows you to easily choose from your own database during your next session. That way, you start your photo shoot well prepared and no longer have to get frustrated while working out your lighting setup.

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