How to Light a Portrait Background: 5 Tips with Tony Gale

Professional photographer Tony Gale shares his portrait photography tips when lighting a backdrop, from a bright white background to a bold, saturated color background.
More from Tony Gale
- www.tonygale.com/
- / tonygale
- / tonygalephotography
- / tonygalephoto
Similar photography tutorials
- Photography Lighting 101: bhpho.to/36JLmFH
- Studio Strobe Lighting Series: bhpho.to/2F1uZGI
- 5 Tips for Flash Portrait Photography: bhpho.to/2YG1Tql
- Perfect Your Portraits with Posing and Lighting: bhpho.to/316H2S5
Camera gear mentioned
- Photography Background Materials & Equipment: bhpho.to/3f1yQql
- Color gels: bhpho.to/3u3iqlm
- Sony Alpha a7R II Mirrorless Digital Camera: bhpho.to/33XcdwL
- Sony Alpha a7R III Mirrorless Digital Camera: bhpho.to/2PQxaD4
- Sony FE 24-70mm f/2.8 GM Lens: bhpho.to/3u2cY2i
Shop @ B&H:
www.bhphotovideo.com/
Subscribe to the B&H Photo UA-cam Channel
- bit.ly/SubscribetoBHPhoto
Follow us on Social Media
- / bhphoto
- / bhphoto
- / bhphotovideo
#PortraitPhotography #PortraitLighting #LightingTutorial

[@BandH]

How do you light your portraits?

[@wkuhlewind8928]

Short, sweet, and to the point. Wonderfully and efficiently expressed.

[@JasonPatz]

Short but information packed and the example photos are gorgeous.

[@scot.langdon.photog]

Awesome tips!! Thanks Tony!

[@KevinRusso]

Love the black background with a colored gel tip. Going to use that for sure. Thanks

[@reneemedia4637]

Love this. Thank you for sharing!

[@jargonfreehelp]

Great photos. Great tips. Thanks so much.

[@kineticuncertainty]

Very cool tips. Thanks I learned a few things

[@lashawndajones5854]

great tips, thanks!

[@sakavouras]

Awesome

[@nigelowen9618]

great tips...thanks

[@JamesTing-US]

Thanks for the tips.

[@janrance8887]

This sooo helpful. Thank you

[@Call_Me_Mom]

Thank you. That was very informative.

[@DianaPinelo]

WOW, thanks ! all are very interesting!

[@raulsupnetmd]

Very informative! Thanks!

[@samueltrujillophotography]

That was awesome 👍👍👍👍

[@seanmccc8142]

Boom! So that's how I do a fade to black halo background effect! Thanks!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@TaukaFM]

Would like to see the light setups too

[@acraftman2823]

Thanks for posting imaginative , precise, to the point , inspiring, nuff said.

[@BugBobsWildWorld]

Nice tips. Perhaps something about selecting a background color. Should it pick up a color from the subject? Be opposite of it? Or?

[@p.g.c.9784]

Hi Tony, excellent and easyto understand video. Only one suggestion, let people know where to find you on the web at the beginning of the video. People tend to stop watching when they get the information they need. Thanks

[@WalterBislin]

genial!

[@tahoeturk]

Quick and to the point. I might try to incorporate a couple of these in an upcoming personality shoot, the ‘cookie’ and gel on black.

[@ajaxrodriguez8956]

How far away was the cookie cutout from the light source? Did you use a grid?

[@rockj8197]

How do you get an evenly lit gray or colored background?

[@BandH]

It would be a matter of using two or more light sources pointed at the background whether from left to right at 45 degrees or above the background. The light source for the background should be of the same type used to light your subject.

[@ashrafulatik8978]

Hi. Do you prefer AI tools to automate the clipping path process? Actually, I've found Autoretouch to automate this. Need your opinion regarding this.

[@BandH]

Please e-mail us: [e-mail] >Mark

[@anamits]

You seem to specialise in portraits of writers/authors... recognised Salman Rushdie and Arundhati Roy...

[@kungula]

it would have been good tips if you would have taken a bit more time to explain how to do it.Less than 10 minutes makes no sense to me, sorry

[@jackbnmbl7]

Yes. Even just a pulled back shot of the whole setup.