3 Lighting Tricks That Transform Men’s Portraits | Lindsay Adler

In this video, I demonstrate three creative lighting techniques for men’s portraits that go beyond the standard, ‘safe’ setups. While creative portraiture and fashion often leans heavily toward photographing women, today I want to show you how to bring that same level of creativity, drama, and intention to photographing men. Light can be the secret ingredient to adding drama and creative flair, even when not utilizing creative hair, makeup, or wardrobe. In these setups I’ll show how I use color theory and gels (triadic color), a shutter drag technique (for motion and energy), and a specialty modifier (paired with a smoke machine) to create eye-catching, cinematic results. Even better, all three looks are built from the same four-light setup with small changes that make a dramatic difference. In this behind-the-scenes breakdown, I walk you through • Using color harmonies and gels to create bold, intentional looks • Mixing strobes and continuous light for creative shutter drag effects • Controlling light with grids and specialty modifiers • Creating mood and atmosphere • How subtle tweaks to modifiers, gels, and camera settings completely transform a portrait These techniques are designed to inspire you to experiment, remix ideas, and push men’s portraiture into more expressive, creative territory. If you want to go much deeper into the topic of creative lighting, check out my brand new Creative Lighting Guide 3 (lindsayadler.photo/clg) where I break down 35+ additional setups with diagrams, camera settings, and behind-the-scenes photos including projectors, lasers, light painting, and more. Or you can check out even more of my lighting guides for creative inspiration at learnwithlindsay.com Shutter drag videos: https://youtu.be/-mXFpVSzzys?si=gXvhSoX1d0s-Koy- https://youtu.be/G2Ge6rZ4IaY?si=KM6Y5hzxr0SFNUhY SUBSCRIBE AND BE PART OF THE ADORAMA FAMILY: ➥ https://www.youtube.com/user/adoramaTV __________________________________ Be the first to shop our great deals and sales by signing up for emails from Adorama! https://www.adorama.com/MyAccount/Login 🔷 Save 5% Every Day† or Special Financing* On purchases of $199+ with the Adorama Edge Credit Card. Learn More: https://www.adorama.com/g/adorama-credit. __________________________________ ✘ GEAR USED: Profoto Pro-D3 750Ws Monolight https://prf.hn/l/W4E952Q/ NanLite PavoTube II 15C 2' 30W RGBWW LED Tube 2-Light Kit (2-foot RGB tube) https://prf.hn/l/LAXJjq3/ Profoto 1x4' RFi Softbox, Strip https://prf.hn/l/7gzpRAa/ Profoto 1x4' 50 Degree Softbox Grid https://prf.hn/l/jXO1wM9/ Profoto Softlight Kit (Beauty dish with grid) https://prf.hn/l/rpZO1J5/ Westcott Optical Spot (with 150mm lens) https://prf.hn/l/G9DRROp/ Canon EOS R5 Mirrorless Camera https://prf.hn/l/w94R48j/ Canon RF 24-105mm f/2.8 L IS USM Z Lens https://prf.hn/l/55AEzkR/ Savage 107"x36' Widetone Seamless Background Paper Fashion Gray Single https://prf.hn/l/7gzpjPy/ PMI SmokeNINJA Smoke Machine Full Kit https://prf.hn/l/0eEXwoY/ Adobe Color Wheel www.color.adobe.com Rosco Color Effects Filter Kit, 12 x 12" Sheets https://prf.hn/l/7gzpR9a/ #lightingtutorial #portraitphotography #adorama __________________________________ ❐ LET'S GET SOCIAL ❏ ➥ TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@adoramanyc ➥ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/adorama/ ➥ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/adorama/ ➥ X https://x.com/adorama ➥ Discord https://www.adorama.com/discord ❐ MORE ADORAMA ❏ ➥ Shop https://www.adorama.com/ ➥ Blog https://www.adorama.com/alc/ ➥ Adorama Events https://www.youtube.com/@AdoramaEvents __________________________________ Learn more from Lindsay at Learnwithlindsay.com __________________________________ THANKS SO MUCH FOR WATCHING!