Film Noir Photography

Introduction

Film noir portraits are a genre of photography that I never get tired of viewing or shooting. This classic look, made famous in the heyday of Hollywood films and portraits of the 1930s and 1940s, still captivate many people. The use of light, shadows and styling in the images creates a timeless look that is still relevant in today's world. I think the way the scenes are composed, with shadows and the implied drama, coupled with the low light aesthetic, looks iconic. The 'Hollywood' or 'film noir' style of lighting came to prominence between the 1930s and 1950s. At the time, this was the main way to market movies, movie stars and famous performers. By using light in such a way to create very powerful portraits, it further reinforced that the stars of this time were seen as different to everyone else. The images are created and lit for simplicity and emotion. This era is still considered by many (including myself) to be a golden age of photography due to the catalogue of classic images created. The photographers were using groundbreaking photography techniques. This, combined with their complete understanding of what could be achieved with the lighting available, enabled the studios to showcase and market their stars in a way that had not been seen before. These images, with their drama, elegance and sophistication started the portrait photography trend for photographers to 'paint' with light rather than just use the light to achieve an exposure. By using multiple light sources in a controlled manner with careful and creative placement, the photographers could bring a new sense of emotion and storytelling to the images, which is what makes them the timeless classics that we still enjoy today.

Fig. 0.1

This image was shot with a single speedlight placed high to the right and behind the model to create the mood in the image. Nikon D750, 24-120mm ƒ4 G, 1/400th, ƒ4, ISO 100, SB-910 Speedlight, SU-800 infrared remote trigger.

As a photographer, the actors and actresses' portraits that were used by the Hollywood studios for promotion of the current blockbuster films of the day really fascinate me, and they have been a big influence on a lot of my portraiture work. The portfolios of photographers, such as George Hurrell, Laszlo Willinger and others of this generation of 1930s and 1940s Hollywood photographers, have left us with a legacy of great images. Although arguably the images do not stand up well to technical scrutiny compared with the sharpness you can achieve with today's cameras and lenses, I still consider them to be outstanding works of photography given the cameras, lighting, lenses and printing techniques in use at the time.

In my professional photography career, I have photographed many film noir-style shoots - everything from recreating some of the iconic images to putting my own interpretation on this classic style of portraiture. The portrait shots in my portfolio that stand out as my favourites are inspired by film noir. Whether they are the product of a controlled studio shoot or have been taken on the streets in an urban environment, each of these images have something special about them. The chiaroscuro lighting used to great effect in all good film noir photography is one of my favourite forms of lighting and although initially it can look daunting to create and master, with modern speedlights or studio flashes it is actually very easy to create. Of course, it is nearly impossible to reconstruct exactly how a particular image was lit eighty or ninety years ago, however, technology has changed significantly, which makes our job as photographers easier. With film noir portraits, your ability to see, create and shape the light in the scene is the single biggest contributing factor to the success of the image. Making the shapes and shadows come to life, using either the implied menace of a shadow falling into a scene or the bright highlights of a studio portrait, is what gives us our film noir look and elevates the images beyond a standard black and white portrait.

Fig. 0.2

Here I've used two speed lights, one to light the model and the other to create extra detail in the background. Nikon D810, 24-120mm ƒ4 G, 1/500th, ƒ4, ISO 100, 2 × SB-910 Speedlights, SU-800 infrared remote trigger.

Throughout this book, I will be aiming to show how you can set up the lighting in your images to give a ratio that creates this strong contrast between light and dark, and creates the chiaroscuro lighting effect. This offers us as photographers the chance to create some amazing images. A digital darkroom also has its place in creating the film noir look; even with the dynamic range in today's digital sensors it is important to understand what can and cannot be captured 'in camera'. It's worth noting that the classic Hollywood portraits were actually heavily retouched, especially the skin, so that it appeared flawless. This was done by painting out any imperfections or making any other changes required on the negative before producing the prints. However, the one thing that cannot easily be fixed in postproduction is poor lighting. To shoot a great portrait, you need controlled lighting. This may come from one or multiple lights. When you learn to use light modifiers, such as barn doors, softboxes and snoots alongside techniques such as feathering and flagging light, you will become a photographic artist and light will be something you 'paint' on to your subject and scene. This will help you turn your everyday portraits into exciting film noir masterpieces.

One of the other big things in film noir and Hollywood portraiture is what could be considered 'fake' lighting. Many photographs of this genre have lots of lights in the images - be it a table or overhead lamp or a streetlight seeming to create a long shadow. If you actually look closely at the images and where all the shadows are really falling in the photograph you will soon realize that a lot of the lighting included in the image is for effect only and bears no relationship to the lighting falling on the main subjects in the image. The real lighting used to create the image is actually out of shot. So if you are trying to recreate some of the classic images from this period you really need to become a bit of a detective and use your photographic and perception skills to work out what, where and how the lighting is put together for any particular image. Given the body of work that exists across movies and stills for film noir, the benchmark is quite high if you start to try and recreate some of the great images. To shoot a film noir image to a high standard can be both fun and challenging at the same time. It is a real test of your lighting skills and even placing the light or subject a few centimetres out can be the difference between success and failure. By using such precisely controlled lighting we can make the most of the light we have available; be it a spotlight casting a long shadow or a rim light creating an outline of the hero or heroine. Very often when building up the lights in my images I find that I start to go on a journey with the light, which leads to doing something slightly different from my original plan and results in more experimentation. This always means that there are many more images to take or ideas to explore.

With the advances in camera and lighting technology, putting together a film noir-inspired shot can be as easy as just using a camera and one flashgun. This has made film noir photography more accessible than ever before with cameras and lighting syncing together to produce perfectly exposed images in almost any situation, even using multiple lights. With high-speed flash sync systems, we have the capability to actually shoot out on the streets in daylight and make our images look like night, or turn a bright room into an atmospherically lit interior. With the ability to capture a wide dynamic range of light and detail, mixed with digital darkroom processes that allow quick and easy manipulation of our images, we now have the tools that allow us to capture, edit and finish our images to a standard that is higher than was achievable by the Hollywood studios back in the golden era of film noir.

This book aims to make film noir photography easy to understand, helping you get to grips with the techniques and tricks that will allow you to create great photographs. It explores topics such as: essential kit, camera modes and settings to get the best possible images, and how to set up and work with a variety of different lights. There is a lot of information on creating the film noir look and chiaroscuro lighting. I will also be covering many more subjects, such as the importance of knowing what you can expect to get from your camera and how to finish your images to a high standard in the digital darkroom. Throughout this book I will explain how to take and recreate great film noir-type images, both on location and in a studio or interior shoot. I will also be covering a wide range of tips and tricks to improve your images, keep your costs down and make your lighting set-ups easy.

This book is for every level of ability, whether you are just starting out with lighting and portraits, or you are already an experienced photographer looking to try a new genre. I will start by exploring the type of images that are classed as film noir, the difference between the film noir look and standard black and white portraits, how to create chiaroscuro lighting and how to get inspired. We will then explore the equipment needed, including the cameras, lenses and the accessories that are essential to create high-quality film noir images. After that, we will take a look at...