Can You Successfully Use LED Lights for Portraits?



LED lights are all the rage these days. Though they’re already used quite a bit in the video industry, they’re starting to make their way into the stills side of things, with folks like Peter Hurley embracing them. This great video examines the process of shooting portraits with LED panels, as well as the pros and cons of using them over strobes.

Coming to you from The Slanted Lens, this helpful video follows Jay P. Morgan as he does a 1920s stylized portrait shoot using LED lighting panels. LEDs are an interesting choice: they sip power and are usually fully dimmable. Many also offer adjustable color temperature, making it easy to precisely match ambient light. They’re typically rather light as well. Furthermore, as with all continuous lights, you’ll see exactly how the light is falling on your subject in real time. On the flip side, their power output is often below that of high-powered monolights, making it difficult to shoot at narrower apertures or to stop action. Perhaps the greatest drawback for me personally is the difficulty of modifying such lights. Nonetheless, if you frequently switch between stills and video or you don’t mind the cons, they’re an intriguing option.



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