Sometimes a client walks in and I just know. Rob and Abbie are booked in for their wedding with us next year, and when they popped in to see some recent pictures, I took one look at Rob and thought – I have to make a portrait of this man. It was too good to miss.
Dark, curly hair. A proper hipster beard. Black t-shirt and a silver chain. The moment I saw him, the monochrome studio portrait I wanted to create was already fully formed in my head. That does happen occasionally – the idea just arrives, fully formed, and all you have to do is execute it.
The shot itself is relatively straightforward, but the magic is in the lighting. This is a classic wraparound light portrait technique using two strip softboxes with grids, brought in really close on either side. That gentle wraparound light does something wonderful on a black t-shirt – it gives just enough shape and texture without pulling attention away from the face. Then I used a large 1m x 1m softbox, also with a grid, edged in close to catch the eyes. Simple folded arms. Strong, direct connection with the camera. For a dramatic black background portrait like this, that eye contact is everything.
It’s a great example of what a well-considered men’s portrait photography studio setup can achieve – not complicated, just thoughtful. The black and white male portrait treatment was always the plan. Colour would have been a distraction. In monochrome, everything just lands with more weight.
Lighting Setup
Equipment List
- Nikon Z9 with Nikon AFZ 70-200 f2.8mm
- 3x Elinchrom FIVE studio strobes
- 2x 100cm x 35cm Elinchrom Strip Softboxes
- 1x 100cm x 100cm Elinchrom Strip Softbox
- Colorama black paper backdrop
The Elinchrom FIVE portrait setup is one I keep coming back to for exactly this kind of work. Three heads, precise grid control, and enough power to hold f/16 comfortably – it just gives you everything you need for a clean, controlled monochrome studio portrait without any fuss.
Settings
- Lens at 80mm
- f/16
- 1/160s
- ISO160
- Rear lights set to same power
- Front (key) light set to balance against the rear lights