Had an interesting experience a couple of weeks ago. I’d been rooting through a bunch of old rolls of seamless background paper, culling the herd, so to speak, when I found a 6’ wide roll of tracing paper that I’d completely forgotten about. I’d originally bought it to diffuse window light (it worked beautifully) and then put it away when the job was done. Over the course of time it just got buried behind the rest of the rolls.

One of my favorite techniques is to shoot through some sort of barrier; lace or sheer cloth being high on the list. It’s a trick that’s both evocative and useful because the images, being somewhat anonymous, make interesting stock and portfolio shots.

Tracing paper, being what it is, will transmit light differently than cloth. In this case, almost all detail will be lost beyond those parts of the subject that are closest to the paper. Further, the larger the light source behind the subject, the more the light will wrap around the subject, resulting in super-soft edges with just enough detail to define the subject.

I decided to use a very large softbox as my source, my Lastolite HiLite, a 6×7 box with room for two lights, one on each side. This accessory is typically used to create clean, pure white backgrounds for high key images but will produce the broad, wraparound source I’m looking for.

In my new book, Christopher Grey’s Studio Lighting Techniques for Photography, due to be released in November, I write that, “I’ve got a thing about menacing imagery with threatening characters. Part of it has to do with my love of bad scary movies, part of it is because the majority of what I’m hired to shoot is “warm and fuzzy.” True enough, but for this shoot I wanted to combine an impending danger with beauty and elegance.

The HiLite was set about six feet behind the paper and the paper was flagged off on both sides with sheets black foamcore to keep any spill from reaching the lens. My model, who wore a beautiful vintage negligee, was positioned very close to the paper to hold some detail in her side and in the weapon she would be carrying. By varying the closeness of the weapon to the paper I would be able to vary the degree of sharpness in her body and in the weapon itself. I metered from the camera side of the paper and then set the exposure 1 2/3 stops over what was indicated. This much overexposure guaranteed a pure white “background” as well as a nebulous, soft figure showing through. Note that any softbox will work but the effect on the figure will change the look of the image.

I did a little research before writing this. The widest roll of tracing paper I was able to find is 36” and made by Bienfang. That’s not to say that there’s not wider paper out there, but the 36” width will work just fine. You’ll have to extend the sides in Photoshop, of course, but that’s an easy fix. Obviously, this trick would work well with other subject matter.

Shoot well, and prosper.

Check out and preorder (if you wish) my new book, published by my friends at Amherst Media and released this November. Signed copies will be available at my website as soon as the book is ready.