Lighting Tool - Mannequin

[Paul F]

If you need a patient model to test lights or lighting, a mannequin will sit patiently for you all day. I picked one of these up to test some lights. I mounted it on a light stand. You can also get full body mannequins. This one was $30 (wig extra). These images got squeezed for some reason. But you get the idea.

 

[egproductions]

Also useful for light shaping, positioning, posgin and understanding light on a small scale (so you don't have to pull out the big lights) are typical still life wooden mannequins:

http://www.amazon.com/Conversancy®-...47643701&sr=1-6&keywords=still+life+mannequin

 

[greytail]

Interesting...I immediately went on Amazon to look them up. Can you recommend a mannequin on Amazon that would be suitable for not only testing a head shot for lighting set ups but also for skin tones? After my disastrous experiences with the DVX200 I have developed a keen interest in this!

 

[Paul F]

I can't make a recommendation for skin color. The one I have is not a good candidate.

 

[Michael Carter]

I have one of these, but I bought it for making a really bizarre prop/hat made of huge gobs of grape vines… "her" skin is sort of "what 1950's people thought Hawaiian girls looked like".

A lot of them are very tan… might be tough to find one with normal skin. And then there's none of the subsurface scattering/translucency that makes skin hard to deal with.