Uploaded February 2021 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
One of my favorite styles of photography is "old Hollywood glam" -- mainly because it's a style that is timeless and elegant, enhanced by gorgeous costumes and lighting.
For this shoot I wanted to channel old hollywood thanks to my gorgeous model and put a modern twist on it.
I used a 5 light setup to achieve this look and I think it paid off. 🤯
Do you need 5 lights?
Absolutely not... but it depends on what you're going for. I have plenty of awesome one light setups (👉 https://lindsayadler.photo/onelight) where you can learn to shoot glam without a whole lot of gear, but in this case every light has a specific job:
💡 Light 1: Barebulb as the main light + 5 degree grid
💡 Light 2: 1x4' strip softbox for rim (back left)
💡 Light 3: 1x4' strip softbox for rim (back right)
💡 Light 4: Barebulb with purple gel (front left) - fill
💡 Light 5: Barebulb with cyan gel (front right) - fill
So while you may think that using 5 lights is overkill, when you're on set building an image you start off with an idea, then incrementally add lights to achieve the desired look.
For this shoot, the addition of 2 hard front fill lights helped to illuminate the dress and create specular highlights perfect for adding a star filter. Plus, adding gels helped me to reinforce the mood of the shoot!
As I mentioned above, you don't necessarily NEED 5 lights to get a similar look. I urge you to experiment with what you have and see what you can come up with, there are many different ways to achieve creative effect! For me, this was the eventuality as I went through the process of building the image and I'm happy with the end results. 😃
So what do you think? Drop a comment below and let me know your thoughts if this is something you'd try and tell me the most amount of lights you've ever used for a shoot!👇
📸 Gear Used:
✅ Canon EOS R5: https://prf.hn/l/7oZobqW/
✅ Canon 24-105mm: https://prf.hn/l/deZLnJq/
✅ Profoto D1: (discontinued, linking to new D3): https://prf.hn/l/K9ENnmk/
✅ Profoto 5 degree grid: https://prf.hn/l/aWPNNYl/
✅ Profoto 1x4' strip softbox: https://prf.hn/l/7gzpRAa/
✅ Profoto air remote: https://prf.hn/l/Kz4yPNW/
✅ Star filter: https://prf.hn/l/xE1AW0N/
✅ Savage Seamless Tulip background: https://prf.hn/l/7BxvEew/
✅ Avenger D600 boom arm: https://prf.hn/l/EJDBPD2/
✅ Tethertools tether cable: https://prf.hn/l/vwzRaoJ/
✅ Rosco Creative Effects Gel Kit: https://prf.hn/l/7gzpR9a/
🔥 For more lighting techniques be sure to check out my class Master Studio Lighting: invite.lindsayadlerphotography.com/master-studio-lighting
🔥 To learn more about Gels and how to achieve looks like this check out my class the Magic of Gels: invite.lindsayadlerphotography.com/magic-of-gels
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👉 Portfolio: lindsayadlerphotography.com
👉 Instagram: instagram.com/lindsayadler_photo
👉 Facebook: facebook.com/lindsayadlerphotography
👉 Twitter: twitter.com/lindsayadler
👉 Education: learn.lindsayadlerphotography.com
Some of the links in this description contain affiliate links to partners.
One of my favorite styles of photography is "old Hollywood glam" -- mainly because it's a style that is timeless and elegant, enhanced by gorgeous costumes and lighting.
For this shoot I wanted to channel old hollywood thanks to my gorgeous model and put a modern twist on it.
I used a 5 light setup to achieve this look and I think it paid off. 🤯
Do you need 5 lights?
Absolutely not... but it depends on what you're going for. I have plenty of awesome one light setups (👉 https://lindsayadler.photo/onelight) where you can learn to shoot glam without a whole lot of gear, but in this case every light has a specific job:
💡 Light 1: Barebulb as the main light + 5 degree grid
💡 Light 2: 1x4' strip softbox for rim (back left)
💡 Light 3: 1x4' strip softbox for rim (back right)
💡 Light 4: Barebulb with purple gel (front left) - fill
💡 Light 5: Barebulb with cyan gel (front right) - fill
So while you may think that using 5 lights is overkill, when you're on set building an image you start off with an idea, then incrementally add lights to achieve the desired look.
For this shoot, the addition of 2 hard front fill lights helped to illuminate the dress and create specular highlights perfect for adding a star filter. Plus, adding gels helped me to reinforce the mood of the shoot!
As I mentioned above, you don't necessarily NEED 5 lights to get a similar look. I urge you to experiment with what you have and see what you can come up with, there are many different ways to achieve creative effect! For me, this was the eventuality as I went through the process of building the image and I'm happy with the end results. 😃
So what do you think? Drop a comment below and let me know your thoughts if this is something you'd try and tell me the most amount of lights you've ever used for a shoot!👇
📸 Gear Used:
✅ Canon EOS R5: https://prf.hn/l/7oZobqW/
✅ Canon 24-105mm: https://prf.hn/l/deZLnJq/
✅ Profoto D1: (discontinued, linking to new D3): https://prf.hn/l/K9ENnmk/
✅ Profoto 5 degree grid: https://prf.hn/l/aWPNNYl/
✅ Profoto 1x4' strip softbox: https://prf.hn/l/7gzpRAa/
✅ Profoto air remote: https://prf.hn/l/Kz4yPNW/
✅ Star filter: https://prf.hn/l/xE1AW0N/
✅ Savage Seamless Tulip background: https://prf.hn/l/7BxvEew/
✅ Avenger D600 boom arm: https://prf.hn/l/EJDBPD2/
✅ Tethertools tether cable: https://prf.hn/l/vwzRaoJ/
✅ Rosco Creative Effects Gel Kit: https://prf.hn/l/7gzpR9a/
🔥 For more lighting techniques be sure to check out my class Master Studio Lighting: invite.lindsayadlerphotography.com/master-studio-lighting
🔥 To learn more about Gels and how to achieve looks like this check out my class the Magic of Gels: invite.lindsayadlerphotography.com/magic-of-gels
----
👉 Portfolio: lindsayadlerphotography.com
👉 Instagram: instagram.com/lindsayadler_photo
👉 Facebook: facebook.com/lindsayadlerphotography
👉 Twitter: twitter.com/lindsayadler
👉 Education: learn.lindsayadlerphotography.com
Some of the links in this description contain affiliate links to partners.
