From the Arch Club Journal

The exposure triangle for modeling, and the film to load

Skin, shape and stillness. How to set film speed, aperture and shutter when the subject is a person.

Written by Arch Club, which photographs its models only on film.

The triangle in one minute

Every exposure balances three things. Film speed (ISO) is how sensitive the film is to light. Aperture (the f-number) is how wide the lens opens, and it decides how much of the picture is sharp from front to back. Shutter speed is how long the light falls on the film, and it decides whether movement freezes or blurs. Open one by a stop and you can close another by a stop for the same exposure.

Film adds one twist: you choose the ISO when you load the roll, and it stays fixed for every frame. So the film you pick before you leave home is the first and biggest exposure decision you make.

What matters with a model

I
Aperture sets what is sharp.Close up, depth of field is very thin. Wide open, only the toes may be in focus while the heel melts away. For a whole foot in sharp detail, stop down to f/8 or f/11. Open up to f/2.8 only when you want one detail and a soft fall-off.
II
Shutter keeps it steady.Handheld, a good rule is a shutter speed at least as fast as the lens length: 1/125 for a 100mm lens. With studio strobes the flash freezes the moment, so the shutter just needs to sit at or below the camera's sync speed.
III
Film speed follows the light.Under strobes, slow film costs nothing and gives the finest grain. By a window, a 400 speed film buys the aperture and shutter you need.
IV
Give skin a little extra.Colour negative film forgives overexposure far more than underexposure. Many portrait photographers rate Portra a third to a full stop slower than the box for softer, cleaner skin.

Starting points

LightFilmApertureShutter
Studio strobesPortra 160 or Delta 100f/8 to f/11Sync speed or slower
Window lightPortra 400 or HP5 Plusf/2.8 to f/4Meter it, 1/60 or faster
Bright sunPortra 160f/161/125

Strobe settings depend on the power of your lights, so confirm with a flash meter.

The film to load

I
Kodak Portra 160.Fine grain and gentle, true skin tones. Our first choice under studio light.
II
Kodak Portra 400.The same palette with two more stops of speed, for natural light and movement.
III
Fujifilm Acros II or Ilford Delta 100.Smooth, fine black and white that renders skin as soft gradation.
IV
Ilford HP5 Plus.Classic grain and wide latitude when the light is low or changing.
Close down for the shape, slow down for the grain, and give the skin a little more light than the meter asks.
White marble stilettos with red marble straps on a black marble plinth
Shot on film at Arch Club

ARCH CLUB

A members' club for foot photography, shot only on film.

Every Arch Club photograph is made on a Canon EOS-1V, a Mamiya 7 or a Fuji GW690II, with real models in New York and never AI. Members receive new film photographs every month, and collectors can own the original negative, sealed in display resin with a print of their choice.

Membership$49.99/mo
Polaroid$111
4×6 print$200
Negatives$1,100 to $2,000
Cameras35mm, 6×7, 6×9
Become a MemberBecome a Model

Anyone can find a picture. Few will ever hold a photograph.

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Published by Arch Club, Brooklyn, New York.