A “Gobo” And How To Use It
by William Lulow
Note: There are many uses for “gobos.” They are handy tools for any photographer and their use is designed to keep unwanted light from hitting the camera lens. When you are out on location, get used to using objects like trees, houses or other structures to keep light off the camera lens. Sometimes I have actually used my hat!
Funny name for a lighting tool, but a “gobo” is photographic nomenclature for an object, usually a black card, that “goes between” a light source and an object. It is usually used to keep light from spilling over to where it is not wanted or needed. For instance, if you have an Edge Light set up and it is aimed at the subject, you obviously do not want that light spilling over on to the background. So, the best way to do this is to set up a black card “gobo” on one side of the light which will prevent it from hitting the background.
Here is a diagram of how gobos should be used. If you look at the lights behind the subject you can see black cards positioned to keep that light from spilling over onto the background:
Gobos can be used almost anywhere when you want to keep light from spilling over onto something. Gobos should be black so as not to reflect any light. In this particular use, the gobos are used not only to keep the light from hitting the subject, but from hitting the background as well.
Here is a studio setup using gobos:
Here, the gobos are being used to keep background lights from spilling over to the subject. This setup was used to render a completely white background for full-length shots as well as head shots, all done at the same time. Here is one result. In order to achieve this result you need to balance the exposure on the background with that on the foreground as well:
Here is another use of gobos to keep accent lights from hitting the camera lens:
Gobos can be made of almost any material as long as it doesn’t reflect light. Another type of gobo is called a “barn door.” These are gobos that are actually attached to a light source and can be opened or closed to block off varying amounts of light.
So, gobos are light modifiers that enable the photographer to put light just where it is desired and needed most. They should be part of any studio’s arsenal of light-controlling devices.
When you are out on location or just making images, you can use some natural objects as gobos. Here’s an example:
In this shot, I was using the tree on the left to try and shield the lens from the sun’s rays, only letting in as much as I wanted. Here’s one where I used my hat as a gobo to shield the lens from a backlight situation:
Wherever you may be shooting, there is always something you can use as a gobo. When I was shooting on the street in New York City, I often used the awnings of buildings as gobos and told my subjects to “go stand in the sun. Here’s an example where I had an assistant hold a black umbrella to shade me from the sun to create a backlight situation:
So when you are out shooting pictures of people, try to position yourself in the shade and use the object that provides it as a gobo. Then you can get some really nice looking backlight situations that make for great images.
