How to set up and shoot ring heart shadows

October 22, 2015Kathrine Anker

In this tutorial we show you how to distort the shadow of a ring into an arty shape that makes a heart. This ring heart shadow technique is very popular in stock photography.

One way of creating stylish fine art images is by using clever lighting techniques to make interesting shapes with shadows.

‘Ring heart’ shadow pictures are some of the most commonly bought stock photos and a staple of greeting cards, and in this project we’ll show you how to recreate the classic ring heart shadow effect by placing a ring between the pages of an open book.

The effect is achieved by positioning a single light source behind the ring so it casts a shadow on the pages, with the curves of the open book distorting the shadow so that it becomes heart-shaped rather than oval.

The exact shape of the shadow will vary depending on several factors, including the power and positioning of the light and the position of the ring and your camera, so you’ll need to play around with the setup to get the effect you want.

Step by step Shooting shadows

01 Shine a light
For the best results position a powerful light source behind the book. We used a small Manfrotto LED light, but an angle-poise desk lamp works well too.

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02 Shape the shadow
Elevate the light source so the shadow forms a tight heart shape, and shoot the setup from slightly above at a shallow angle, so the shadow is well defined.

03 Depth of field
To ensure that both the ring and shadow are in focus, set a mid-range aperture such as f/5.6. Use Live View mode to help you compose and focus your shot.

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Get the best composition

Although lying the ring down flat across the pages of the book is the easiest way to create the heart shadow effect, positioning the ring upright will give you a more pronounced heart shape.

Make sure you leave plenty of space around the ring and its shadow, so that you can crop the image to create the desired composition

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