How to Create Believable Window Light Without a Window

You can get “window light” even when there isn’t a usable window, and the difference between fake and believable usually comes down to a few small decisions. If you shoot portraits in a controlled space, this approach gives you a repeatable look without waiting on weather, time of day, or room layout.

Coming to you from Julie Gayler with Westcott Lighting, this practical video lays out a simple method for building fake window light using the Westcott Optical Spot by Lindsay Adler and a strobe setup anchored by the Westcott FJ800. Gayler frames the look around three choices: the kind of “window” you want to suggest, the direction that light should come from, and how you manage fill so shadows still carry detail. The “window” part is handled with the Optical Spot and a pattern insert that reads like blinds, which is the fastest way to sell the idea without building a set. The direction point is easy to miss in a studio because it’s tempting to put the effect straight on your subject, but the scene only feels right when that “window” is placed to the side like a real window would be. The fill point is where most fake window-light attempts fall apart, and the video treats that as the main problem to solve.

The lighting order is the real takeaway, and it’s not the order most people use when they’re excited about the pattern. Gayler starts by lighting the darkest parts first, then adds the shaping light last, which keeps you from chasing your own tail with power changes. One of the fill sources sits behind the subject, using an Westcott FJ400 II paired with a Beauty Dish Switch by Joel Grimes (24”) to lift the deep tones around hair, shoulders, and the chair without creating a second obvious “sun.” Then a front fill comes in as a separate light, again built around an Westcott FJ400 II but with a Beauty Dish Switch by Manny Ortiz (36”), aimed to raise the room-level shadows the way real window light bounces off walls and floors. Control is handled through the Westcott FJ-T1 Touchscreen Wireless Trigger, and the idea is to set shadow density on purpose instead of fixing it later.

Once the base exposure feels right, the “blinds” effect becomes a creative choice instead of a rescue move. The video shows how you can tune the Optical Spot pattern from crisp to softer by adjusting the focus, which changes the emotional read of the portrait fast. A sharper pattern pushes a harder, more stylized look, while a slightly blurred pattern can feel closer to daylight that’s been diffused by a real room. There’s also a practical posing issue that only shows up once the pattern is on: as the subject turns, the face can drift into a dark stripe, so you end up coaching small chin and eye-line adjustments to keep features in the lit gaps. 

The camera position advice is the kind that saves time on set. Gayler explains that once your light-to-subject distance stays consistent, you can change angles without your exposure swinging around, so you can “choose the drama” by shooting more into the shadow side or more with the direction of the faux window. That’s useful when you need two different moods from one setup, or when the set dressing forces you into a less-than-ideal spot. The video also hints at how many variations you can get by swapping the pattern insert and by changing fill levels. You’ll also see how the pattern behaves across a full scene, not just on a face, which is where most still examples leave you guessing. Check out the video above for the full rundown from Gayler.

If you would like to continue learning about how to light a portrait, be sure to check out "Illuminating The Face: Lighting for Headshots and Portraits With Peter Hurley!"