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Nature of Light and its Sources
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Direction: Where is the light coming from—the front, the side,
or behind?
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Intensity: How bright is each light source?
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Color: What color is the light—white, red, blue…?
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Contrast: Is the transition from the highlights to the
shadows subtle or sudden?
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Hardness: What do the edges of the shadows look like?
Where is the light coming from—the front, the side,
or behind?
The direction of
light has a tremendous amount to do with creating a sense of shape and texture
in your images. To be a bit more precise, the direction of light controls the
width of the shadows. And it’s the shadows that create a sense of shape and
texture in your photographs.
Why are shadows
important? When we look at a scene, we see depth because the separation between
our eyes gives us the ability to see stereoscopically. We see in three
dimensions: height, width, and depth. Yet, when your photograph of that scene
appears onscreen or is printed on paper, the image only has two dimensions:
height and width. Since the screen or paper is flat, the sense of depth in your
photographs is created by geometry and shadows. In terms of geometry, we assume
that larger objects are closer and smaller objects are farther away. In terms
of shadow, the shapes of the shadows go a long way to informing the viewer
about the shape of the objects.
Direct, Diffused, and Reflected Light
We’ve just reviewed
how the angle between the camera and light affects the shadows in the image.
During that discussion, I did not distinguish between direct, diffused,
and reflected light. So, now, let’s expand the discussion a bit. We need
toconsider whether the light goes straight from the source to the subject or
changes direction along the way.
Direct light flies straight from the light source to the subject
(Figure 1.4). As we’lldiscuss later in this chapter, direct light
typically creates shadows with high contrast and hard edges. Sunlight on a
clear day is direct light. Light from an on-camera flash can also be direct
light. While direct light has many uses, photographers often prefer the softer
look of diffused and reflected light.
Figure 1.4
Light coming directly
from a source to the subject will have dark shadows with a hard, defined edge.
Diffused light passes through a semi-transparent material on the
way from the sourceto the subject (Figure 1.5). Diffused light creates
shadows with lower contrast and softer edges than direct light. Depending upon
the amount of diffusion, it is possible that the shadows will be so light that
you can barely see them. Clouds are a great example of how sunlight can be
diffused. The water vapor causes the light to bounce around and come at the
subject from many angles rather than directly from the sun. A sheer curtain
over a window is another example of a light diffuser.
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Diffuser
Panel
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Light that passes
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through a semi-trans-
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parent material, like a
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cloud bank or diffuser
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panel, will come at
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the subject from many
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angles. This light will
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have soft shadows.
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Reflected light bounces off of an opaque surface before it hits the
subject (Figure 1.6).Sunlight bouncing off the concrete wall of a
building is reflected light. Sunlight bouncing off of clouds can create
reflected light. Photographers can use white foamcore panels or fabric
reflectors in a variety of colors to bounce light. Hotshoe-mounted flashes
often have the ability to tilt and pan so that the flash can be bounced off a
nearby wall or ceiling. Like diffused light, reflected light is softer than
direct light.
Figure 1.6
Light that bounces
off a surface, like a white wall or ceiling, will also come at the subject from
many angles and have soft shadows.
The difference
between diffused and reflected light comes from the location of the diffuser and
reflector. With diffused light, the diffuser is between the light source and
the subject. With reflected light, the light hits a nearby surface and then
bounces onto the subject. This is why clouds can be both diffusers and
reflectors. When the sun’s light goes through the clouds, they are a diffuser.
When the light reflects offof the clouds—such as when the sun is setting low in
the sky—then the clouds serve as reflectors.
How bright is each light source?
Of the five elements
of DICCH, intensity is the easiest to understand and, I’ll wager, the one given
the least creative consideration. So, rather than think of a light source as
being just bright or dim, think of it in terms of the many ways that its
intensity can affect your shot.
A camera’s exposure
settings (shutter speed, aperture, and ISO) are based largely on the overall
intensity of the light in the scene. For any given amount of light, there are
many combinations of shutter speed, aperture, and ISO that can be used (these
are called equivalent exposures). These three camera settings work in
opposite direc-tions—meaning that if you change one to be bigger/faster, then
you have to change another to be smaller/slower to keep the overall exposure
the same. Once you know the basics, you’ll start to see the creative
opportunities.
For instance, depth
of field describes how much of your image appears to be in focus from front
to back in the scene. A wide aperture, such as f/2.8, lets in lots of light and
creates shallow depth of field. Conversely, a narrow aperture, such as f/22,
only lets in a small amount of light and creates deep depth of field. So, if
you don’t have much light intensity and you want to create deep depth of field,
then you’ll have to use
a slow shutter speed
(which might cause camera shake) or a high ISO (which might cause digital noise
in the image). If neither of these options works, then you’ll need to increase
the intensity of the light.
What color is the light—white, red, blue…?
The color of light in
your photographs provides significant clues to your viewers about the shot. You
were there. You experienced the moment as you pushed the shutter button. The
viewer only has the details and information within the frame. So, know that
color can go a long way to affect the mood of your images. Sometimes you can
change the color of light in your shot for creative effect. Other times, you
have to capture the light as you see it.
Cool Light/Warm Light
A basic way to
describe color is to say that it is either cool or warm. Cool colors include
green, blue, and purple. While cool light can be perceived as calming, it can
also be perceived as cold or depressing. Likewise, green can suggest a pastoral
set-ting, but it can also suggest immense wealth.
Warm colors live on
the other side of the color wheel. They are red, orange, and yellow. Warm light
is perceived as being comforting. Warm skin tones are seen as a sign of health.
However, intense red can be seen as the color of anger and also passion.
Color Temperature of
Light Sources
Color temperature refers to how blue or yellow a light source
appears. The surprisingthing is that low color temperatures describe yellowish
light, and high color tempera-tures describe bluish light (Figure 1.11).
Yet, we talk about yellow as being a warm color and blue as being a cool color.
This is one of those photo-opposites—just like it’s surprising when you first
learn that an f-stop with a small number is actually a large aperture opening.
Scientists and lighting designers have very precise reasons for why this is so.
I just accept it as stated. My mnemonic is that somewhere in my youth I learned
that the blue part of a flame is hotter than the yellow part. So, light with a
high color temperature is bluer than light with a low color temperature.
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Sunrise
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Daylight
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Open
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Blue
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Sunset
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at Noon
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Shade
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Hour
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Candlelight
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Warm
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Hazy
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Fluorescent
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Sun
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Cloudy
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Color temperature
describes how yellow or blue
a light source
appears. The unit of measurement for color temperature is “Kelvin” (not
“degrees Kelvin,” as you may hear some say).
In a practical sense,
you know that candlelight has a very warm (yellowish) color. What you might not
know is that the color of open shade is very blue. Our eyes and brain work
together to turn the brightest part of a scene to white. This is why, when you
look at a white shirt or a piece of white paper under an old-school
incandescent bulb, they look white rather than yellow-orange. Then, when you
walk outside into the open shade on the north side of your house, the paper and
shirt still look white. In this sense, our eyes and brain are much smarter than
our digital cameras.
WHITE BALANCE
White balance (WB) is
the process of removing unrealistic color casts, so that objects which appear
white in person are rendered white in your photo. Proper camera white balance
has to take into account the “color temperature” of a light source, which
refers to the relative warmth or coolness of white light. Our eyes are very
good at judging what is white under different light sources, but digital
cameras often have great difficulty with auto white balance and can create
unsightly blue, orange, or even green color casts. Understanding digital white
balance can help you avoid these colorcasts, thereby improving your photos
under a wider range of lighting conditions.
Here are some of the basic White Balance settings you’ll find on
cameras:
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Auto – this is where the camera makes a best guess on a shot by
shot basis. You’ll find it works in many situations but it’s worth venturing
out of it for trickier lighting.
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Tungsten – this mode is usually symbolized with a little bulb and
is for shooting indoors, especially under tungsten (incandescent) lighting
(such as bulb lighting). It generally cools down the colors in photos.
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Fluorescent – this compensates for the ‘cool’ light of fluorescent
light and will warm up your shots.
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Daylight/Sunny – not all cameras have this setting because it sets things
as fairly ‘normal’ white balance settings.
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Cloudy – this setting generally warms things up a touch more than
‘daylight’ mode.
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Flash – the flash of a camera can be quite a cool light so in
Flash WB mode you’ll find it warms up your shots a touch.
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Shade – the light in shade is generally cooler (bluer) than
shooting in direct sunlight so this mode will warm things up a little.
Is the transition from the highlights to the
shadows subtle or sudden?
Contrast describes how the highlights transition into the
shadows. The brightestareas of the image are the highlights. The darkest
areas are the shadows. In between, the image will have lights, midtones,
and darks.
Check out the Poring
Over the Picture spread on pages 2–3 (the one of Tony at the lake). You will
see that I noted that I exposed the image such that the details of the hair
highlights would not blow out to white. This meant that the details in the
shadow are too dark (at least too dark for a perfectionist). So, you could say
that this image has too much contrast.
Dynamic Range
The dynamic range
of a scene describes how much brighter the brightest spot is than the darkest
spot. The human eye can see a wider dynamic range than our cameras can record.
Likewise, our cameras can record a wider dynamic range than our moni-tors can
display and, typically, our monitors can display a wider range of light than
printers can print. Every generation of gear narrows the gap between what we
see and what it can capture, display, or print. Eventually, I expect
that this gap will become a non-issue. In the meantime, as this is a book on
lighting, throughout the many pages ahead, we will discuss how to manage these
differences by adding light to and, in some cases, subtracting light from our
shots.
What do the edges of the shadows look like?
You will recall that,
near the beginning of the chapter, I said, “Look at the light and think about
the shadows.” The shadows will reveal many details about the lighting.For
instance, you can draw a line from a point on a shadow to the spot that created
it and you’ll see the direction of the light source. You can also examine the
edges of the shadows and learn if the light source was small or large.
Think about the
shadows! Are they defined sharply—like your shadow on a sunny day? Or are the
edges fuzzy—like your shadow on a cloudy day? Photographers call a light that
creates a sharply defined shadow a hard light and a light that creates
shadows with fuzzy edges a soft light. In Figures 1.19 and 1.20,
you can see the difference between hard and soft shadows.
Figure 1.19
I lit this shot with
a single Speedlite at 45º right. Because the flash was smaller than the bunch
of flowers, it created many hard-edged shadows within the shot.
Figure 1.20
Without moving the
Speedlite, I added a shoot-through umbrella between the flash and the flowers.
This increased the apparent size of the light source so that it could send
light at the subject from multiple angles. As you can see, all of the hard
shadow edges have disappeared.
Hard shadows are
created when the size of the light source is small when compared to the size of
the subject. Astronomers tell us that the size of the sun is huge. Yet, Earth’s
distance from the sun makes it appear relatively small in our sky. So, on a
sunny day, your shadow has hard edges.
Conversely, soft
shadows are created when the size of the light source is larger than the
subject. Let’s say that, while you are admiring your hard-edged shadow on the
sidewalk, a bank of clouds drifts between you and the sun. You notice that the
edges of your shadow become very soft. What causes this? Essentially, the
clouds replaced the sun as the light source. Sure, the light originated at the
sun. But, as it traveled through the mist of the clouds it bounced around. So
instead of the light coming
at you from one
direction (the sun), the light came at you from many directions (the clouds).
Studio Photography Lighting Techniques
1. Split Lighting
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Split lighting is exactly as the name implies
– it splits the face exactly into equal halves with one side being in the
light, and the other in shadow. It is often used to create dramatic images for
things such as a portrait of a musician or an artist. Split lighting tends to
be a more masculine pattern and as such is usually more appropriate or
applicable on men than it is for women. Keep in mind however, there are no hard
and fast rules, so I suggest you use the information I provide here as a
starting point or guideline. Until you learn this and can do it in your sleep,
default to the guideline whenever you’re not sure.
To achieve split lighting simply put the light
source 90 degrees to the left or right of the subject, and possibly even
slightly behind their head. Where you place the light in relation to the
subject will depend on the person’s face. Watch how the light falls on them and
adjust accordingly. In true split lighting, the eye on the shadow side of the
face does pick up light in the eye only. If by rotating their face a bit more
light falls on their cheek, it’s possible their face just isn’t ideal for split
lighting.
2. Loop
Lighting
Loop lighting is made by creating a small
shadow of the subjects noses on their cheeks. To create loop lighting, the
light source must be slightly higher than eye level and about 30-45 degrees
from the camera (depends on the person, you have to learn how to read people’s
faces).
Look at this image to see where the shadows
fall, and on their left sides you can see a small shadow of their noses. In
loop lighting the shadow of the nose and that of the cheek do NOT touch. Keep
the shadow small and slightly downward pointing, but be aware of having your
light source too high which will create odd shadows and cause loss of the
catchlights. Loop light is probably the most common or popular lighting pattern
as it is easy to create and flatters most people.
In this diagram the black backdrop represents
the bank of trees behind them. The sun is coming over the trees but they are
completely in the shade. A white reflector is used at camera left to bounce
light back into the subjects’ faces. The reflector may or may not be in the sun
but you can still pick up light even if it’s not. Just play with the angles, by
changing the placement of the reflector you can change the lighting pattern.
For Loop lighting it will need to be somewhere around 30-45 degrees from the
camera. It also needs to be slightly above their eye level so the shadow or
loop of their nose angles down towards the corner of the mouth. That is one
mistake I often see beginners make with reflectors is to place them down low
and angle it up. That lights up the bottom of your subject’s nose and does not
create a flattering pattern.
3.
Rembrandt Lighting
Rembrandt lighting is so named because the
Rembrandt the painter often used this pattern of light in his paintings, as you
can see in his self portrait here. Rembrandt lighting is identified by the
triangle of light on the cheek. Unlike loop lighting where the shadow of the
nose and cheek do not touch, in Rembrandt lighting they do meet which, creates
that trapped little triangle of light in the middle. To create proper Rembrandt
lighting make sure the eye on the shadow side of the face has light in it and
has a catch light, otherwise the eye will be “dead” and not have a nice
sparkle. Rembrandt lighting is more dramatic, so like split lighting it creates
more mood and a darker feel to your image. Use it appropriately.
To create Rembrandt lighting the subject must
turn slightly away from the light. The light must be above the top of their
head so that the shadow from their nose falls down towards the cheek. Not every
person’s face is ideal for creating Rembrandt lighting. If they have high or
prominent cheek bones it will probably work. If they have a small nose or flat
bridge of the nose, it may be difficult to achieve. Again, keep in mind you
don’t have to make exactly this pattern or another, just so long as the person
is flattered, and the mood you want is created – then the lighting is working.
If you are using window light and the window goes down to the floor, you may
have to block off the bottom portion with a gobo or card, to achieve this type
of lighting.
4.
Butterfly Lighting
Butterfly lighting is aptly named for the
butterfly shaped shadow that is created under the nose by placing the main
light source above and directly behind the camera. The photographer is
basically shooting underneath the light source for this pattern. It is most
often used for glamour style shots and to create shadows under the cheeks and
chin. It is also flattering for older subjects as it emphasizes wrinkles less
than side lighting.
Butterfly lighting is created by having the
light source directly behind the camera and slightly above eye or head level of
the subject (depends on the person). It is sometimes supplemented by placing a
reflector directly under their chin, with the subject themselves even holding
it! This pattern flatters subjects with defined or prominent cheek bones and a
slim face. Someone with a round, wide face would look better with loop or even
split to slim their face. This pattern is tougher to create using windowlight
or a reflector alone. Often a harder light source like the sun or a flash is
needed to produce the more defined shadow under the nose.
5. 3-Point Lighting Technique
The Three Point
Lighting Technique is a
standard method used in visual media such as video, film, still photography and
computer-generated imagery. It is a simple but versatile system which forms the
basis of most lighting. Once you understand three point lighting you are well
on the way to understanding all lighting.
The technique uses three lights called the key light, fill light and back
light. Naturally you will need three lights to utilise the technique fully,
but the principles are still important even if you only use one or two lights.
As a rule:
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If you only have one
light, it becomes the key.
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If you have 2 lights,
one is the key and the other is either the fill or the backlight.
Key Light
This is the main light. It is usually the strongest and has the
most influence on the look of the scene. It is placed to one side of the
camera/subject so that this side is well lit and the other side has some
shadow.
Fill Light
This is the secondary light and is placed on the opposite side of
the key light. It is used to fill the shadows created by the key. The fill will
usually be softer and less bright than the key. To acheive this, you could move
the light further away or use some spun. You might also want to set the fill
light to more of a flood than the key.
Back Light
The back light is placed behind the subject and lights it from the
rear. Rather than providing direct lighting (like the key and fill), its
purpose is to provide definition and subtle highlights around the subject's
outlines. This helps separate the subject from the background and provide a
three-dimensional look.
If you have a fourth light, you could use it to light the
background of the entire scene.