Photography is about light. As a result, a great photograph emphasizes the important features of a subject through its presentation of light, or its lack of light manifested in shadow. Light defines form, direction, intensity, subtlety, emotion and color, so it's no wonder that understanding the elements of photographic lighting will help improve your photography. The basic elements can take the form of natural light or the light provided by artificial studio or location lights.
Frontlight
Frontlight provides even illumination of the subject being photographed. As a result, you'll find it relatively easy to set the correct exposure since you don't need to select a metering spot. The subject is evenly illuminated, meaning all parts receive the same amount of light. As such, frontlighting is considered the easiest kind of light with which to work. When using natural frontlight, quality and color are best during the first hour after sunrise and for up to a couple of hours afterward. However, the cost of using such easy lighting is that the subject appears two-dimensional. In order to create the illusion of three dimensions, shadow and highlights must be combined effectively. Frontlighting is rarely done using artificial lights.
Sidelight
Sidelighting creates shadow and highlights within a photograph. Used correctly, so that light comes from one or both sides of the subject, sidelighting gives photographs a three-dimensional perspective that helps convey a sense of depth, contrast and substance. However, it is a difficult lighting element to master. It requires combining light with shadow in such a way that the photograph mimics the three-dimensional world. Sidelighting is difficult to use correctly but most photographers agree that sidelighting results in a stronger reaction from viewers. Using artificial lights rather than natural light for sidelight makes arranging the shadows a bit easier if a long composition--placing the subject and then repositioning several times--is required.
Backlight
Backlighting adds a different element to sidelighting: Silhouetting. Backlighting--positioning the subject so that the light falls onto the back of the subject, or directly opposite the photographer--always provides several options regarding exposure. You may meter the reflected light from the subject, meter the light on the back side of the subject or meter the unreflected light on the front side of the subject. In any of these cases the results can vary from dramatic to unremarkable, so some experimentation is needed to get the best results. Using natural light means being in the right place at the right time. Artificial lights may be an acceptable substitute for a fleeting moment of natural light.
Photography is about light. As a result, a great photograph emphasizes the important features of a subject through its presentation of light, or its lack of light manifested in shadow. Light defines form, direction, intensity, subtlety, emotion and color, so it's no wonder that understanding the elements of photographic lighting will help improve your photography. The basic elements can take the form of natural light or the light provided by artificial studio or location lights.
Frontlight
Frontlight provides even illumination of the subject being photographed. As a result, you'll find it relatively easy to set the correct exposure since you don't need to select a metering spot. The subject is evenly illuminated, meaning all parts receive the same amount of light. As such, frontlighting is considered the easiest kind of light with which to work. When using natural frontlight, quality and color are best during the first hour after sunrise and for up to a couple of hours afterward. However, the cost of using such easy lighting is that the subject appears two-dimensional. In order to create the illusion of three dimensions, shadow and highlights must be combined effectively. Frontlighting is rarely done using artificial lights.
Sidelight
Sidelighting creates shadow and highlights within a photograph. Used correctly, so that light comes from one or both sides of the subject, sidelighting gives photographs a three-dimensional perspective that helps convey a sense of depth, contrast and substance. However, it is a difficult lighting element to master. It requires combining light with shadow in such a way that the photograph mimics the three-dimensional world. Sidelighting is difficult to use correctly but most photographers agree that sidelighting results in a stronger reaction from viewers. Using artificial lights rather than natural light for sidelight makes arranging the shadows a bit easier if a long composition--placing the subject and then repositioning several times--is required.
Backlight
Backlighting adds a different element to sidelighting: Silhouetting. Backlighting--positioning the subject so that the light falls onto the back of the subject, or directly opposite the photographer--always provides several options regarding exposure. You may meter the reflected light from the subject, meter the light on the back side of the subject or meter the unreflected light on the front side of the subject. In any of these cases the results can vary from dramatic to unremarkable, so some experimentation is needed to get the best results. Using natural light means being in the right place at the right time. Artificial lights may be an acceptable substitute for a fleeting moment of natural light.
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