Lighting for Digital Photography: The Five Characteristics of Light
- Photography Begins with Looking at Light
- Poring over the Picture
- Poring over the Picture
- Start Your Obsession with Light
- Dicch-That's a Curious Word
- Direction
- Intensity
- Color
- Contrast
- Hardness
- Lighting Lessons are Everywhere
- Chapter 1 Assignments
Photography Begins with Looking at Light
Allow yourself to become obsessed with light. This is the best advice that I can give any photographer. Many shooters are more concerned with learning buttons, dials, and software than with learning to truly see light. Yet, if you become a connoisseur of light, you’ll see opportunities for great shots that you did not see before. You’ll also recognize when there’s no pizzazz to the light and, most likely, you will not make so many disappointing images.
Photography is “writing with light.” So, let’s build our conversation about lighting on five fundamental characteristics of light: Direction, Intensity, Color, Contrast, and Hardness.