About this course
Shooting in different light
For your first assignment, I want you to experiment with different kinds of lighting techniques. Photograph two or three separate scenes under at least two different lighting conditions, using the examples that we’ve covered above. The subjects can be landscapes, people; whatever sparks your interest, and you might need to visit the scene more than once to get your desired results.
Try to make shoot at least one of your scenes during the “magic hours.” When you’ve completed the assignment, upload eight images for critique.
Despite the wide range of skills and experience we all possess as outdoor photographers, we all operate on a level paying field with regards to our primary light source, which is, of course, The Sun.
However, as I’m sure you know, sunlight doesn’t always look the same. Variations in geography, latitude, air quality, humidity, weather, season and time of day allow the sun’s rays to appear with an infinite amount of variation with regards to intensity, brightness, direction and hue.
For this reason, it’s actually the light which is the basic ingredient of all photography. It’s what fuels our process and excitement for the craft, even more than the subject matter itself. Just like your eye, the camera sensor doesn’t “see” the subject, it only measures the intensity and color of the light that’s being reflected back from the subject.
Intensity: Is the light hard or soft? Direct, full sunlight is hard and intense, while light that is diffused by clouds or that’s partially blocked by some object tends to be softer. Neither is necessarily better or worse, for photography, and as you’ll see in this chapter, which one you use depends largely on what you’re shooting.
DIRECTION OF THE LIGHT
Front Lighting
In most situations, shooting straight-on will generally give you good results, especially in especially pleasing light. Of course, that’s not the only approach, nor is it necessarily the best approach. When you shoot with the light off to your side, you start to accentuate your shadows, which highlights shape and texture. Sidelighting and even backlighting can be very effective photography techniques that can produce dramatic results.
Assignment #1: Shooting in different light
For your first assignment, I want you to experiment with different kinds of lighting techniques. Photograph two or three separate scenes under at least two different lighting conditions, using the examples that we’ve covered above. The subjects can be landscapes, people; whatever sparks your interest, and you might need to visit the scene more than once to get your desired results. Try to make shoot at least one of your scenes during the “magic hours.” When you’ve completed the assignment, upload eight images for critique.
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