01 Fantastic Fundamental Light Skills

u n d a m e n t a l
Fan t a s t i c F
LIGHT SKILLS
A PHOTOGRAPHER’S GUIDE TO UNDERSTANDING LIGHT
PHOTOGRAPHY
CONCENTRATE
Howdy!
We’re Lauren & Rob, and we’re here to take
you on your great light adventure.
Thanks for being here! We’re really excited to dig into light
with you!
Light is absolutely key to taking great photos, and is

something every single photographer needs to understand.
So a hearty pat on the back to you – simply making the time
to study this is awesome!
Now learning about light can seem a bit daunting. It was

something that we avoided at first, because it seemed too
technical. But before long we found that our lack of true
understanding of light was holding us back. We just weren’t
getting the results we wanted. So we decided to approach it
a different way. We discovered that if you break light down
to the fundamentals, and learn a few simple skills, you’ll
have the ability to handle any lighting situation you ever
face. Huzzah! And now we’re going to share everything we
learned with you!
Bonus: We’re going to make this fun and fast, so that you
can soak up all this awesome knowledge, and then get right
out there and start using it!
Get comfy, feel free to grab some snacks, and let’s dig in.
This is going to be a blast!
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Contents
Setup & Navigation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 HDR Photography. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 The Trick With the Light Meter. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Getting the Most Out of This Tutorial. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 What is Contrast? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 Controlling Color With White Balance. . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Here’s What You Won’t Be Learning. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Tricky White Balance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76

CHARACTERISTICS OF LIGHT Controlling the Direction of Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
WHAT IS LIGHT? The 4 Characteristics of Light. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 Changing the Direction: Portraits. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
The Meaning of Photography. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Direction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 Controlling the Light Source. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Where Light Comes From. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Side Lighting. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 Controlling the Light When You
Don’t Have Control. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
What is Light? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Front Lighting. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
The Visible Light Spectrum. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Try This! Texture & Direction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

READING THE LIGHT
How We See Things & Why They Have Color . . . . . . . . . 14 Overhead Lighting. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Learning How to Read Light. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
How You See Light vs. How Back Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
the Camera Sees Light. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Questions to Ask About Light in a Scene. . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Try This! Direction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
The Hand Trick. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
THE BEHAVIOR OF LIGHT Quality. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Questions to Ask About Light in a Photo. . . . . . . . . . . . 101
What Makes Light Hard or Soft?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
The 3 Behaviors of Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Catchlights. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Hard vs. Soft: Appearance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Reflection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
The Law of Reflection. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Hard vs. Soft: Sources. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
REAL WORLD LIGHT
Hard vs. Soft: Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
Diffuse Reflection. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Light in the Wild . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Hard vs. Soft: Review. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
Reflection: Real World Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Indoor Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
Try This! Hard vs. Soft Light. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Try This! Types of Reflection. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Window Light. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
Intensity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Absorption . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Outdoor Light. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
The Inverse Square Law. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Absorption: Real World Examples. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Backlighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Intensity & Quality. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Why Photographers Wear Black. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Color. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
Transmission. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 You’re a Light Ninja! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
How Color Temperature Affects Your Photos . . . . . 65
Transmission: Real World Examples. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 Let’s Keep on Learnin’ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
Try This! Types of Transmission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 CONTROLLING LIGHT About the Authors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124
All Three Behaviors: Real World Examples. . . . . . . . . . . . 32 Connect With Us. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
The 3 Ways to Control Light. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
TONES & DYNAMIC RANGE Controlling Light With Your Camera. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70

click!
The 3 Factors that Affect Exposure. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
Light & the Look of Your Photos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 All the pages here are linked, so you can just
Your Camera’s Light Meter. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
Dynamic Range. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 click to navigate anywhere! Neato!
Exposure Value. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Setup & Navigation Using an iPad?
This eBook is also designed for iPad viewing. It’s a seriously
This eBook has some navigation features designed to make enjoyable learning experience! Simply download the book
it easier for you to find the information you’re looking for. to your computer and then upload it to a PDF reader app
Take a peek along the bottom to see what’s up. You’ll also on your iPad.
find that the Table of Contents on the previous page is fully
linked, and is a great way to navigate around the book! You can use the iPad’s built in iBooks app to view the PDF,
or the free Adobe Reader app. But in order to make full use
of the built in navigation (Table of Contents/Previous/Next/
Back buttons at the bottom of each page), we recommend
the GoodReader app (probably the best PDF viewer app out
there!).
For a more detailed walkthrough of how to get this tutorial

onto your tablet, click here to check out our FAQ page!
Go to the Table of Contents for the

full list of pages, allowing you to
jump to any section.
LOOKING FOR SOMETHING?
If you’re looking for a specific term, use the Search
Head back to the page you were just on, like with a
web browser. Super useful if you want to check out function (Command-F or Control-F) in your PDF reader
the Table of Contents, and then go back to where to find it swiftly!
you were.
Takes you to the

previous page.
Takes you to the next
page.
Getting the Most Out
of This Tutorial
If you really want this information to help
transform your photos, here’s what you
gotta do.
1. This tutorial is designed to be read in chronological order,
with each concept building on the next. Don’t skip ahead!
You’ll have the best understanding if you go through each
page, step by step.
2. Do the exercises! Yep, seriously. I know it sometimes feels

like too much work, and you just want to keep reading. But
the exercises are going to help the concepts really sink in
and make sense. So take a minute and try these things out.
Trust us: it’s easy (and fun too!).
3. Get out your camera manual. You know that dusty little
book that came with your camera? It will help you find
different settings that we mention, so keep it nearby in case
you need to look them up.
4. Review! This stuff can be a bit tricky to wrap your mind

around the first time you learn it. Don’t worry! Practice,
review, think about it, and then review again. Soon enough
you’ll have this all down pat!
Here’s What You
Instead, we’re going to look at the fundamentals of light –
the way it behaves and the four characteristics that you can
Won’t Be Learning...
use to describe every single type of light. And we’ll cover
what factors influence those characteristics, so you know
the why behind it all. We’re going to teach you how to think
about and look at light in a way that will let you walk into
With this tutorial, what you won’t learn is any situation, and know why the light is behaving the way it
just as important as what you will learn. is, and what you can do to change it to fit what you want in
your photo.
There are two common approaches to teaching light. You
either get a very long and dense technical textbook that,
This is knowledge that will change the way you approach
let’s face it, you’ll probably never finish. Or you just get a
photography, and even change the way you look at the
huge list of possible lighting scenarios (using studio lights,
world. Sounds pretty good, hey? So let’s stop talking about
flashes, or natural light), and tips on how to handle each
it, and starting learning it! Onward!
one.
This tutorial doesn’t do either of those things.
For starters, there’s no point in a tutorial that you don’t

finish. So this is going to keep the technical stuff to the
absolute essentials. No science degree needed here.
And second, the thing about light is that it is incredibly

diverse. There is no way you could actually memorize every
single possible situation you might find yourself in. And
besides, that would be way too much work.
So we’re not going to cover how to set up 10 lights in a

studio. We don’t talk about the exact settings to use when
shooting in shade versus shooting in full sun.
“ Light makes photography. Embrace light.
Admire it. Love it. But above all, know
light. Know it for all you are worth, and
you will know the key to photography. ”
George Eastman, founder of Kodak
WHAT IS
LIGHT?
v
WHAT IS LIGHT?
The Meaning of Life

‘Photography’
The word “photography” comes from the
Greek phōtos, meaning “light”, and graphé,
meaning “drawing”.
Photography literally means “drawing with light”. So it’s no
surprise that light is essential to photography. Think about it.
Without light you simply couldn’t take photos. Ever left your
lens cap on by mistake and wound up with a photo that was
nothing but pure black? No light went into the camera, so Beautiful photo of a tropical beach, taken with the lens cap on. (i.e. This is
no picture came out! what photos look like without any light!)
big idea
EMBRACE THE DARK SIDE

With light comes shadow, and shadows are just as
important to study when it comes to the look of your
photos.
The combination of light and shadow together gives

information about depth and form, contributes to the
mood of the image, gives the photo contrast, and more.
So get ready to embrace both the light and the dark!
And once you let light into your camera? A photo appears!
v
WHAT IS LIGHT?
Where Light Comes From

Light can emanate from many different
sources, both natural and artificial. NATURAL SOURCES OF LIGHT
The light source we are most familiar with is, of course, the
sun. A few other examples of natural light include fire, other
stars, and even those crazy bioluminescent mushrooms!
While natural sources of light are more familiar, artificial Sunlight Fire Stars Bioluminescent
sources positively surround us. Some examples are the lights Stuff
in your home, street lights, fluorescent signs, flashlights,
phone and computer screens – there are tons of artificial
light sources just hanging around in the everyday world. ARTIFICIAL SOURCES OF LIGHT
Then there are artificial sources of light that you control
more deliberately for the purpose of taking photos.
Examples include your camera flash, or studio lights. These
are commonly known as strobes.
Light is everywhere, in all sorts of forms, and these different Flashlights Screens Lamps Camera Flashes
forms are all potential ways to illuminate your photos!
note:
For the sake of brevity this is not an exhaustive list of all the different types
of natural and artificial light. But feel free to make one yourself! Fun!
v
WHAT IS LIGHT?
THE ELECTROMAGNETIC SPECTRUM
Gamma Rays
What Is Light? Geek S
peak!
SHORTER WAVELENGTHS
X-Rays
Light is a range of Electro Magnetic
Radiation (EMR) that is visible to the human
eye.
Ultraviolet
Did that just take you back to high school physics class? I
promise there won’t be any spit balls this time. But we need
to dig into a bit of science here to get a real understanding
of what light is, and why it acts the way it does.
Visible Light
Now EMR is energy that can travel through space, and
there are many different types of it – including some that
we can’t see, like X-rays, ultraviolet rays, infrared radiation,
microwaves, and radio waves.
Infrared Radiation
LONGER WAVELENGTHS
Each of these different types of EMR has different

wavelengths. The human eye can see wavelengths between
Microwaves 400 - 700 nanometers. And it’s in that range that the magic
of light happens. Let’s dive in a bit deeper there.
Television and Radio Waves
v
WHAT IS LIGHT?
The Visible Light Spectrum

Remember Roy. G. Biv? That old friend is back and ready to help you out!
Within the visible light spectrum there are different wavelengths of light. And our eyes register those different
wavelengths as different colors. The longest wavelength corresponds to red light, and the shortest to violet
light. You can use the acronym Roy G. Biv to remember the order, if that’s your kind of thing. Red, orange, yellow,
green, blue, indigo and violet. Pretty!
Now, when all of those different colors of light are combined we see regular white light – like the light from sun.
And when that white light goes through a prism? Boom! The wavelengths bend different amounts, separating the
different colors and you see the full spectrum of colors in order from longest to shortest.
!
fun fact
This is what happens when white light passes through a prism: the light A rainbow works just like light separating in a prism. The white light is bent
separates and we can see the different colored wavelengths. by water in the atmosphere, separating the different wavelengths, and we
get a brief, magical look at all the different colors hiding inside that white
light. Who needs a pot of gold? That’s treasure enough!
v
WHAT IS LIGHT?
How We See Things &

Why They Have Color The red light wave is bounced back by the
apple. When our eyes record this bounced
light wave, we get the impression that the
When light rays strike a object, that object apple itself is red.
may absorb some wavelengths, while
reflecting back others.
What we’re interested in is what happens to the wavelengths
that bounce back. Generally speaking, we see things only
when the light reflected from them hits our eyes.
Now, in order for us to recognize the color of the object,

something more specific happens.
The other light waves are

When we see an object that is red, like a red apple, the absorbed into the apple.
surface of that apple is absorbing most wavelengths, and
reflecting back the red wavelength. It is by seeing this red
light that we get the impression that the apple is red in
color.
A white object reflects back most wavelengths. And a black

object? Well, that guy is absorbing most wavelengths. I’m
big idea
saying “most” here because in the real world these things
aren’t ever absolutely perfect. But you get the basic idea:
The color of things comes from what wavelengths of light We see things because of reflected light. The only way an
are being bounced off of them. Neat, right? object appears to us is if the light that is bouncing off of
that object hits our eyes. The particular wavelengths that
our eyes pick up are what helps us determine color.
v
WHAT IS LIGHT?
Sensor/film
CAMERA
Lens
How You See Light vs.

How the Camera LIGHT
Sees Light
There are similarities and differences
between how your camera and your eyes
see light.
EYE
How They Are Similar
At the very basic level, the camera and your eye are made
up of very similar pieces. There’s the lens of the camera, and
the lenses of your eyes. These focus incoming light onto a
light sensitive surface – the sensor or film of a camera, and
the retina of your eye. Got it? Fundamentally your eye and LIGHT
your camera work in the same way. But from there things
are quite different...
Lens
Retina
v
WHAT IS LIGHT?
How They Are Different

Far more interesting than the similarities are the differences.
It doesn’t take long for any photographer to start to wonder
“Why can’t my camera record things just as I see them?”.
This question often comes up in scenes with both really
bright and really dark areas. Here’s what’s up.
When you look at a scene, your eyes are able to move

around and dynamically adjust to different brightness levels
in different areas. Your pupils get larger or smaller to let in
different amounts of light, depending on where your eyes
are focused.
Your brain then interprets and combines all this data so

that you can see good detail in both the dark areas and the When looking at a scene, the pupils in your eyes get larger or smaller to let
in different amounts of light, depending on what you’re looking at. This lets
bright areas of the scene. you see a greater range of dark and light in a scene.
The camera, on the other hand, records the raw light data
that strikes the sensor without any interpretation. In scenes
with a very large range of brightness, it may have trouble
recording the detail in the very bright areas and the very
dark areas at the same time.
You can think of a photo as taking one sample of the

brightness of the scene, whereas your visual system takes
multiple samples over time and combines them.
This is why you can often see all the dark and bright areas of
a scene with your eyes, but your camera can’t handle it, and
something may be either too bright, or too dark!
Your camera can’t dynamically adjust like your eyes can. In scenes with very
bright and very dark areas you get results like this: part of the image just
isn’t exposed properly, and is too dark or too bright!
v
WHAT IS LIGHT?
Long exposure shots of the night sky let us see more With a long shutter speed, and a moving light source, Fast shutter speeds can let your camera capture light
light than our eyes alone can pick up. the camera can capture images that are unlike and action and freeze it. Your eyes can’t do that!
anything you could see with your eyes.
Your camera can’t see the way you do, but that doesn’t Or photos that show car lights as streaks across the frame?
mean you should give up on it. In fact, in some situations it Images that freeze a subject mid-jump?
can see things that we can’t with the naked eye.
These are all examples of things that your camera can
Have you ever seen those amazing photos of the night sky, do that your eyes simply cannot. While your camera has
that show off the galaxies and colors, but when you peer limitations, it has creative advantages as well. So don’t give
up into the black sky you don’t seen anything like it? Those up on your camera, but instead understand and appreciate
shots are created by letting light into the camera for a long what it can do!
time, and using all of that light for just one image. That’s
something your eye can’t do!
“ What makes photography a strange
invention is that its primary raw materials
are light and time. ”
John Berger
THE BEHAVIOR
OF LIGHT
v
THE BEHAVIOR OF LIGHT
The 3 Behaviors of Light

When light hits a surface, it can do three different things. big idea
Learning how to predict light’s
The three basic behaviors of light are reflection, absorption, and transmission. Here’s a behavior is the first step towards
quick look at what those terms mean, and then we’re going to go into each behavior in learning how to control it!
more depth. Hooray!
1. REFLECTION 2. ABSORPTION 3. TRANSMISSION
The light ray strikes the surface, The light ray is absorbed by the The light ray hits the surface,
and then bounces off. surface, and converted into heat. and passes through.
v
1. Reflection
When light strikes a surface, it can bounce SPECULAR
off of it, and we call this fancy behavior REFLECTION
reflection.
Now at the core this might not seem so exciting, but in fact,
reflection is happening all around you at this very moment.
And this is essential for your photos!
First off, reflection can happen in a couple different ways

depending on the surface the light hits and the texture that
surface has.
The first type of reflection is what you’d generally expect,

and what you see in the diagram on the right: The light hits
the surface, and then bounces right back off.
This is called specular reflection, and happens on

microscopically smooth surfaces, like a mirror, polished
metal, or calm water. When light hits a mirror, 99.9 percent
of the light that strikes the mirror bounces back off of it. The light ray strikes the surface,
This is how we see a mirror image of something! and then bounces off.
Other materials won’t reflect quite as perfectly, but all

objects reflect light on some level, which is why we can see
them!
v
The Law of Reflection

When it comes to specular reflection we can
even predict what angle the light will bounce
back at.
This is pretty neat. When light hits a mirror, or another
smooth surface, it doesn’t just reflect all willy-nilly. It actually
follows a very simple law: the light will bounce off of the
surface at the same angle at which it hit it.
So, to use the science speak, when light reflects off of a

surface, the angle of incidence (the angle it hit the surface at)
is equal to the angle of reflection (the angle that it bounced
off at).
Now, that might sound a little technical. And it is. But, as

you’ll soon see, specular reflection happens quite frequently
in your photos, and knowing the Law of Reflection will help
you to predict and understand these reflections.
v
DIFFUSE
REFLECTION
Diffuse Reflection
When a light ray strikes a microscopically
rough, irregular surface, like paper, skin or
fabric, you get diffuse reflection.
When diffuse reflection happens, the light rays hit the
surface of the object, and then bounce back in all directions.
They scatter.
And in the real world? Well, most objects have a

combination of both smooth and rough surfaces. So when
light strikes their surfaces, you get both specular and diffuse
reflection happening.
Note: It is thanks to diffuse reflection that we are able to

see objects from different angles. The light scatters after The light ray strikes the rough
reflecting off of the object, allowing us to see it from surface, and the reflected rays
multiple directions – not just one specific angle. scatter in all directions.
v
Reflection: Real World Examples
SPECULAR & DIFFUSE REFLECTION SPECULAR & DIFFUSE REFLECTION

This shot shows you both specular and diffuse reflection Once again we can see both types of reflection at work
at once. First is the specular reflection – it’s the near mirror here. Take a look at the metal headlamp on the far right
image of the boats and shacks that we can see in the of the frame – it’s acting almost like a mirror, providing a
water. Water can be a great source of specular reflections, specular reflection. You can also see reflections in the body
particularly when it is smooth and calm. Then the shacks of the scooter itself, though they aren’t quite as perfect as
and boats themselves are diffusely reflecting the light, which the reflection in the chrome. (Fun fact: the white highlights
is why we can see them! on a shiny object that are the result of specular reflections
are called “specular highlights”. ) Finally, diffuse reflection is
going on all over the place, which is how we can see the tiles
on the ground, and the rest of the scooter.
TRY THIS! TYPES OF REFLECTION
Let’s see how specular reflection and diffuse
reflection look!
Remember that specular reflection takes place when the
light is bouncing off a smooth surface, and reflecting at
the same angle at which it hit the surface. With diffuse
reflection, the light is hitting a rough, irregular surface, and
scattering in all directions.
Grab:
• Flashlight
• Hand mirror (or another smooth surface, like a phone screen) SPECULAR REFLECTION
• White sheet of paper When the light hits a smooth surface, you see specular reflection. The light
is bouncing right off the mirror and reflecting towards the camera. It looks
almost the same as what you’d see if you looked at the flashlight directly.
Do:
Shine your flashlight at the hand mirror to see specular
1
reflection in action.
2 Find the angle where you can see the light bouncing right at
you. At this point you’re getting a good look at the angle of
incidence being equal to the angle of reflection!
3 Now shine the flashlight onto a piece of white paper. This

is diffuse reflection. You won’t be able to see the beam of
light, or the flashlight reflecting off the paper. Notice how the
DIFFUSE REFLECTION
angle that you hold the flashlight at doesn’t really change the
appearance of the reflected light because it is scattering in all With diffuse reflection, the light has hit a rough, irregular surface in the
paper. The light hits the paper and scatters in all directions.
directions.
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ABSORPTION
2. Absorption
When a light ray strikes a surface, it can be
absorbed by that surface.
The light energy that is absorbed is then converted into
another form of Electro Magnetic Radiation (EMR), usually a
small amount of heat.
Just like reflection, absorption is always happening around

you. At the very basic level, every object absorbs some
wavelengths of light, and reflects others, and that’s how
we see the object, and perceive it to be a certain color!
The light ray is absorbed by the

surface, and converted into heat.
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Absorption: Real World Examples
BLACK & WHITE COLOR

The amount of light reflected or absorbed by an object Absorption also impacts how we perceive colors. When
will affect the way that object looks. White objects, like the an object or surface is hit by light, it will absorb certain
pieces of coral in the photo above, are reflecting a lot of wavelengths, and reflect back others. The wavelengths
light, so they appear brighter. The black rock in the image is of light that are reflected back correspond to the colors
absorbing more light than the coral, so it appears darker. we see! In the image above the different powders are all
absorbing and reflecting different wavelengths of light,
which is why they appear all different colors!
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WHY PHOTOGRAPHERS
WEAR BLACK
Are they just going for the moody artist look? Nope. For photographers, wearing black
is actually very practical, and largely because of what you’ve already learned about light:
absorption and reflection.
Think about this. If you’re wearing a bright blue shirt, what’s happening there? Light is
striking the shirt, and the shirt is absorbing most wavelengths, but reflecting the blue
wavelength. That’s why it looks blue. So those blue wavelengths are now bouncing off your
shirt (in all directions). Where could they go? Right onto your subject, making it look blue!
Probably not what you want.
Black clothes, on the other hand, are going to absorb the light rays, and won’t cause this
problem. Black: It’s not just for ninjas!
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3. Transmission TRANSMISSION
Transmission occurs when a light ray hits a

surface, and then passes through it.
When light passes through a window, that’s transmission in
action. Simple. There’s also a particular type of transmission
that happens called diffuse transmission. Remember diffuse
reflection, where the light scattered in all directions after
bouncing off a surface? Well, diffuse transmission is similar,
in that light is being scattered. But here, light is passing
through the surface, and then being scattered as it comes
out the other side.
A perfect example of this is when sunlight passes through a

cloud, or through curtains on a window.
DIFFUSE TRANSMISSION
ct!
fun fa
REFRACTION
One thing that can happen during transmission is
refraction. This is when the object bends the light that is
passing through it.
Your camera lens does this, and it’s this bending of

light that allows it to be focused onto the sensor of the
camera. A glass bottle will also bend light, which is why
things look distorted as you peer through it!
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Transmission: Real World Examples
DIFFUSE TRANSMISSION TRANSMISSION OF COLOR

In the image above you can see the clouds are covering the One neat thing about transmission is that it can affect the
sun, and yet there is still lots of light present. This is because color of the light when it comes out the other side of the
the sunlight is passing through the clouds (transmission). object. For example, in the image above the sunlight is
The clouds are acting to scatter the light as it passes passing through the liquid (transmission). You can see the
through, making this an example of diffuse transmission. light after it has passed through on the right side of the
frame, and that it has now taken on the color of the liquid
itself. This happens because the liquid is absorbing some
wavelengths of light, and allowing other wavelengths of light
(those that are the same color as the liquid) to pass through.
This will happen with any transparent or translucent material
or object that has color!
TRY THIS! TYPES OF TRANSMISSION
Try this out to see the types of transmission

in action.
Transmission occurs when light passes through an object
or surface. Diffuse transmission occurs when light passes
through a surface and scatters in all directions as it comes
out the other side.
Grab:
• Flashlight
• Clear bottle TRANSMISSION
• White sheet of paper The light hits the clear bottle, and passes through it. This is transmission.
Do:
Shine your flashlight at the clear bottle, and see how the
1
light comes out the other side. That’s transmission! Move the
flashlight around, and see how the light passes through the
bottle at roughly the same angle that the flashlight is held at.
Now hold up the white sheet of paper, and shine your

2 flashlight at it. Look at the other side of the paper to see the
light coming through it. Now move the flashlight around, and
notice that even when you change the angle of the flashlight,
it doesn’t really change the direction of the light coming
DIFFUSE TRANSMISSION
out the other side of the paper. That’s because the light is
passing through the paper and scattering in all directions. When the light hits the paper, it passes through, and scatters in all
directions in what is known as diffuse transmission.
This is diffuse transmission!
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All Three Behaviors: Real World Examples

In the real world, all three behaviors of light (reflection, absorption and transmission) are
going on at once and in some photos you’ll be able to see them all. Let’s take a peek.
Here we have diffuse reflection all over the place, which is Diffuse reflection is taking place here, allowing us to see
how we see the objects. There’s some specular reflection the scene. There’s specular reflection in the water, creating
on the spoon, plate, and cup and even the espresso (notice a mirror image of the sky and trees. The different colors
the specular highlights!). In terms of absorption, the present are a result of the different objects and surfaces
different objects are absorbing different wavelengths of absorbing and reflecting different amounts and wavelengths
light, giving us the perception of different colors. Finally, of light. And finally we have diffuse transmission going on,
for transmission, light is passing through the glass of water, with the sunlight passing through the clouds and scattering.
and we can actually see the light that has passed through
showing up on the table! Neat!
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Review: Behaviors
When light strikes a surface, it can behave
in a variety of different ways, and often in
combination!
First, light is reflecting off of everything you can see (which

is why you can see it!). Some light is being absorbed by
surfaces, which is why we distinguish different colors. And in
some cases, light is passing right through surfaces – known
as transmission. When the light scatters as it reflects from
or passes through a surface, you get diffuse reflection and
diffuse transmission, respectively.
Make sure you have a good grasp of this stuff, because we’ll
be referring back to these behaviors later on in the tutorial
when we look at how to control light!
TRY THIS! THREE BEHAVIORS OF LIGHT
Head out with your camera and try to capture a photo

that shows all three behaviors – reflection, absorption
and transmission – happening at once.
Bonus points if you can capture both specular and

diffuse reflection, like in the example on the right! You
can see the specular reflection of the trees in the window
(which is also letting transmission happen), and the
diffuse reflection that allows us to see the objects.
“ Essentially what photography
is is life lit up. ”
Sam Abell
TONES &
DYNAMIC RANGE
v
TONES & DYNAMIC RANGE
Light & the Look of

Your Photos
SHADOW
All photos have a range of brightness and

darkness values known as tones.
These tones are the highlights, midtones, and shadows.
The highlights are the brighter parts of the image. The

shadows are the darker parts of the image. And the HIGHLIGHT
midtones are the parts of the image in between the
highlights and shadows, with a middle range of brightness. MIDTONE
Generally speaking, whether you get a highlight, midtone or

shadow depends on how much light your camera records
from that object in the photo. Lots of light makes it brighter.
Less light makes it darker. Makes sense, right?
Why does this matter? Well, being able to identify these

tones is critical to being able to analyze the light in your
images. As the light changes, the placement and amount of
highlights, midtones and shadows will change along with it.
note:
These tones have nothing to do with color. Tones only HIGHLIGHTS MIDTONES SHADOWS
describe the brightness and darkness values, and are
independent of color. You can have a blue highlight area,
or a yellow one – a red shadow or a green one.
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Dynamic Range
Dynamic range refers to the ratio of the brightest part of the image to the
darkest part. It has to do with how big, or small, that range is.
Simply put, we’re talking about how different the brightest areas are, compared to the darkest. An image
with very bright highlights, and very dark shadows will have a large difference between the two, and thus
has high dynamic range. A photo without bright highlights or dark shadows will have less difference, and
has low dynamic range. An image that is all dark, or all bright, can also have a low dynamic range because,
again, there isn’t much difference between the brightest and darkest points.
HIGH DYNAMIC RANGE LOW DYNAMIC RANGE
Range of Tones Present in the Image Above: Range of Tones Present in the Image Above:
This image has very bright areas (pure white on the glass skyscraper) This photo doesn’t have any areas that are very dark, nor does it have any
and very dark areas (pure black in the shadowed parts of the right hand areas that are very bright. It has low dynamic range.
building). The difference gives it a high dynamic range.
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HDR Photography
This type of photography attempts to
compensate for the limitations of your
camera.
As we mentioned before, what your eyes can see and what
your camera can capture are quite different, especially when
it comes to dynamic range.
Your camera can capture only a limited dynamic range in a

scene. In instances where there is a high dynamic range of
light (with both very bright and very dark areas), you’re left
with photos that don’t quite capture what you saw in front
of you.
ABOVE: A photo created with the HDR technique: taking multiple images
at different exposure settings and then using Adobe Lightroom® to blend
A style of photography has emerged to overcome this them all together, giving a dynamic range that one shot alone can’t produce.
obstacle. It’s called HDR (which stands for High Dynamic
Range) photography. HDR photography increases dynamic BELOW: The six images that were merged together to create the single
range by taking multiple photos at different exposures, then HDR image above.
combining them using post-processing software (like Adobe
Lightroom®) to display a fuller dynamic range than would be
possible with one photo alone
Using this technique, you can mimic what your eyes are
capable of seeing, or even take the effect further to create
surreal scenes that are beyond what you’d ever see in real
life!
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What is Contrast?
OBJECT CONTRAST
It’s a word that’s thrown around all the time,
The dalmatian has
but what does it mean? And what are the black and white
different types? spots as its coloring,
which makes it full of
contrast.
Contrast refers to one thing being different than another.
When it comes to photography, there are actually a few
different types of contrast.
First up, there’s object contrast. This is the contrast that is

inherent in an object, generally due to the colors or shades POST-PROCESSING
CONTRAST
that it is made up of.
Using a program like
Adobe Lightroom®,
Then there’s post-processing contrast. This contrast the tones have been
is added with post-processing software, like Adobe shifted, making the
bright tones brighter,
Lightroom®. Specifically, post-processing contrast changes and the dark tones
the brightness of the light and dark parts of an image. darker, thus adding
contrast.
Adding contrast makes the brights brighter and darks
darker. Reducing contrast does the opposite. BEFORE AFTER
Finally, there’s contrast of light. And this has to do with the

light itself – namely the ratio between the darkest parts and
the brightest parts. If there’s a large difference, there is said CONTRAST OF LIGHT
to be a lot of contrast in the light. Sound familiar? Yep, this is This image has
bright highlights,
the same as saying the scene has high dynamic range! and dark shadows,
so there is a high
Now why does contrast matter? Well, human beings are contrast of light in
the scene (or high
simply attracted to contrast! It catches our eyes, and our dynamic range).
attention, and that can be quite helpful when it comes to
your photography!
big idea
Tones describe the brightness values in an image and dynamic range has to
do with the relationship between those values. A scene with a high dynamic
range of light gives an image contrast, and that can be quite eye-catching.
But what does this all have to do with light? And making better images? Well,
you’re about to see how the tones in a photo can have a massive impact on
how we interpret the image. In fact, tones are fantastically useful clues that
show you what is going on with the light in a scene. Being able to identify
them, and recognize their relationship, is the key to understanding and
analyzing light.
CHARACTERISTICS
OF LIGHT
v
CHARACTERISTICS OF LIGHT
The 4
Characteristics of
Light DIRECTION
There are four characteristics of light that
affect the look of your photos.
The four characteristics are:
1) Direction
2) Quality QUALITY
3) Intensity
4) Color
That might seem basic enough, but don’t be fooled. These

characteristics can work together to create infinite variety!
INTENSITY
ed!
get excit
Everything we’ve covered so far has been in preparation

for understanding this section. And this is the stuff that
is going to change the way you see light, and approach
your photography!
COLOR
v
1) Direction SIDE FRONT
The direction light comes from determines

where the highlights, midtones, and shadows
will be in your image.
OVERHEAD BACK
The different arrangements of those tones will give your
photo, and the objects in it, very different appearances.
Light can come from any direction, but common terms used
to describe the direction of light include side lighting, front
lighting, overhead lighting, and back lighting.
The above examples show how the direction of light can drastically change
We are generally accustomed to light coming from above the appearance of an object. Take a quick look at how the tones (the
and from one side, since this is usually how sunlight lights a highlights, midtones and shadows) have changed in each image – both in
terms of proportion, and placement.
scene. Light in this way seems quite normal and natural!
However light can come from multiple directions, and in the

real world it usually does! You can have multiple sources of PHOTO-SPEAK
light striking an object in the scene (like the sunlight coming
in the window, as well as the light from overhead lamps). KEY, FILL AND AMBIENT LIGHT
When talking about multiple sources of light in an image,
You can also have light reflecting off of surfaces, and onto photographers use different terms to use to describe them.
your subject, which creates the appearance of multiple light The main light used to illuminate a scene is known as a key
sources. light. A variety of sources can be used as secondary (non-
main) lights. Some common ones are fill light, which is a light
For the sake of simplicity we’re going to look deeper at side, used to fill in shadows, or ambient light, which is light that
front, overhead and back lighting. already exists in a scene.
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Side Lighting
Side lighting is when the main light source is coming from the side
of your subject.
One side of the objects in the scene will be hit with the light, and the other side will remain
in shadow. That difference between highlight and shadow creates contrast and helps to
emphasize depth and texture.
Side lighting is used to describe a fairly wide range of angles of light. The more
perpendicular the light is to the subject, the longer the shadows cast by the subject will be,
and the more the depth and texture will be emphasized.
Here’s a perfect example of how side lighting can show texture. The Side lighting can make portraits look quite dramatic. Here the sun is
ridges in the sand, and even the tracks, are emphasized here because of coming in through the window, late in the day, so it’s giving us strong
the angle of the light. The sun was setting and low in the sky, making it side lighting. Half of the boy’s face is bright, and half is in shadow, which
come very strongly from the side. If the sun had been high in the sky, you gives a really nice sense of depth and dimension.
wouldn’t have seen such great texture!
v
Front Lighting
When the main light source comes from behind the camera (or
from the camera itself), and illuminates the front of the subject, it’s
known as front lighting.
When the light hits the subject from the front, the shadows are cast mainly behind the
subject, and are often not as prominent in the photo. This can produce quite flat results,
where it’s harder to get a sense of depth and dimension. It also has the effect of reducing
the appearance of texture. For this reason, front lighting is sometimes used for beauty
portraits, where you don’t want to see much texture in skin!
This photo was taken with the flash on the camera – often known as Front lighting isn’t always a bad thing. It can look nice on portraits,
‘direct flash’. It’s a perfect example of common front lighting, and why especially when it’s ‘soft’ (more on that later). It evenly illuminates the
it makes images look so flat. There are no shadows to suggest depth. face, minimizes the look of texture, and doesn’t have any unflattering
Boring! This type of lighting rarely looks good, so avoid using your on- shadows. The light in this image was coming from an open doorway
camera flash when possible. directly behind the camera.
TRY THIS! TEXTURE & DIRECTION
Let’s see just how much the direction of light
changes the appearance of texture.
With front lighting, the appearance of texture is minimized.
There either aren’t many shadows, or the shadows fall
behind the subject, out of view of the camera, so we can’t
get a sense of depth. With side lighting, there is a mix of
highlight and shadow that helps us to get a sense of the
texture and depth in the photo.
Grab:
• Flashlight FRONT LIGHTING
• Piece of sandpaper (or other surface with a lot of texture) When the light comes from behind the camera, directly in front of the
subject, we get front lighting which doesn’t give much sense of texture.
Everything is very evenly illuminated, with no visible shadows.
Do:
Hold the sandpaper in front of you, and shine your flashlight
1
directly at it. This is front lighting, where the light comes
from the viewer’s position, and hits the subject front on.
Notice how there aren’t any shadows – the light is filling
them all in.
Now change the angle of flashlight so it is at a 90° angle

2 from you, pointing along the sandpaper. Fiddle with the
angle until you see something like the example on the right:
this is side lighting, and you can see that the mixture of
highlights and shadows better conveys the texture of the SIDE LIGHTING
sandpaper! As the angle of the light changes to come from the side, it now will show
both highlights and shadows. The contrast between these tones helps us to
see the texture in the sandpaper.
v
Overhead Lighting
Overhead lighting is when the main light source is coming from
above the subject.
Indoors you find overhead lighting when there are lights on the ceiling. And outdoors, when
the sun is high in the sky, you’ll also get overhead lighting.
With overhead lighting, the shadows are cast downward underneath the subject. This tends
to make landscape images look flat, with little sense of depth. Overhead lighting can also be
quite unflattering on faces, as there will be dark shadows in the eye sockets, and underneath
the chin.
In this photo the sun is high in the sky in the middle of the day. You can Overhead lighting, both indoors and outdoors, doesn’t generally look
see that the shadow of the helicopter is almost directly below it. very good on faces. While there are fairly prominent shadows here,
and they can help give a sense of depth, their placement isn’t flattering.
Dark eyes and a bright nose don’t look very natural. This type of light is
generally avoided when it comes to shooting portraits.
v
Back Lighting
With back lighting, the light is coming from behind the subject.
This type of lighting tends to put the subject into dark shadow, with highlights on the top
edges, and a shadow cast forward toward the camera. Back lighting helps to emphasize
the shape of an object, but it tends not to give as much information about depth or texture
compared to side lighting. It can also add some drama to the shot.
With back lighting you can create silhouette shots, with your subject mainly in shadow. It
can also be used to create a bright, glowing effect if you expose the shot brighter for the
subject.
Here the sun is behind the subject, so there is back lighting. It helps to You can also choose a brighter exposure for your backlit images, so that
emphasize the shapes in the image, especially given that the exposure your subject is properly exposed instead of dark. Increasing the exposure
was set to make the subjects appear dark. The sunburst coming through will make the background quite bright, since that’s where the light is
the trees helps to add some drama to the image, and is an effect possible coming from, adding a neat glowing effect. This is an instance where
when shooting backlit. shooting in manual mode comes in handy, as it can be tough for your
camera’s automatic modes to get the exposure you want.
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Review: Direction
The direction of light changes how the tones
appear on your subject.
Side
Side lighting occurs when the light is positioned to the
side of the subject. It creates a mix of both highlights and
shadows, and suggests depth and emphasizes texture.
Front
When the light comes from in front of your subject, the
shadows fall behind them. This type of lighting is often
considered “flat”, because it doesn’t show much depth.
Overhead
Overhead lighting comes from above the subject, and
occurs with indoor lights and when the sun is high in the sky.
It produces unflattering shadows on a face, and doesn’t give
much sense of depth.
Back
When the light comes from behind your subject it’s known
get
as back lighting, and it puts the front of the subject into don’t for
shadow. This can help emphasize shape. Back lighting can
Light can come from all directions. We’ve covered the four
be a bit tricky to expose for, but has potential to add drama
main directions in this section, in order to make it easier
to the shot.
to understand. But in reality light can come from any one
angle, or a practically infinite combination of angles!
TRY THIS! DIRECTION
Yep, it’s time for a super fun egg-ercise!

SIDE FRONT
The direction of the light in your image will change both
the appearance and proportion of tones – the highlights,
midtones, and shadows. Try this out to get a first hand
experience of just how it works!
Grab:
OVERHEAD BACK
• Flashlight
• Egg
Do:
Shine your flashlight at the egg from the side, then
1
from the front, then from overhead, then from the Simply moving your flashlight around your egg will give you a good sense
back. Then try moving it in all directions, and see how of how much the direction of light will affect the look of your subject. Don’t
forget to try angles other than these four to see just how much variety is
there is infinite variation possible between these four
possible!
basic directions.
!
bonus tip
2 As you try each direction, take notice of the placement
of the tones, as well as the proportion of each.
Using an egg is an egg-cellent way to see how the tones
change because it’s white, has an even surface texture, and
3 Make sure to take a look at the shadow cast by the has depth. But try this out with other things as well! Grab a
egg as well – both its direction and size. toy, or a willing friend, and see how changing the direction
of the light changes the tones on other subjects!
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2) Quality
Quality refers to whether light is hard or
soft.
With hard light, the highlights are brighter and the shadows
are darker, with sharply defined edges.
With soft light, the highlights aren’t as bright, and the

shadows aren’t as dark. The shadows are also less defined, HARD LIGHT
with a smoother transition between dark and light. They are
often described as “blurry” or “fuzzy”. Hard light produces images with bright highlights and dark shadows that
have sharp edges.
These might seem like small distinctions, but they can have a
huge impact on the look of your scene.
ct!
fun fa
The easiest way to tell if light is hard or soft is to look
at the shadows! Take a peek and ask yourself: Are the
shadows dark or light? Are the edges sharply defined or
blurry?
SOFT LIGHT
Soft light produces images with highlights that aren’t as bright, and
shadows that aren’t as dark. The shadows have blurry edges.
v
What Makes Light SIZE OF LIGHT SOURCE
Hard or Soft? Narrow

angle
Wider an
gle
ag e
of cover of cover
age
The simple answer is size. The complicated
answer is size.
Put very simply, the softness or hardness of the light in your
scene is determined by how large or small the area of the HARD LIGHT SOFT LIGHT
light source is, in relation to your subject. The light source is small, so the Using a larger light source at the
light is hard, and the shadow of the same distance creates softer light,
ball has sharp edges. and the shadow of the ball has
Generally speaking, the bigger the light source, the softer fuzzy edges.
the light. The smaller the light source, the harder the light.
Now, remember when I said that the complicated answer is DISTANCE FROM SUBJECT
size? It has to do with that “in relation” part of the definition.
Let’s think about the sun. Technically speaking, it is a very,

very (very) large light source. BUT! Because it is so far away
from us, it actually acts like a small light source. Even though
it is technically large in size, its apparent size is small, in
relation to the subjects in our photos.
Now, the variable that determines whether your light source

is big or small is the angle of coverage that the light source
has over the subject. If it covers a wide angle, it’ll be soft
light because the light can wrap around the subject more,
and fill in the shadows. If the light source covers a narrow HARD LIGHT SOFT LIGHT
angle, it’ll be hard light, with the shadows getting less light The light source is far away, If the same size of light source is
filling them in, and being darker as a result. making it apparently smaller. The closer to the subject, its apparent size
resulting light is hard and the is larger. The resulting light is softer,
shadow has sharp edges. and the shadow has fuzzier edges.
v
Hard vs. Soft: Appearance note:

There are shadows on objects, and shadows
cast by objects. In photography we use the
The tones on an object will look different if it’s lit by hard term “shadow” to refer to both!
light or soft light.
Hard light gives you a wider range of tones, from brighter brights to darker darks, which creates more contrast. But there’s a
caveat here: when tones get really bright or really dark, you can lose detail (like color, texture, shape, etc.) in those areas. For
example, a very bright highlight may appear totally white and a very dark shadow totally black, even if the subject has color!
With soft light, there is less contrast present. The highlight isn’t as bright as when the object is under hard light, and the
shadow isn’t as dark. The transition between the tones is also different. With hard light there’s a more abrupt transition from
highlight to shadow and the cast shadow has sharper edges. With soft light the transition from highlight to shadow is more
gradual, and the cast shadow has blurry edges. Finally, because the highlights and shadows aren’t as extreme with soft light,
you’re able to see more color and detail in those areas.
HARD LIGHT SOFT LIGHT

HIGHLIGHT HIGHLIGHT
MIDTONE MIDTONE
SHADOW SHADOW
CAST SHADOW CAST SHADOW
Under hard light the highlight is quite bright, and the shadow is quite dark. With soft light the highlight isn’t as bright and the shadow isn’t as dark. The
The transitions between the tones are abrupt, and the cast shadow has sharp transitions between the tones are more gradual, and the cast shadow has
edges. blurry edges.
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Hard vs. Soft:

Sources
DIRECT LIGHT
Direct light tends to produce hard light, and

indirect light tends to produce soft light.
So let’s break down those terms: direct and indirect. Light is
direct when there is nothing between the light source and
the subject. Real world examples include a bare light bulb,
There is nothing between the light
or the sun on a clear day. Direct light tends to produce hard source (the sun) and the subject, so
light, with greater contrast and shadows with sharp edges. this is direct light.
Light is indirect when there is something between the light

source and subject. This might be clouds over the sun, or a
lamp shade over a light bulb. Or it could be that the light has
bounced off of a wall, or the ground, before reflecting back
onto the subject. INDIRECT LIGHT
Remember diffuse transmission and diffuse reflection?
Those are at work here with indirect light. Putting a piece of
fabric in front of light bulb causes the light to be diffusely
transmitted. In photo-speak, there are lots of gadgets that
are called “diffusers” that do precisely this!
So why does indirect light make things softer? When

light gets scattered, it ends up coming from not just one Here there are clouds in between the
direction, but many directions. That means it has more light source (the sun) and the subject,
creating indirect light. The light is
opportunity to fill in shadows, making those shadows lighter being diffusely transmitted by the
and less distinct. clouds, making it softer.
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Hard vs. Soft: Landscape Example

This shot was taken in direct sunlight (where the sun’s Here is the same subject (from a different vantage point),
apparent size is small), giving us hard light. You’ll see taken just after the sun has gone below the horizon. Now
that the shadows are very dark, with hard edges, and the the light source is still the sun, but it has become an indirect
highlights are quite bright. There’s a lot of contrast! You source. The sky has light because the sun’s light is scattered
can also see a lot of the texture of the rocks, thanks to the in the atmosphere, making sky light an indirect source of sun
contrast between dark and light. The hard, high-contrast light. The entire sky is a much larger light source than the
light gives this image a dramatic, bold appearance. sun itself, so the resulting light is softer and more diffuse.
The shadows aren’t as dark, and you can see more detail in
them. There is also more color visible in both the highlights
and shadows here.
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Hard vs. Soft: Portrait Example

In this shot, our light source is direct: It’s a single studio Now we’re using the exact same light, but we’ve added a
bulb with nothing placed between it and our subject. The large diffuser between the subject and the light. This has
resulting hard light isn’t very flattering for a portrait – the the effect of diffusely transmitting the light, spreading it
shadows are dark and hard edged, and the highlights are out, making it a much larger source, and giving us soft light.
bright and make the skin look shiny. It’s all pretty distracting! Notice how the shadows aren’t nearly as dark, and they have
fuzzy edges. You can see a lot more detail across the face.
The highlights aren’t as strong either, so you don’t have that
shiny skin appearance. Soft light is generally considered
much more flattering for portraits.
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Hard vs. Soft: Berry Example

These berries are lit by direct sunlight – or hard light. The When we bring that bucket of berries into the shade, we
resulting bright highlights and dark shadows add nice change the light source to the open sky, which gives us soft,
contrast. Notice, though, how you lose some color and detail diffused light. The result is less contrast – the highlights
in the brightest and darkest parts of the shots. This is typical aren’t as bright and the shadows aren’t as dark – but there is
of hard light. more detail and color present in them.
v
Hard Light
vs.
Soft Light:
A Brief But Totally
Helpful Review of the
Quality of Light Hard Light Soft Light
Size of Light Source Relatively small light source Relatively large light source
Shadows Dark, with sharp edges Light, with blurry edges
Low contrast: highlights not as bright, shadows not

Contrast High contrast: bright highlights, dark shadows
as dark
Color & Detail Less in the highlights and shadows Maintained in the highlights and shadows
Texture More visible in the midtones Less visible in the midtones
Usually indirect (something in between light and

Source Direct (nothing between light and subject)
subject)
Diffused light (soft box), bounced light, overcast

Examples Direct sunlight, bare light bulb, direct flash
light, shade, window light (no direct rays)
Softer, flattering for portraits, more potential for

Mood & Appearance Dramatic, graphic
symmetry
TRY THIS! HARD VS. SOFT LIGHT
Are you egg-cited?!? It’s time to see hard

and soft light in action!
Hard light comes from a relatively small light source, and is
usually direct. It produces dark shadows, with hard edges.
Soft light comes from a relatively large light source, and is
often indirect. It produces lighter shadows with fuzzy edges.
Let’s see how all that looks on our egg!
Grab:
HARD LIGHT
• Flashlight
There is nothing between the flashlight and the egg, so we have direct, hard
• Egg light. It produces bright highlights and dark shadows with sharp edges.
• Sheet of white paper
Do:
Shine your flashlight directly at the egg from about a foot
1
away. Take a look at the shadows, and see how the hard light
affects their appearance.
Take your white piece of paper, and hold it in between the

2 light and the egg. This is now diffusing the light (through
diffuse transmission), and turning it into a larger, and
therefore softer, light source. Take a look at the shadows,
and see how they’ve changed to be lighter, and with fuzzier SOFT LIGHT
edges. By adding a piece of paper in between the flashlight and the egg we have
diffused the light, making it into a larger light source, so it becomes soft
light. The highlights aren’t as bright, and the shadows aren’t as dark. The
shadows also have blurry edges.
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3) Intensity
Light sources can have different intensities, from dim, to very bright, and everywhere in
between.
One of the brightest, highest intensity light sources that we experience is direct sunlight – the full brightness of the sun with
nothing in the way. Then there are things like distant stars that appear very dim, and can only be seen when there isn’t any
other light to interfere with them. Light bulbs land somewhere in the middle, depending on how powerful they are.
Now this is somewhat relative, because the intensity of the light source depends on how close you are to it! If you are really
close to a light bulb, it’s going to seem much brighter than one far away. And if you took a trip to one of those distant stars, it
would be just as bright as the sun. Luckily there’s a handy law that helps us understand just how this works...
LOW INTENSITY HIGH INTENSITY
stars moon home sunrise/sunset office overcast studio indirect direct
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The Inverse
Square Law
Geek
Spea
k!
This law states that the brightness of the

light on your subject will be less intense the
farther you move away from the light source.
In fact, the light on your subject will appear twice as dim as
the distance moved away from the light source. Don’t panic.
You don’t need to pull out a calculator here!
The important thing to take away is that the relationship

between distance and brightness is not linear. As you move
away from a light source, the light that is cast onto your
subject will very quickly become less bright.
The reason the light is getting less intense so quickly is

because the light is spreading out, and affecting a larger
area as it moves away from the source. As the light moves away from a light source, it spreads out, and quickly
becomes less intense.
Think about taking a photo of a city skyline at night. Even if
you put your camera flash at maximum power, it just can’t
seem to light up those buildings that are far away from you. PHOTO-SPEAK
Even a super mega powerful flash quickly appears dimmer
as the subject gets further away. The light spreads out really FALL-OFF
quickly, and it just doesn’t have a noticeable effect. This is a photographic term used to describe the light
getting less intense as it moves away from the source. The
big idea brightness of the light seems to “fall-off” as you move away
Moving closer to a light source will increase the intensity from it.
of the light on the subject. Moving away will decrease it.
v
Like so much of our discussion of light so far, the Inverse

Square Law might seem a little over technical at first, but
the simple concept behind it becomes incredibly practical
when you get out and start shooting.
For example, say you’re wanting to take portraits using the

light of a window. You can position your subject right by
the window, and get a good amount of light. But if they
take just one step away, the brightness is going to decrease
dramatically. A B A B
POSITION 1 POSITION 2
Things get even trickier if you’re shooting a group of
people. Those that are further from the window will have
significantly less light hitting them than those closer to the
window because of the quick fall-off of the light.
If you’re in a situation like this you have a couple options.

You can get everyone as close together as possible in order
to minimize the difference in brightness from one to the
other. Squish those faces in tight!
At Position 1, where the subjects are close to the light source, there is a
significant difference in brightness between Subject A and Subject B. At
Or, if there’s enough light, you can bring them away from Position 2, as the subjects move away from the light source, the difference in
brightness between Subject A and Subject B is much less noticeable.
the window a bit. As you move further from the light source,
the difference in brightness between one step and the next
decreases. When you’re close to the light source, a step
TRY THIS! INVERSE SQUARE LAW
away makes a big difference. When you’re further from the
light source, a step away makes much less of a difference!
So shooting further from the light source will give you more Grab a flashlight and turn it on. Point it at your open palm,
consistent lighting across the group. nice and close. Then slowly move the flashlight away from
your palm. Notice how, at first, the light on your hand quickly
The Inverse Square Law is an essential concept in becomes dimmer. Then, as the flashlight moves further and
understanding light, so take a second to review, make sure further away, the difference in brightness is less noticeable.
you have it down, and then let’s move on!
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Intensity & Quality MOVING AWAY

These two characteristics of light are
intertwined, and can sometimes influence
each other.
Moving the Light Away

As the light source moves away from the subject, the
light cast on the subject becomes less intense, as we just
mentioned with the Inverse Square Law. But at this point SOFT LIGHT HARD LIGHT
you also know that the size of the light source is related to When the light source is large As the light source moves away, the
and close to the subject it is soft. light on the subject becomes both
the quality of the light. As the light source moves away, the dimmer and harder, as the light
apparent size becomes smaller, which creates harder light. source becomes smaller.
So, as the light source moves away, the light it casts on the
subject becomes both dimmer, and harder at the same time!
Diffusing the Light USING A DIFFUSER

Here’s another example! When you diffuse light, using a
piece of paper for example, you’re scattering all the light
waves, making the light softer. Awesome. But as a result,
you’ll also end up making the light dimmer (you might have
noticed this as you tried out the exercises).
As you can see, these two characteristics are very

connected, and as you change one, the other will generally
change as well!
The light source is small, so the Adding a diffuser makes the light
light is hard. softer, but by spreading it out, it
also makes the light on the subject
dimmer.
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4) Color
Different light sources can produce different colors of light, ranging from red, to white, to
blue.
The colors of light are measured on a scale of temperature, from hotter/redder color temperatures like candle light, to cooler/
bluer temperatures like shade.
We don’t normally notice the difference in the color of light, because our brains automatically adjust so that the temperature
looks mostly neutral. Nifty, hey? But your camera doesn’t do that, and so the different colors of light will affect how your
images look.
WARM TEMPERATURE COOL TEMPERATURE
fire sunrise/sunset incandescent studio moon direct overcast LCD
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How Color
Temperature Affects
Your Photos
The color of light can have a dramatic effect
on the mood of your photos.
Photos taken just after sunrise, or just before sunset (known
as the golden hours), produce light that is golden yellow.
This can add a warm, happy feeling to the photo. Images
taken at midday, when the light temperature is neutral, tend
Golden yellow light can give a warm, happy feeling to your images.
not to get much mood-enhancement from the light.
The red light from a candle can also create a warm or

dramatic mood, whereas a television set, or a cell phone,
which produce more blue light, can create a totally different
feeling – one that’s more quiet and lonely.
ct!
fun fa
COLOR CONSTANCY
Your brain knows that the color of an object stays the
same, even when the color temperature changes. For
example, the white pages of a book still look white even
under indoor lighting (yellow) or outdoor shade (blue).
This process is known as color constancy, and helps us to
Blue light can add a moody or quiet atmosphere to a photo.
recognize familiar objects!
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Review: The 4
Characteristics
Direction
Depending on what direction light comes from, it will
change the position and proportion of the highlights,
midtones and shadows on your subject. Side lighting, front
lighting, overhead lighting and back lighting are all terms
often used to describe the direction of light.
Quality
Quality is controlled by the size of the light source in relation
to the subject. A larger light source generally produces soft
light with softer edged shadows. A smaller light source
generally produces hard light with hard edged shadows.
Intensity
Intensity refers to the brightness of light, and it can range
from very dim, to very bright. The intensity of the light on
your subject will appear to be less bright the farther you
move away from the light source.
Color note:
Light comes in different colors, known as color This is just the beginning. In the next section we are
temperatures. They range from warm/red to cool/blue, and going to be expanding on these characteristics of light
can have an impact on the look and mood of your photo. as we talk about how to actually control them! Take an
extra second to review, and then let’s go!
“ Wherever there is light, one
can photograph.”
Alfred Stieglitz
CONTROLLING
LIGHT
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CONTROLLING LIGHT
The 3 Ways to
Control Light
Capturing light comes with many challenges,
as well as creative opportunities.
No matter what you’re shooting, or what type of light
1
you’re using, you’ll find yourself facing limitations. Light
doesn’t just automatically do what you want it to! You, as
the photographer, have to make decisions about what you
want from the light around you. By learning how to work
2
with light, and what choices you have for controlling it, you
can solve problems, and create better images by taking
advantage of all the possibilities!
The best part? Sometimes it is very simple to make an

improvement to the light. You just need to know what your
options are!
So there are three different ways that you can control the
3
light in a scene:
1) Control it with the settings on your camera.
2) Control the direction of light.
3) Control the light source itself.
Let’s dig in, and talk about each one of those options.
v
CONTROLLING LIGHT
1) Controlling Light
With Your Camera
The most basic way to control light is by
adjusting the settings on your camera.
And before we go any further, you should know that you
will be fairly limited in your control over light if you’re only
adjusting your camera settings. But it’s a good place to
start!
The first way to control light with your camera is to control

the intensity or brightness of that light. And this has to do
with adjusting your camera’s exposure settings. PHOTO-SPEAK
The exposure of an image refers to how bright or dark it is, BRACKETING

and a key thing you need to know about exposure is that When it’s hard to tell whether or not you have a good
there is no “right” or “wrong” exposure for a shot. It’s more a exposure you can use a technique known as bracketing.
matter of personal preference – whatever works best for the This is where you take the same shot several times with
scene you’re shooting and the result you want. different settings to get a variety of exposures.
There are three settings on your camera that can affect the A common way to do it is to take three shots, one
exposure of the image: shutter speed, aperture, and ISO. being underexposed (darker than you want), one being
the exposure you want, and one being overexposed
Each one will also change the appearance of the photo, so (brighter than you want). When you get the photos onto
let’s take a quick peek at how these work. your computer, you can take a better look to see which
exposure will work best for your needs. Some cameras
even have a feature that automatically adjusts the
bracketing settings for you!
v
CONTROLLING LIGHT
The 3 Factors That Affect Exposure

Shutter Speed Aperture
Controls how long the shutter is open. The longer Controls the size of the hole in the lens. The more
it’s open, the more light that’s let in. Longer open, the more light that’s let in. Also, the more
shutter speeds create motion blur. Shorter ones open the aperture, the shallower the depth of
freeze action. field (less in focus).
f/1.4 f/2.8 f/5.6 f/8 f/11 f/16

1/1000 sec 1/500 sec 1/250 sec 1/100 sec 1/30 sec 1 sec
LETS IN MORE LIGHT LETS IN LESS LIGHT

LETS IN LESS LIGHT LETS IN MORE LIGHT
re
learn mo
ISO
Controls how sensitive the sensor is to light. EXTREMELY ESSENTIAL CAMERA SKILLS
The higher the ISO, the more sensitive. Also, the Need some help with these concepts? Learning how
higher the ISO the more noise (grain) there will be to control your camera (including exposure!) is a
in the photo. whole course in itself. To learn more about the settings
on your camera, and how they affect the look of
your images, make sure to check out our Extremely
Essential Camera Skills course, which makes it fast and
100 200 400 800 1600 3200 fun to learn these fundamental skills.
Click here to go check it out now!

LESS SENSITIVE MORE SENSITIVE
TO LIGHT TO LIGHT
v
CONTROLLING LIGHT
Your Camera’s Light Psst! Pull out your manual for details on the
settings and features of your camera!
Meter
A light meter is a sensor inside your camera The Exposure Indicator
that measures incoming light.
CANON NIKON OTHER
After measuring the light, your light meter will suggest what
a proper exposure might be, which is pretty darn useful! It
displays this suggestion using the exposure indicator – a
scale usually found on the LCD or through the viewfinder.
If you’re shooting in automatic modes (A, P, Tv, Av) your Metering Modes
camera will automatically adjust the exposure settings
based on what the light meter is suggesting, in order to
get a proper exposure (where the exposure indicator reads
zero).
And how does the light meter figure out what a proper MULTI-ZONE CENTER-WEIGHTED SPOT
exposure should be? Well, it looks at the midtones in your
image, and then suggests an exposure that will make them
look properly like midtones (as opposed to looking like tip!
highlights or shadows).
WHICH MODE?
In order to determine where it should look for midtones, Which metering mode to use will depend on the
your camera may have different metering modes. Multi-zone situation. For most scenarios, center-weighted is a
metering looks at the entire frame, center-weighted will good all-around choice. But, in tricky lighting (like
look most closely at whatever is in the center of your frame strong back lighting), spot metering can be handy,
and spot metering will look at what is right underneath the but requires careful use to ensure the right subject is
center spot on your screen. metered for.
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CONTROLLING LIGHT
Exposure Value
The steps in the exposure indicator scale are MINUS TWO EV PLUS ONE EV
or or
measured by the exposure value (EV). MINUS TWO STOPS PLUS ONE STOP
You may have noticed that the exposure indicator has little
steps along the scale. These steps in the scale are commonly
known as “stops”. And what’s particularly handy is that
each stop is twice the brightness as the one before. So, for
example, at +1 stop the camera is letting in twice as much
light as when the exposure indicator is at zero. FINE TUNE
You can usually control the
exposure in 1/3 stops.
You can change your aperture, shutter speed and ISO
settings to get different exposure stops along the scale.
MINUS ONE STOP ORIGINAL PLUS ONE STOP
v
CONTROLLING LIGHT
The Trick With the

Light Meter
Your light meter doesn’t actually know what
you want to expose for. It’s just guessing!
The exposure indicator will show you if your image is
underexposed, neutrally exposed, or overexposed. But
that’s not telling you if it’s a “good” exposure – just what it is
relative to neutral. And in tricky light the light meter might
be fooled. You might actually want to expose your shot for
A silhouette is an example of a tricky light situation that will fool your light
a bright area (like the sky), or a dark area (like a person meter. In this instance you want to expose for the sky, and let the foreground
standing in front of a window). And in cases like those, your get very dark. Your light meter is going to think that the image is quite
underexposed, and will show an underexposed reading on the exposure
light meter might suggest the wrong exposure necessary to indicator. But that’s the look you’re going for, so it’s still a “good” exposure!
capture the shot you envision.
PHOTO-SPEAK
To adjust for these kinds of situations you have two options.
First up, you can use exposure compensation, which is a
CHIMPING
setting or dial on your camera that will automatically make
Chimping is a term that refers to the act of looking at your
the image brighter or darker than the light meter suggests it
photos on the back of your camera (and making “ooh ahh”
should be.
noises!).
Or you can shoot in manual mode, which will let you take
In some situations, especially with tricky light, it can be hard
full control of your shutter speed, ISO, and aperture, and
to tell what a good exposure is, and this is where chimping
create the exposure that you want (regardless of what the
can help. You can check your results to see if you’re getting
exposure indicator tells you).
what you want, and adjust as necessary!
However you use it, your light meter and exposure indicator
But be careful! It’s easy to spend too much time chimping, and
are key features of your camera that will help you control
wind up missing what’s happening in front of you!
light!
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CONTROLLING LIGHT
Controlling Color
TWILIGHT
OPEN SHADE
With White Balance OVERCAST SKY
Your camera has a setting called white

BRIGHT SUNSHINE,
balance that compensates for the different CLEAR SKY
color temperatures of light. These are the icons you can
SUNLIGHT AT MIDDAY use to select white balance
The white balance setting on your camera changes the ELECTRONIC FLASH settings on your camera,
way light information is processed, in order to correct for along with the color of
light that they attempt to
different colored light sources. neutralize.
You can manually set the white balance on your camera by SUNRISE + SUNSET
choosing from a set of icons that correspond to different
shooting situations.
HOUSEHOLD (TUNGSTEN)
LIGHT BULB
Another option is to use the Auto White Balance mode
(AWB), where the camera will attempt to automatically CANDLE LIGHT
set the correct white balance for you. And it usually does
a pretty good job! But, unfortunately, it doesn’t always FLUORESCENT
Doesn’t fit on the same color
make the right choices. And when the white balance temperature scale. It neutralizes the
setting is wrong for an image it can make things look pretty green cast from fluorescent light by
shifting the balance to pink.
wacky! Skin tones can look bad, the color of objects can
be inaccurate, and other such shenanigans. This is where
shooting in the raw image format can help, because you can
easily change white balance settings afterwards.
The photos on the right show how different white balance settings
change the color of an image. The same photo has had the Shade
white balance setting applied (left) and the Tungsten setting (right),
making the image look dramatically different with each option. SHADE TUNGSTEN
v
CONTROLLING LIGHT
Tricky White
Balance
When you have two different color
temperatures of light in your scene, getting
a proper white balance can be tough.
Imagine you’re photographing your subject in front of a
window that has cool blue shade coming in. In the room a
lamp is turned on, adding some warm yellow light. How do
you set your white balance to compensate properly for the
two colors of light illuminating your scene?
In this photo there are two different light sources present: a lamp to the
right, just out of the frame, and the cell phone on the boy’s lap. The lamp
The short answer: you can’t. has a tungsten bulb, and is providing warm/yellow light. The cell phone
screen is providing cool/blue light. No matter what white balance setting
we choose, we won’t be able to neutralize both color temperatures! The best
The long answer is that your camera’s white balance can option here would be to turn off one light source.
only compensate for one color temperature at a time. If
you’re working with multiple light sources with different
color temperatures, things get really tricky. The easiest
way to deal with this is to rework your lighting so that just tip!
one color of light hits your subject. Turn off the lamp, for
BLACK & WHITE
example, and only use the window light.
If you aren’t able to limit the light sources or modify
More complex solutions include changing the color them then you have one final option for dealing with
temperature of one of the light sources (using things like tricky white balance situations: converting the photo
colored filters), or doing some very tricky post-processing to to black and white using post-processing software. It’s
try to selectively adjust the temperature for just one section a last resort, but it could save an image that you might
of your photo. Not fun. When possible, try to have only one otherwise pass over.
color of light hitting your subject, and it will make your job
much easier!
v
CONTROLLING LIGHT
Review: Controlling
Light With Your
Camera
You can control the appearance of light by
adjusting settings on your camera.
Using aperture, shutter speed, and ISO, you can change the
exposure of the image, making the photo look brighter or
darker.
There are some tools on your camera that can help you
determine what a good exposure might be. The light meter
is a sensor inside the camera that reads the light and
suggests on the exposure indicator what a good exposure
might be. The light meter determines this suggested
exposure based on what metering mode you have your
camera set to. Common metering modes include multi-zone,
spot and center-weighted.
Finally, you can adjust the white balance settings on

your camera to change the way the light information
is processed, in order to neutralize different color
temperatures of light.
There is a lot you can do with your camera, but there are
even more ways to control light, so let’s check out the next
option now!
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CONTROLLING LIGHT
2) Controlling the 1
Direction of Light
When you change the direction of the light
in your image, it affects the appearance of
the tones.
There are two ways you can potentially control the direction
of light in your image:
1) You can move the light source.
2) You can move the camera.
Now note: when you move the light source, you will be
changing the actual direction that the light is coming from.
When you move the camera, you won’t be affecting the light
source itself, but the appearance of the direction of the light
will change.
For example, if you’re photographing a subject with back

2
lighting, and then you walk around to the side (moving the
camera), you’ve just changed the of the direction of the light
from back lighting to side lighting, without ever touching the
get
light source itself! don’t for
The direction of light will affect the placement and
proportion of tones — highlights, midtones and
shadows — in your image. If you need a refresher on
how the different directions affect tones, click here!
v
CONTROLLING LIGHT
Now, in some situations you will have control over both

variables, and in some situations you won’t!
Sometimes you’ll be able to move the light source, and you’ll

be able to move your camera as well.
Other times you won’t have as many options. This is

especially true when shooting with natural light – you can’t
just ask the sun to move to the side!
But you can almost always change the position that you’re
shooting from, so you can almost always change the look of
the light in your image!
Now, we don’t recommend trying to change both the

Here the light is coming from behind the motorcycle. We can’t move the
direction of the light source and the direction of the camera sun, but we do have another option for changing the direction of the light.
at the same time. Doing so will make it a lot harder for
you to understand how each change affects the look of
your image! Make it a practice to change just one of these
variables at a time, and then analyze the results. This way
you’ll better understand how each type of adjustment
affects the scene.
By simply walking around to the other side, we are able to completely

change the direction of the light to front/side lighting. In doing so, we also
change the appearance of the bike!
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CONTROLLING LIGHT
Changing the Direction: Portraits

The direction of light is incredibly important in portraits, so let’s take a second to dig deeper.
By changing the direction of the light, and thus the arrangement of the tones on a human face, you can change the appearance
of the face, and the mood of the shot. You can make someone look thinner, wider, more symmetrical, or more sinister.
Remember that direction is relative, and you can change the direction of light by moving the light source, or by moving your
camera.
FRONT LIGHTING SIDE LIGHTING MORE SIDE LIGHTING!
The light is coming from directly in front of If the light comes from the side, part of the For portraits side lighting is considered
subject, making the entire face even midtones. face will be highlights and midtones, and flattering, and there is a lot of variety possible!
There aren’t many highlights or shadows. the other part will be shadows. This results It can range from completely to the side of
This makes nearly the entire face easy to see, in a large portion of the face being harder to the subject, as seen in the previous example,
making any symmetry or asymmetry in the see (the shadow portion). This has the result all the way to nearly front lighting. This shot
features easy to recognize. The face will also of making the face appear thinner, because is about halfway in between the two, and is
look wider than with side lighting. This type you can only see a portion of it. The angle generally considered a particularly flattering
of lighting is often used for beauty portraits, above is about 90° from the camera, which angle.
especially when the light is very soft. is considered very strong side lighting, and
produces a lot of shadows.
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CONTROLLING LIGHT
Changing the Direction: Portraits

Let’s take a peek at a few more angles, and see how they affect the look of the face.
BACK LIGHTING FROM BELOW OVERHEAD
With back lighting, the light comes from When the light hits the face from below, If the angle of the light comes from directly
behind the face, putting a large portion it causes shadows to go upwards from the above the subject, it will cause shadows to
of it into shadow. There may be some nose, cheeks, and forehead. This gives a very fall underneath the eyes, nose, and chin. This
highlights on the back or side of the head, sinister appearance. It’s great if you want can be quite unflattering, and makes the eyes
but it’s predominantly dark. This can make to make your subject look like a villain in a very dark. You often get this result when
the person look dramatic, or anonymous, horror film, but not very flattering! photographing people under ceiling lights, or
especially when exposed darkly, as above. outside when the sun is overhead.
You can also expose this type of light for the
subject, which will make the background quite u n f a ct!
f
bright. There won’t be any shadows on the
When it comes to portraits you usually see a combination of these
face itself in that case, so it gives fairly even
lighting. different directions! In studio lighting setups, there are sometimes
multiple lights coming from overhead, the back, and the side
in order to give a lot of dimension to the subject, and highlight
different aspects of the face. The options are endless!
v
CONTROLLING LIGHT
3) Controlling the
Light Source
The final way to control light has to do with
changing the light source itself.
In the previous section we covered the different ways you
can control the direction of light. But if you recall from
our discussion of the characteristics of light, direction was
just one thing that affected the look of light. The other
characteristics of light are quality, intensity and color. So
let’s see what options you have for controlling those other
variables!
We’ll begin by saying that there are some pretty specific

situations where you can actually control a light source. And
that’s generally when you’re using an artificial light – like a
studio light, a flash, a lamp, or a flashlight.
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CONTROLLING LIGHT
Quality MOVING A SOFT LIGHT AWAY

Let’s start with the quality of the light – whether it’s soft or
hard. If you recall from our discussion of the characteristics
of light, the quality of your lighting depends on the size of
the light, relative to the subject.
So, if you have soft light, and want to make it even softer,
simply move the light closer to your subject! And if you have
soft light, and want to make it harder, you can move the light
away from the subject. As the light source moves away from
the subject, its apparent size becomes smaller, making the
light harder. Easy peasy. SOFT LIGHT HARD LIGHT
When the light source is When the light source moves away,
But the tricky part is that the converse of this isn’t always very close to the subject it it becomes apparently smaller, and
is large, and covers a wide covers a narrower angle, making it
true. You can’t always move a hard light source closer to angle, so the light is soft. into hard light.
your subject and have it produce nice soft light. If you
have direct light (light with nothing between the source and
the subject) it will generally produce hard light, because
it is usually a relatively smaller source (like a camera flash MOVING A DIRECT LIGHT CLOSER
or a flashlight). Moving it closer to the subject won’t make
enough of a difference to produce soft light because even
close up, it’s still a relatively small light source. But you do
have another option...
get
don’t for
ANGLE OF COVERAGE
The softness or hardness of light has to do with the angle
of coverage that the light has on the subject. A narrow
angle produces hard light. A wide angle produces soft
HARD LIGHT HARD LIGHT
The light source is direct and small, Even after moving the direct light
light, because the light can wrap around the subject more, so the light is hard, and the shadow closer, it’s apparent size is still
and fill in the shadows. of the ball has sharp edges. small, so it still produces hard light.
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CONTROLLING LIGHT
Say you have a direct light source, producing hard light, and
you want to soften it up. What to do? ADDING A DIFFUSER
Diffuse that light!
Putting something in between the light source and the

subject that allows the light to be diffusely transmitted will
turn that direct light into indirect light, and increase the size
of the light source, having it cover a wider angle.

And the result? Softer light.
The light is direct, with nothing Adding a diffuser (like a white
between the light source and the piece of paper) spreads the light
There are lots of gadgets for photographers that do just this, subject, so it produces hard light. out, making a larger light source,
and, as a result, softer light.
and they’re known as diffusers. You can get diffusers that
work on studio lights, on camera flashes, and even ones that
help you to diffuse direct sunlight.
PHOTO-SPEAK
SOFT BOX
A very common light modifier is known
as a soft box. It’s essentially a box of
DIRECT LIGHT DIRECT LIGHT + DIFFUSER
fabric that fits around a studio light, and
puts a white piece of fabric in front of
the light. As you know, this will diffuse
the light, and make it softer. And that
is why this nifty little thing is known as
a soft box. You can even get soft boxes
for on-camera flashes.
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CONTROLLING LIGHT
Bouncing Flash
This is a technique that can transform the look of the light
produced by an external camera flash.
See, a camera flash can create some pretty bad light. When
pointed straight at your subject, it is a small, direct source
that is creating hard front lighting. And by now, you know
that’s not very flattering for portraits! But what to do?
DIRECT FLASH BOUNCED FLASH
If your goal is to create softer light, you need to make your The flash is pointed directly at the The flash is pointed at the ceiling,
light source larger. To do that, we’re going to use diffuse subject, making it into a small light and through diffuse reflection
source that produces hard, front light. the light source becomes larger,
reflection. How? By pointing the flash at a wall or ceiling! This type of light is generally not very creating softer light. By angling
Pointing the flash at a wall or ceiling will cause the light flattering, creating harsh shadows and the flash the direction can also
to diffusely reflect off that surface, and turn it into a much shine on skin. So let’s change it up! be changed to produce more side
lighting. Much more flattering!
bigger source.
Then you need to change the direction, and this is where

you can get creative in choosing where on the wall or
ceiling you’ll bounce your flash from. A easy place to start
is by pointing your flash up, and over your shoulder, which
creates nice side lighting that is generally quite flattering.
Experiment here to find an angle that you like the look of!
And don’t forget you’ll need to consider the Inverse Square

DIRECT FLASH BOUNCED FLASH
Law, which states that as light moves away from a light
source, it spreads out and quickly becomes less intense.
Bouncing requires the light to travel much further (all the note:
way up to the ceiling and back down) so it will loose a lot
This technique will only work with an attachable flash
of intensity. Most camera flashes have an automatic (TTL)
(i.e. not the one built into your camera) that allows you
mode that will increase the power settings to compensate
to change the direction it is pointed in. These external
for this, but if you’re controlling the flash manually you’ll
flashes are generally sold separately.
have to do that yourself.
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CONTROLLING LIGHT
Intensity
Another way to control your light source is by changing the
intensity. With studio lights or flashes you can do this by
increasing or decreasing the power of the light. Easy!
But if you’re already maxed out on the power, and still need
more brightness? It’s the Inverse Square Law again! Move
the light source closer to the subject, and that will increase
the brightness of the light falling on them.
P.S. Remember that intensity and quality are related

characteristics, and changing one sometimes affects the
other. For a review of how these two are linked, click here!
Using a studio light or flash can allow you to adjust the power of the light.
Color Moving the light closer can also increase the brightness.
Finally, you can control the color of the light source by
using something called a colored gel. This is a colored piece
of film that you can put over the light to change the color
temperature. It’s more commonly used in studio setups, but
can be quite fun to experiment with in any situation.
You can see how working with artificial lights like studio
strobes or external flashes gives you a lot of control over
the light. But very often you may find yourself shooting with
natural light, where you can’t easily move the light source, or
change the power settings. What to do then?
You can control the color of the light source using a colored gel. These allow
only certain colored wavelengths through, and so they change the color
temperature of the light.
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CONTROLLING LIGHT
Controlling the Light

When You Don’t
Have Control
All too often you can’t actually control the
light source itself. This is especially true with
natural light. But there are still lots of ways
to control how that light appears in your
photos!
Move Your Subject If your subject is mobile you can move them all around to get different light.
This is such a subtle but powerful way to change the look of

your images. When you move your subject, you change the
way the light appears on them. You may not even need to
move far – even simply rotating your subject, or having them
take a step or two, can make a huge difference!
If you’re shooting with window light, you won’t be able to

move the light source to make it softer or brighter. But you
can move your subject closer to or farther from the light!
Bring your subject closer to the window, and now the light
source is relatively larger, making it softer. It will also be
brighter. Bring your subject away from the window, and now
the light source is dimmer. It also makes the light source
smaller, which results in harder light.
With windows, you can bring your subject closer or further to change the
softness and brightness of the light.
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CONTROLLING LIGHT
Now note: this works well when your light is coming from a
window, or a lamp. But it doesn’t work with direct sun. You
can’t ask someone to take two steps closer to the midday
sun, and expect it to become a softer light source! We are
just too far away for small changes in distance to have any
noticeable effect.
Return When the Light is Better

During the day the direction of light changes. When it’s high
in the sky, the angle is directly from overhead (not always
flattering, as you now know). When it’s lower in the sky, the
light is coming from the side, which generally gives more
dimension to your images.
But there are more changes that go on as well. The color

temperature of the light changes. During the middle of the
day, the color of the direct sunlight is slightly warm (yellow).
As the sun moves to the horizon, the color temperature of
the light becomes more red. Light during this golden hour
before sunset and after sunrise can add nice warm colors to
your images.
Finally, the quality of the light changes throughout the day

as well. While the sun is above the horizon, it acts as a direct,
small light source, producing hard edged shadows. But once
it dips beneath the horizon it becomes an indirect source.
The sun’s light is scattered in the atmosphere, and as a result
the sky is what lights up the scene. The entire sky is a much
larger light source than the sun itself, so the resulting light is
softer and more diffuse. Shooting right after the sun goes
down produces some pretty soft, wonderful light indeed!
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CONTROLLING LIGHT
Now, this is all assuming that it is a clear, cloudless day. habit of opening your eyes to all the potential spots to
Waiting around for the light to change on a partially cloudy shoot. Getting amazing light might be as simple as moving
day is a whole lot more dynamic. Each time the sun goes to a different location. When we shoot portrait sessions in
behind a cloud, the light changes from hard to soft. You can homes, the very first thing we do is walk through every room
have different light from minute to minute! to find the best light. Often it is in the rooms we never would
have considered – like the kitchen, or the front entranceway.
Find the Shade Consider everywhere as a potential place to shoot, and then
find the location with the best light!
And if the sun won’t go away, and you need some soft
light for your subject? If your subject is mobile, move them
into the shade, effectively changing the light source again.
When you’re standing in the shade, the sun itself is no
longer directly hitting your subject. The hard light is gone.
So what’s left to light them up? Indirect sunlight in the form
of sky light. And, as we just mentioned, the sky is a large
light source, and, thus, a soft light source. So shooting in the
shade means you can get nice, soft light, even in the middle
of the day!
Consider All Potential Spots

Sometimes the best light isn’t where you’re standing – it’s
in the next room, or it’s outside. Or it’s inside! Get in the
tip!
Even though the light in the shade is a lot more diffuse
This portrait was taken in the front entranceway of the house, because it had
than direct sunlight, it still has direction. So make sure the best light coming in through the glass door!
you’re taking the time to figure out what direction the
light is coming from, and adjust as necessary to get the
most flattering results on your subject!
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CONTROLLING LIGHT
Review: Controlling
Light
At this point, I hope you can see that there are a lot of
ways to control light – with your camera, by changing
the direction of the light, by changing the light source
itself, or by changing any number of variables that are
related to the way the light appears in your photo. And,
once you realize just how many ways you can change the
appearance of the light in your image, you might be feeling
pretty overwhelmed! Any one adjustment can completely
change the look of your subject, and affect more than one
characteristic of the light. It’s a complicated thing.
But, as we mentioned before, a great place to start is to

change just one variable at a time. Change the direction,
and then shoot again. Change the distance from the light,
and then shoot again. By methodically moving through all
of those potential ways to control the light, you’ll be able
to predict what the results of your adjustments will be,
and have the best understanding of how your actions are
affecting your image.
In the end, light is far more complex than we’ve discussed

here, and you will spend your entire journey as a
photographer learning all of its nuances. But what you’ve
just gone through are the fundamentals: The basic ideas
about light that everything else builds off of. With these
under your belt, you are well on your way to a very happy
lifelong relationship with light!
“ The moment you take the leap of understanding
to realize you are not photographing a subject
but are photographing light is when you have
control over the medium. ”
Daryl Benson
READING THE
LIGHT
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READING THE LIGHT
Learning How to
Read Light
Being able to analyze the light around you
will help you make better decisions on how
to improve your photos.
In this section we’re going to cover questions you can ask
yourself about light. We’ve broken the questions down into
two categories: those you can ask yourself about the scene
you’re photographing, and questions you can ask as the
viewer of a photograph.
These questions are designed to get you thinking about the

light, and considering how it affects the photo.
Being able to analyze light in this way will open your eyes
to the creative lighting decisions that you can make as a
photographer.
In a way, this section is a review of everything you’ve learned

so far. See, you’ve gained this knowledge and understanding
of light that will help you no matter where you’re shooting,
what you’re shooting, or what the light is like.
And now it’s time to establish a framework that will help

you actually apply your new knowledge of light to your
photography.
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READING THE LIGHT
Questions to Ask THE QUESTIONS:

About Light in a 1. Is there enough light on my subject?
Scene 2. What type(s) of light source(s) do I have?
These questions will help you notice the

3. What direction is the light coming from?
details of light around you.
It’s important to note that this isn’t a step-by-step process 4. Is the light hard or soft?
that you need to go through for every photo.
5. How is the light interacting with the various
You also might find some of the questions more helpful surfaces in the scene?
than others, depending on the situation. And at first it will
probably be tricky to remember them all. But before long,
6. Does the light add compositional elements
you’ll find yourself unconsciously analyzing all of these
to the photo?
details, and quickly making decisions about the light.
You can see the list of questions to the right. On the 7. What mood am I trying to convey? Does
following pages we’re going to go through each one in the lighting help?
detail.
8. What are my options for controlling the
get
don’t for light?
What your camera is capable of capturing may be

9. How will this look after post-processing is
different than what you see. Remember that fact when
applied?
you’re asking these questions and making decisions. You
may be limited by your camera, or you may be able to
use it to achieve something your eyes can’t see. That’s
the challenge and the beauty of photography!
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READING THE LIGHT
1. Is there enough light on my subject?

When you take a look at your scene, think about whether
the subject is as bright as you’d like it to be. This is, of
course, subjective. A good exposure is however bright or
dark you want the image to be. Don’t forget that with a
photo you can make your subject appear darker or brighter
than it appears to your eyes by changing your camera’s
exposure settings.
2. What type(s) of light source(s) do I

have?
Is there natural light from the sun? Perhaps coming in
through a window? Is there artificial light coming from
overhead, or maybe a computer screen? Are you using Deciding if there’s enough light on your subject is a matter of personal
studio lights or a flash? preference. There is no such thing as “the right” exposure!
It’s a common error to only pay attention to the dominant

light source in a scene. So, for example, you might have your
subject standing right next to a window, and assume that
only window light is at play. But there’s a lamp turned on
in the room, and it’s affecting the scene, though to a lesser
degree. Make sure to take the time to look all around and
find out if you have multiple light sources.
Once you’ve noted all your light sources, think about

what color temperatures you have going on in your scene.
Remember that if there are multiple colors of light, it could
be difficult to get a good white balance!
When assessing light sources, make sure to consider all possibilities. Light
is everywhere!
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READING THE LIGHT
3. What direction is the light coming from?

As you know, the direction of light has a big impact on how
your subject looks. It affects the arrangement and quantity
of tones: the highlights, midtones and shadows.
Understanding what direction the light is coming from may

help you figure out where to position your subject, or your
camera, to get the results you want.
You can often determine the direction of the light by

checking the direction that the shadows are cast.
Don’t forget to look for multiple shadows created by

multiple light sources. There might be light from above,
and light from the side, and that will give you a bunch of When determining the direction of light, check the shadows for clues!
shadows to sleuth out!
4. Is the light hard or soft?

Recall that the relative size of the light source will affect the
quality of the light – whether it’s hard or soft. This will have a
big effect on the way the light looks on your subject.
When it comes to light quality, you’ll want to look at the

edges of the shadows. If those edges are clearly defined,
and sharp, then the light source is hard (relatively small). If
the edges are fuzzy, then the light source is soft (relatively
large).
To figure out whether light is hard or soft, take a peek at the edges of
shadows. If they’re sharp, it’s harder light. Blurry means it’s softer light!
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READING THE LIGHT
Front lighting from a window. After rotating around, we now have light coming from the side/back.
THE HAND TRICK

Sometimes it’s easy as pie to figure out what direction light is coming from, and the quality
of that light too. But other times it’s harder than it seems. Enter The Hand Trick – one of our
favorite little tools for reading light in a scene.
It’s simple: hold your hand out in front of you, palm facing toward you, and take note of the
light on your hand. You can determine the light’s intensity by how bright or dark your hand
looks. And you can determine the light’s direction and quality by analyzing the tones on your
hand. The proportion and placement of the highlights, midtones and shadows will tell you
direction, and the sharpness of the edges of the shadows will tell you quality!
Then, with your hand held out, rotate all the way around, and see how the light on your hand
changes. This will help you get a sense of where in your scene the light is brightest, what
direction it’s coming from and the quality of that light.
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READING THE LIGHT
5. How is the light interacting with the

various surfaces in the scene?
Remember how light behaves when it hits a surface? It
does some combination of reflection, transmission and
absorption. So in your scene, as the light is hitting all the
different surfaces present, it’s doing a whole lot of bouncing
and moving around.
This can create opportunities that you can use (like sunlight
coming through clouds, providing soft light) or challenges
that you need to work around (like light bouncing off a wall
and adding unwanted color to your subject).
6. Does the light add compositional The way light behaves when it hits different surfaces in your scene can
elements to the photo? present both opportunities and challenges.
One thing we haven’t really touched on is composition.

This refers to the arrangement of visual elements in your
photo, and is a big factor in whether your images catch your
viewers’ attention, and what story they tell. Composition is a
huge topic – if you want to dig deeper into it, check out our
full tutorial here.
For our purposes, we’ll just sum up by saying that light

can add its own compositional elements to a photo, like
reflections, shadows, and silhouettes. So take a second to
look around and see if any of these compositional elements
are present. Then consider whether they are adding to, or
distracting from, the photo you’re trying to create!
Hard light in particular can affect your composition because it produces

dramatic shadows, which become significant compositional elements!
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READING THE LIGHT
7. What mood am I trying to convey? Does

the lighting help?
Recall that the different characteristics of light can greatly
influence the mood of an image. For example, hard light
can add more drama than soft light. And warm light gives a
more happy atmosphere than cool light.
So now that you’ve assessed the light across your scene,

it’s time to ask yourself what mood you’re trying to convey
with the shot, and then consider whether the light is aiding
in that goal or detracting from it. There’s no right or wrong
answer here – it’s simply a matter of thinking about what
you want to say, and whether you feel like the light is
helping that to come across!
The different characteristics of light can affect the mood of your image.
Think about what you’re trying to convey with your photo, and whether the
8. What are my options for controlling the light helps you do that.
light?
You may have several options for controlling the light in
your scene: with your camera settings, by changing the
direction of the light source or your camera, by changing
the characteristics of the light source, or by changing other
factors that influence the light.
Ask yourself: How can I change the light? Can you turn the
light on or off, change the power level, change the direction,
or move the subject? Can you wait for different light? And
how will all of these changes affect the look of the photo?
Depending on the situation, you may not have control over

all of these things, but you are usually able to affect at least
one! Can you convince your subject to move so that you can control the light? If
they can’t be bribed, what other options do you have for controlling light?
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READING THE LIGHT
9. How will this look after post-processing

is applied?
BEFORE EDITING
Finally, it can be helpful to consider what options you
This shot was taken
have for post-processing the image you’re creating. Post- close to midday,
processing refers to editing an image after it’s been taken, when the light was
mostly overhead and
typically using computer software. These days, you can hard. This resulted in
make some pretty substantial changes to the look of the a rather flat image,
without much color.
photo with editing software!
You might be able to recover highlights or shadows, or add

some contrast or saturation. You could do some dodging
and burning (selective lightening or darkening of areas in
the photo) in order to balance the light, and bring attention AFTER EDITING
to your subject. Remember to shoot in the raw format in By adding contrast
order to get the most flexibility with this kind of work! and increasing color
saturation using
Adobe Lightroom®
If you’re aiming to shoot a black and white image, you’ll we were able to
also want to spend time during capture actually considering create a much more
engaging photo!
whether the shot is going to look good as a black and white.
Black and white photos benefit from contrast and strong
composition, so check to see if the light is helping you add
elements that will translate well into black and white.
re
If you’re shooting a scene with a very high dynamic range of learn mo
light, it can be helpful to do some exposure bracketing, and
combine the images later using the HDR technique! SUPER PHOTO EDITING SKILLS
Post-processing is an essential skill for any digital
While you should take your time to get your images looking photographer. It will help you bring the best out of
the way you want in-camera, don’t neglect the power of your images! To learn how to use the industry leading
post-processing to help you achieve your goals. Considering post-processing software, Adobe Lightroom®, check
it while shooting will help you use it bring your vision to life! out our Super Photo Editing Skills tutorial here.
v
READING THE LIGHT
Questions To Ask THE QUESTIONS:

About Light in a 1. Does the lighting in this photo stand out to
Photo me?
2. Where was the photo taken?

It can be a great practice to analyze the light
in photos that have already been taken. 3. Where are the shadows?
Learning how to assess the light in a photograph will help
you improve your light-seeking skills out in the real world, as 4. Is the light hard or soft?
well as help you discover what kind of light you like!
5. What time of day is it?
So the next time you look at a photo – yours or one from
another photographer – try asking yourself these questions
6. Has post-processing been done?
about light...
1. Does the lighting in this photo stand out

to me?
Ask yourself whether you feel like the lighting in the image
is working well. Is the light interesting? Does it help the
subject of the image stand out? Does it add to the message
of the image? Does it convey a mood? Does it add to the
composition? Or is it distracting?
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READING THE LIGHT
2. Where was the photo taken?

Was it taken outdoors, where there was likely natural light at
play? Or was it in a studio, where the photographer would
have a lot more control over the lighting factors?
Figuring this out can help you determine what kinds of light
sources are being used – a key piece of information when it
comes to analyzing the light!
Note that some outdoor photos actually use a lot of artificial

lights, like when photographers bring studio strobes on
location. And some studios use only natural light coming in
from a window! So this can get tricky, but it’s a helpful place
to start your investigation.
Figuring out the setting of the photo will help you understand what light
sources might have been used.
3. Where are the shadows?
Recall that shadows hold a lot of clues. So take a look at
where they fall in the photo – that will tell you the direction
of the light source(s). And since the direction of the light
source will affect the placement and proportion of the tones
in the image it’s a helpful nugget of information to figure
out!
4. Is the light hard or soft?

Keep looking at the shadows, focusing now on their edges.
Are they sharp or fuzzy? This will help you determine
whether the light source is hard or soft, and see how that is
affecting the overall look of the photo.
Looking at the shadows can tell you which direction the light is coming
from, and whether it’s hard or soft light.
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READING THE LIGHT
CATCHLIGHTS
Look deep into my eyes – notice those little white reflections? Those are called catchlights.
They are the reflection of a light source in an eye, and they are handy clues about light!
First off, catchlights are generally considered a positive thing in a photo. They give eyes
a sparkle and liveliness. Eyes without catchlights in them look dark, or “dead”. Whether
or not a catchlight shows up depends on the angle of the light relative to the subject and
the photographer. Remember: the angle of incidence equals the angle of reflection, and
catchlights are simply a reflection of the light!
Second, if you are able to find a catchlight, you can often use that to work backwards to
figure out how the photo was lit. The position of the catchlight tells you where the light (or
lights) were placed. The size of the catchlight will tell you the relative size of the light source.
And the shape can even give you a hint as to what kind of light was used. Notice a circle?
That might be a studio light. A rectangle with lines through it? Maybe a window. You might
even get a peek at the photographer in the catchlight!
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READING THE LIGHT
5. What time of day is it?

The time of day that a photo is taken at will greatly impact
the light in the photo (unless you are shooting in a space
that doesn’t have any natural light!).
You can look for clues to help you try to determine what
time of day the image was taken at. What is the color
temperature of the light in the image? That could help you
figure out whether it was taken at sunset or midday.
You can also take a peek at the direction and size of

shadows. In the middle of the day they will be almost
directly beneath the subject. At the end of the day, as the
sun has moved to the horizon and the direction of the light
has changed, the shadows will be longer. Light changes throughout the day. Look at the different characteristics of
the light to get an idea of what time of day it was taken at.
6. Has post-processing been done?

Sometimes you look at the light in a photo, and just scratch
your head, wondering where on earth the photographer
found light like that. And it may very well be that they didn’t!
Remember that post-processing can greatly change the
way the light looks in a photo – from adding in contrast,
changing the color, or combining multiple exposures to
create an HDR image that is totally surreal. So consider
whether what you’re seeing is actually the product of some
post-processing!
Post-processing can dramatically change the way the light in your image
looks – adding contrast, changing color temperature, etc.
v
READING THE LIGHT
Review: Questions
About Light
Becoming a light investigator is a lot of fun,
and a great way to practice your skills.
Now that you see light differently, and know how to ask
yourself about it, start analyzing the different scenes and
photos in front of you – even when you’re not holding a
camera. Ask yourself the questions we’ve outlined, study the
light, look for the clues, and then decide whether you think
the light is working well.
Making this a regular practice will help you become a

better photographer – you’ll be able to quickly take note
of and analyze the light in any situation! You’ll also start to
develop your own taste in light, which will influence your
photographic style.
Different photographers tend to gravitate towards different

types of light. Some love the bold, graphic results of hard
light casting shadows around the scene, while others prefer
the simplicity of soft window light. There is so much variety
possible with light, there’s really something for everyone!
So keep asking yourself whether the light in a scene stands

out to you and whether you like it, and you’ll start to develop
a light style all your own!
“ To me, photography is an art of observation.
It’s about finding something interesting in an
ordinary place... I’ve found it has little to do
with the things you see and everything to do
with the way you see them.
”
Elliott Erwitt
REAL WORLD
LIGHT
v
REAL WORLD LIGHT
Light In The Wild

Well, brave light warrior, you’ve just armed
yourself with a huge set of skills.
You now know how light acts, how it changes, and ways you
can control it. You know how to analyze it, what details to
look for, and how to think about the results it has on your
photos.
You’re now ready to step out into the big wide world, and
start seeing light all around you.
But before you do that, we want to give you a look at some

real life lighting situations that you will encounter. We’ll talk
about the characteristics of the light, point out challenges,
and offer tips for using it.
Now, we’re going to include a variety of images here to

cover a broad range of subject matter. Remember: the basic
concepts of how light affects your photos are the same no
matter what you shoot!
v
REAL WORLD LIGHT
Indoor Light
OVERHEAD LIGHTS
When shooing inside, ceiling bulbs (often tungsten bulbs) tend to be the
most common source of light. They create overhead light that’s yellow.
CHALLENGES: Overhead lighting can cause dark shadows to form under

the eyes and nose, which can be rather unflattering. Also the very yellow
light from tungsten bulbs doesn’t usually look great on skin tones.
TIPS: If possible, turn off the overhead lights and switch to natural light
instead (like the light from a window). Alternatively, try bouncing a
flash or adding another lamp to fill in some of the unflattering overhead
shadows. Set your white balance for tungsten, or shoot in raw and use
post-processing software to neutralize the yellow light from the bulbs.
LAMP LIGHT
Lamps are another common source of indoor lighting. These generally
have the same color temperature as overhead lighting, but produce side,
back or front lighting, depending on their placement.
CHALLENGES: Lamps tend to be quite dim, so in order to get much out

of them your subject needs to be close. Lamps can also sneak into a shot
that you were trying to light with a different source, like window light.
TIPS: Get very close to a lamp, and you’ll get softer, brighter light. Plus
lamp shades can work as great diffusers! Try moving lamps around to
get more control over the light. And consider turning them off if you’re
using natural window light, to ensure only one color temperature is at
work in your shot.
v
REAL WORLD LIGHT
FLASH
When the light indoors isn’t quite what you want, you can use your
camera’s flash to try to get better results.
CHALLENGES: Direct flash can create very hard, front lighting, which
is flat and unflattering. If the flash doesn’t create a large enough light
source, from a good angle, it won’t be very great light.
TIPS: Point your flash towards a wall or the ceiling, and bounce the light
off of it in order to create a larger light source. This will make the light
softer, reducing harsh shadows. You can also angle your flash in order
to have the bounced light coming from the side of the subject, which
will help add depth and dimension to the image. (To review our tips on
bouncing flash, click here!)
MIXED LIGHTING
When you have multiple light sources with different color temperatures
in a scene, you have mixed lighting.
CHALLENGES: Light sources with different color temperatures will make

it very hard to properly white balance your image. And when you have
multiple light sources it can be tough to figure out how to control the
light.
TIPS: If multiple light sources are causing problems, try to simplify the
scene by turning off any that don’t suit your goals. If you can’t get rid
of some lights, try repositioning your subject so that they’re illuminated
only by light you like.
v
REAL WORLD LIGHT
Window Light FRONT WINDOW

LIGHTING
The light is coming
This is one of the most versatile types of in from the window
indoor lighting, and can create incredible and giving soft,
frontal lighting. This
variation. eliminates shadows,
and provides nice
even light for a
Depending on the time of day, the conditions outside, the
portrait.
size of window, the presence of modifiers (i.e. blinds) and
the mobility of your subject, you can get a wide variety of
light using only windows.
CHALLENGES: Window light is only present while the sun is SIDE WINDOW
LIGHTING
out, so there’s a time factor involved here. If your window
By turning the
is very small, it can be tough to get enough light for more subjects we can get
than one or two people. If the sunlight is strong, and coming side lighting. This
helps to create more
directly through the window, you’ll have hard light. And, shadow on their
while window light is versatile, you still can’t pick up a faces, adding depth
window and move it where you want. So it can sometimes and dimension to the
shot.
be tough to work with the room, the backgrounds, and the
subjects to get the light you want.
TIPS: Don’t rule out any window – sometimes the best light
is in the most unexpected places. If a window has blinds, BACK WINDOW
try using them as a diffuser, especially if the light coming LIGHTING
through is hard. You can move your subject around to get Moving around so
that the light is now
closer or further from the window to change the intensity coming from behind
and quality of light. Moving them around will also allow the subjects lets us
get more variety.
you to get different lighting directions. Moving yourself is This back lighting
another way to change the direction of the light. You really adds more drama to
want to take advantage of all the variety possible here! the shot.
v
REAL WORLD LIGHT
Outdoor Light
Let’s take this outside. The light you’ll find outdoors comes in so many flavors.
DIRECT MIDDAY SUN
On a clear day, around noon, you’ll find direct midday sun, which can be
quite challenging to work with.
CHALLENGES: This light is both overhead and hard, causing harsh,

unflattering shadows on faces. It also can result in scenes looking quite
flat, since the overhead lighting doesn’t provide much depth.
TIPS: If possible, move your subject (or yourself) to better light, either
in the shade or indoors. If you can’t move, you may want to wait until
the light improves, or use a light modifier to try to soften the light. This
is often done using a scrim, which is essentially a big white sheet of
material that diffuses direct sun, making it softer.
SHADE
Step out of the sun, and into the shade, and your lighting changes
completely.
CHALLENGES: Shade can sometimes be hard to find, but it will always

exist on one side of a building. It is bluer in temperature than direct sun,
and can be flat, depending on what direction you shoot in.
TIPS: Have your subjects face out of the shade to get more light onto
their faces. Use the hand trick to find a good direction. Experiment
with different angles while in the shade to get more variety and more
flattering light. Set your white balance to shade, or shoot in raw and use
post-processing software to neutralize the blue tone of the light.
v
REAL WORLD LIGHT
Backlighting WHITE SKY

The light is coming from
behind the subjects,
This is one of the trickiest types of light and when we expose for
to work with outdoors. But, if you get it them, the sky ends up
being totally white. But
right, it can also be one of the most useful, there is even light on
especially when shooting portraits. their faces, so that’s nice!
Backlighting is a way to get flattering light on your subjects’

faces, no matter what time of day you’re shooting at. But it
can be tough, so you have to know how to work with it.
BACKLIGHTING
CHALLENGES: Backlighting can happen at any time of day, DIFFUSED
and some times are more challenging than others. During By placing our subjects
in front of some trees, we
midday, when the sun is high, backlighting is possible, but still get the benefits of
tough to do well. The sky in the photo will be completely backlighting (nice even
light on their faces), but
white, and there may be parts of your subject that are blown
now the background isn’t
out (no data left because it’s so bright). Plus, if the light hits just white. The light is
your lens, it can wash out the image. also softer because it has
been diffused.
TIPS: The best time of day to shoot backlit is during golden
hour. The sun is lower in the sky, and it’s easier to get a
good angle. One key to shooting backlit is to avoid having
the light hitting your lens. Using a lens hood can help here, LENS FLARE
but one big tip is to place yourself in your subject’s shadow, Moving slightly so that
using them to block out the sun. If you move ever so slightly, just a bit of the light is
hitting the lens allows
and get just a tiny bit of light hitting the lens, that’s when for some lens flare. It can
you can get lens flare. If you’re shooting backlit midday, the add a neat effect, but be
best bet is to find something to diffuse the light – like a tree careful that it doesn’t
overpower your subject!
– so that it’s not too strong. This can give you some nice
even light on your subjects’ faces, and a background that
isn’t completely white.
v
REAL WORLD LIGHT
CLOUDY
A sky full of clouds diffuses the direct sunlight, creating a much larger
and softer light source.
CHALLENGES: This type of light can be quite flat, since there is less
direction to it. It can also change from minute to minute if you have
patchy clouds that are moving over the sun. This can result in images
that are partly in shade, and partly in full sun.
TIPS: Try to find the brightest point in the sky (using the hand trick) and
use it to determine the direction of the light. Then position your subjects
to get the angle you want. If the clouds are changing the light a lot,
shoot quickly, and use it as an opportunity to get more variety.
STORMY
Dark stormy skies can produce all kinds of light. They’re wild,
unpredictable, and can be a whole lot of fun to photograph!
CHALLENGES: Stormy light is unpredictable! You can have dark skies

with bright sun peeking through, or rainy skies with diffused light, or,
around sunset, vibrantly colored skies.
TIPS: Shoot! Especially right after a storm you will find some pretty
incredible light, so get out there and shoot. Be ready for anything, and
use everything you know about light to get some pretty unique images.
Make sure to have a garbage bag or rain cover to keep your camera dry,
and use your head and don’t shoot in unsafe situations!
v
REAL WORLD LIGHT
the best times of

These are some of
vantage!
day to shoot! Take ad GOLDEN HOUR
The hour before sunset and the hour after sunrise are known as the
golden hours. The sun is low in the sky, giving a strong side angle. The
light also has a golden color to it.
CHALLENGES: This light changes quickly, and lasts for only a brief
period of time. The direction is strongly from the side, and can still be
very hard light. It will produce dark, long shadows.
TIPS: Use this kind of light to add a lot of color and depth to any type
of shot. When shooting people you may need to be very careful with
your angles to still get flattering light on their faces without too many
shadows. When used well, this type of light can be pure magic!
TWILIGHT
Twilight occurs when the sun is just below the horizon – before sunrise
and after sunset. This is when the sun is now an indirect light source, and
you’re working with sky light.
CHALLENGES: This type of light is much dimmer than when the sun is
out, and it changes fast. It’s very soft and doesn’t have much direction so
it can be a bit flat.
TIPS: Take advantage of this time of day, because the light can be quite
special, but fleeting. Find the brightest point in the sky and face your
subjects that way for the most light. Use high ISO settings, long shutter
speeds (with a tripod), or low aperture values to get more of the light.
v
REAL WORLD LIGHT
BLUE HOUR
One particular period of twilight is known as blue hour – when the sun is
low beneath the horizon, and the sky takes on a blue color.
CHALLENGES: There is very little light during this period, and it can be
tough to get enough of it to make a good exposure.
TIPS: Use a tripod and long shutter speeds to capture the blue in the sky.
This is also a good opportunity to use strobe lights outdoors to add in
your own light on your subject, while taking advantage of the color in the
sky. If you can combine the blue light with warm lights from buildings,
you can balance the two and get great atmospheric images.
NIGHT
When there is no light from the sun, and the sky is black, you have night.
CHALLENGES: There’s no color left to the sky, and it will become black
in your images. This means there isn’t any natural light left to illuminate
your subjects.
TIPS: Use other sources of light, like the lights from buildings, street
lamps, flashes, etc. Unless you have your subject very close to a light
source, you’ll probably need to use a long shutter speed and a tripod to
get enough light at night.
v
REAL WORLD LIGHT
Review: Real World

Light
The number of variations of light in the real
world is infinite.
And while we just took a quick peek at some of the most
common scenarios, the reality is that you are going to
encounter so many different types of light in your journey
as a photographer that there’s no way, or point, in trying to
anticipate them all here.
You don’t need to memorize every situation, because you

know the fundamentals. You know how to analyze the
different characteristics of any type of light, and know how
it will affect your image. And you know what options you
have to take control. Hopefully these real world peeks were
helpful in seeing how you can apply that knowledge.
Now it’s time to go forth with confidence that, no matter

what you encounter, you have the skills to analyze and work
with whatever light is out there!
“ In the right light, at the right time,
everything is extraordinary.”
Aaron Rose
THE
CONCLUSION
You’re a Light Ninja!
Can you believe just how much you’ve
learned about light?
Take a second to think about everything you’ve learned
over the past 120 pages. Holy moly, right? What may have
seemed like overly technical science turned out to be the
key to seeing light in a totally different way. And your new
understanding of light is going to have a huge impact on
your photography!
So a big high five to you and congratulations on completing

this tutorial! You should be totally proud of yourself – we’re
proud of you!
Now this stuff isn’t always easy to wrap your mind around.
Don’t get discouraged if you hit a few bumps when you start
working with light out in the real world. Sometimes you’ll
know exactly how to use light in your photos. Other times,
you may feel a bit overwhelmed.
The key is to keep on practicing. Light is going to be with

you for every single photo you ever take, so you have a lot
of time to really get to know it. Be patient, keep using what
you’ve learned, asking your questions, and you’ll see how
your understanding and ability to use light just keep on
growing!
At the end of it all, we hope that one of the biggest
takeaways you’ve gained is the knowledge that while
light can be very dynamic and complex, there are simple
behaviors and characteristics that you can use to break it
down, and understand it in a fundamental way.
What you do with the light after that is totally up to you! Get
creative, seek out different types of light, and use them to
your advantage. You’ve got a grand light adventure ahead –
we hope you’re excited to get out there!
Don’t forget to come back to this tutorial every once in a

while to review. There’s a lot of great stuff in here, and it
can be tough to apply it all at once! Pick a concept, and
go out and practice it. Then come back, pick something
different, and practice again. This will ensure that you’re
always growing in your skills, and using this information to
its fullest.
Well, it’s about time to wrap things up. We hope you

enjoyed this tutorial, and want to say a gigantic thank you
for checking it out!
Wishing you many years of loving light, and happy

photographing!
Lauren & Rob Lim

Head Ninjas at Photography Concentrate
“ It’s not what you look at that
matters, it’s what you see.”
Henry David Thoreau
Let’s Keep On Learnin’!
Now that you’re a light ninja, pick another topic and keep on expanding your skills!
men d! popular! Extremely Essential

we recom Incredibly Important
Composition Skills Camera Skills
Master composition, and discover Learn how to take full control
the secrets to eye-catching over your camera, and get
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About The Authors
Lauren Lim Rob Lim Max & Oliver Lim

Hey, I’m Lauren! I have been obsessed I’m Rob, the other half of Photography Max is our awesome 2-year-old son, and
with photography for just over a decade Concentrate. I’m the guy who loves by this point you’re quite familiar with
now, and am always amazed at how to learn about new techniques and his face! Max enjoys traveling to new
much there is to learn and explore. I’m a gadgets, and I feel really lucky that my places, loves to line up all his trucks and
head ninja at Photography Concentrate, job is sharing all that great knowledge cars, and spends many hours chasing
and love making photography easier with others. Other than photography, his Dad around the kitchen (or vice
for others to learn. One of my favorite I also enjoy videography, travel, and versa). Oliver is our “production baby”,
things to do is travel with my guys, and summertime sunset rides on my making his big appearance just before
capture our adventures in photos. motorcycle (see pg.79). we finished this tutorial! So far he enjoys
napping, eating and smiling.
Connect With Us!
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Drop us a line at hello@photographyconcentrate.com

and let us know what you thought of it! What did you find
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01 Fantastic Fundamental Light Skills

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01 Fantastic Fundamental Light Skills

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u n d a m e n t a l

Light is absolutely key to taking great photos, and is

Now learning about light can seem a bit daunting. It was

If you’re interested in purchasing an educational license

This tutorial is only available for purchase from

Here’s What You Won’t Be Learning. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Tricky White Balance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76

The Visible Light Spectrum. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Try This! Texture & Direction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

The Law of Reflection. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

TONES & DYNAMIC RANGE Controlling Light With Your Camera. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70

For a more detailed walkthrough of how to get this tutorial

Go to the Table of Contents for the

Takes you to the

2. Do the exercises! Yep, seriously. I know it sometimes feels

4. Review! This stuff can be a bit tricky to wrap your mind

This tutorial doesn’t do either of those things.

For starters, there’s no point in a tutorial that you don’t

And second, the thing about light is that it is incredibly

So we’re not going to cover how to set up 10 lights in a

The Meaning of Life

EMBRACE THE DARK SIDE

The combination of light and shadow together gives

Where Light Comes From

THE ELECTROMAGNETIC SPECTRUM

Each of these different types of EMR has different

Television and Radio Waves

The Visible Light Spectrum

How We See Things &

Now, in order for us to recognize the color of the object,

The other light waves are

A white object reflects back most wavelengths. And a black

How You See Light vs.

How They Are Different

When you look at a scene, your eyes are able to move

Your brain then interprets and combines all this data so

You can think of a photo as taking one sample of the

The 3 Behaviors of Light

1. REFLECTION 2. ABSORPTION 3. TRANSMISSION

First off, reflection can happen in a couple different ways

The first type of reflection is what you’d generally expect,

This is called specular reflection, and happens on

Other materials won’t reflect quite as perfectly, but all

The Law of Reflection

So, to use the science speak, when light reflects off of a

Now, that might sound a little technical. And it is. But, as

And in the real world? Well, most objects have a

Note: It is thanks to diffuse reflection that we are able to

Reflection: Real World Examples

SPECULAR & DIFFUSE REFLECTION SPECULAR & DIFFUSE REFLECTION

3 Now shine the flashlight onto a piece of white paper. This

Just like reflection, absorption is always happening around

The light ray is absorbed by the

Absorption: Real World Examples

BLACK & WHITE COLOR

Transmission occurs when a light ray hits a

A perfect example of this is when sunlight passes through a

Your camera lens does this, and it’s this bending of

Transmission: Real World Examples

DIFFUSE TRANSMISSION TRANSMISSION OF COLOR

Try this out to see the types of transmission

Now hold up the white sheet of paper, and shine your

All Three Behaviors: Real World Examples

First, light is reflecting off of everything you can see (which

TRY THIS! THREE BEHAVIORS OF LIGHT

Head out with your camera and try to capture a photo