Digital Camera World - Complete Photography Guide - Mastering Light

Complete photography guide Master Light TAKE DRAMATIC PHOTOS USING OUR EXPERT TIPS ■ How to control and enhance natural light ■ Creative ways to shoot with flash ■ Simple techniques for spectacular results VITAL SKILLS GUIDE Master Light Many photographers just starting out tend to think of the role of light only in terms of exposure. But finding the best light and learning how to control it can have a huge effect on the emotional impact of your images. This book will arm you with the knowledge and techniques you need to really begin mastering light. Light 3 Master Light TAKE DRAMATIC PHOTOS USING OUR EXPERT TIPS Contents ■ Light’s character p10 ■ Chasing the light p14 ■ Improving the quality p16 ■ Master of light: Charlie Waite p22 ■ Fill-in with flash p24 ■ Master of light: Chris Johns p28 ■ Dealing with low light p30 ■ Light on the landscape p36 ■ Master of light: George D. Lepp p46 ■ Top 10 tips p49 Light 7 Start painting with light O ur three previous photography guides have covered composition, exposure and colour – now it’s time to look at the element which is the key influence for all three aspects. As a photographer, you need to learn to love light, appreciate its endless subtleties and try to make the most of its mood swings. Soon you’ll feel your heart race a little faster as the black clouds of a passing storm tear apart and rich, golden light burns through to transform even the most mundane scene (just don’t forget to carry your camera at all times – you’ll kick yourself if you miss capturing such an event). Don’t pull your hair out if the light isn’t ‘right’ though. You just need to learn a few tricks that can help you rescue the situation – this book will show you them. We’ll give you ideas for taming harsh light, show you how to make the most of falling light levels and how to use flash in understated ways. We don’t cover studio lighting in this book – that will come later. Instead, we focus on natural light – how to capture it, how to enhance and how to use it in great new ways. Marcus Hawkins Editor, Digital Camera Magazine 8 Light Light 9 Light’s character Y ou really begin to grow as a photographer when you start being able to read the different characteristics of light and are able to adjust your shooting accordingly. Where photography’s concerned, there are four elements of light that you need to be able to recognise: its quality, colour, intensity and direction. You can control each of them to a certain degree, whether it’s through a shift in camera position, the use of light modifiers or during image processing. 10 Light Quality of light Colour of light You can judge the quality of light by the shadows it creates. Hard lighting – from the sun on a cloudless summer’s day or an undiffused flashgun – creates inky, sharp-edged shadows and hot highlights. Your camera will struggle to maintain detail in both, and compromises might have to be taken. Soft light – early morning, late evening, a cloudy day, a misty day – reduces the contrast between light and dark and produces soft-edged shadows in which detail’s still visible. It’s ideal for portraits, close-ups and revealing the glorious colours of autumn. You can improve the quality of light to some degree on a small scale using diffusors, reflectors, fill-flash and the like (you’ll find tips and techniques for doing just that throughout this guide), but there’s very little you can do other than wait for the very best light when you’re shooting landscapes. We covered the colour of li