To explain soft light and hard light, Taylor uses the example of sunlight on a bright (hard) day and sunlight on a cloudy (soft) day. On a bright day, light comes from a small source –– the sun –– and so it casts a hard shadow. On a cloudy day, light comes from all directions because it is diffused by the clouds, so there is little or no shadow. In the world of photography and videography, hard light is something that comes from a small source like a bare flash, while soft light is what you get if you place a large diffuser (or softbox) in front of the flash.
The position of light You can change a photo in many ways, whether it’s casting shadows, separating the subject from the background, or even lighting the background. To illustrate how the position of light can affect the impression of an image, Art Streiber uses the example of on-camera flash, which immediately evokes the feeling of a moment captured at an event. or a photograph taken by the paparazzi. If that flash were moved away from the camera, perhaps held in your hand at the end of your outstretched arm, the same photo would give a completely different impression.
The light intensity related to the brightness of the light, this translates in the image to whether you want to create a natural look or make the scene look intentionally lit. David Hobby applies the cooking metaphor to dial under light intensity: “You taste the soup. You think, ‘It needs a little more salt.’ You add some salt. The only real difference is that, with light, if you add too much salt, you can easily get it out right away. “
Karl Taylor says that most of our visual systems are based not on color, but on brightness and shade. “We’re seeing black and white without realizing it.” Taylor uses the example of spots on deer or stripes on tigers, which do not appear to be too hidden when viewed in color, but in terms of brightness to other animals seen in black and white, it is Great camouflage. Taylor warns that colors can trick the eye into thinking an image is brighter than it really is, so he usually corrects the image’s brightness in black and white first, and afterward color correction, so that the color doesn’t fool his eye into the wrong brightness.
Build a lighting scheme
Lighting spice racks can get messy quickly, so pros build their lighting scheme step by step. Austen Paul says: “The first light source is called the ‘main light”. After you’ve determined where you want to put the first light, you place the “fill light” on the opposite side. For most setups, the fill light is not as bright as the key light. According to Paul, one reason for this is because it makes the subject look more 3D, and with the secondary light a bit darker than your main light, you’ll create a gradient from lighter to darker.
