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Beginners should come back to this section later.
Why, when we photograph a group at a dining room table, with a pop-up flash, is the exposure so uneven?
The people close to the camera are too bright, and those at the other end of the table are too dark.
Yet, if we were to photograph the same group, outside, sitting at a picnic table, the lighting would be the same on everyone.
So far, we've looked at three qualities of light about which we must be sensitive:
1) Color
2) Direction
3) Contrast.
They do not answer the question.
A fourth quality of light does:
Distance of the light from the subject.
When the light source is far away, such as the sun or cloud cover, there is little difference in the brightness.
For example, the exposure in the sun while standing at 5th Avenue at 34th Street, is f/8 at 1/500th of a second.
At the top of the Empire State Building, in the sun, the exposure would be the same.
There's the same amount of light—let's say 90 units of light—in both locations:
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f/8 1/500th At Street Level |
f/8 1/500th On the 86th Floor |
The sun is so far away, there's no difference between the amount of light at street level, and the amount on the observation deck.
When a light source is close, however, there's a huge difference in brightness.
Let’s say Uncle Ed is sitting near the camera, and Aunt Enid is sitting further away.
If the light source is a pop-up flash, Uncle Ed is too bright, and Aunt Enid is too dark.
This happens because the light spreads out, gets dimmer, very quickly.
The blue bars below represent the rapidly decreasing amount of light from a flash at increasing distances.
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Flash Here |
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100 Units Of Light |
25 Units Of Light (1/4th) |
11 Units Of Light (1/9th) |
How can this knowledge make for better photographs?
Interiors
If you're photographing an interior, you'll know that the light from the windows will not illuminate the entire space.
The amount of light diminishes quickly as it spreads out from the windows.
If you were to set your exposure for the light near the windows, the area of the room furthest from the windows will be very dark.
Or, if you were to set your exposure for the darkest part of the room, the area near the windows would be too bright.
You'll know to use bounce flash (aim a flash at the ceiling), or other lights to supplement the window light.
Groups of People
If you're photographing a group of people indoors with flash on your camera, the front row would be too bright, and the back row, too dark.
Bounce the light from your flash off of the ceiling, and the front and back rows will receive about the same amount of light.
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