Beecher's Handouts /

More About Light / 8 - Light Summary

The best summary of our discussion about light are the pictures you take doing the above Light "Sensitivity Training" exercises.

Your photographs, placed in your visual notes, will illustrate the qualities of light: color, direction, and size of the light source (contrast).

Color

You experimented with how the color of light changes depending on the light source and other factors.

Direction

Direction	Effect on the Lighting	Because . . .
From the side	Will show texture and volume	. . . the shadows created by side lighting give the viewer a sense of texture and volume.
From the camera	Will flatten the subject	. . . there are no shadows, so the viewer cannot see volume and texture very well.
From behind the subject	1) Will make the subject stand out from the background—more separation 2) Emphasizes the shape of the subject	. . . the increased separation is due to the dark subject against a bright background, as well as the bright lighting on the edges of the subject.

How the Size of the Light Affects Contrast

Size of the Light	Effect on the Lighting	As seen in . . .
Small, like the sun	More contrast	. . . the darker shadows with sharp edges.
Large, such as the sky on a cloudy day	Less contrast	. . . the brighter shadows, with less distinct edges, or shadowless lighting.