Properties of Light

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Key points

1. Intensity of light = how much light hits your subject. It can be adjusted by changing the power of the light source or its distance.
2. Light power is measured in stops: moving one stop up doubles the light; moving one stop down halves it.
3. Different light sources (speedlights, strobes, LEDs) have different maximum intensities.
4. Distance affects intensity according to the inverse square law: halving the distance increases light by two stops, doubling the distance reduces light by two stops.
5. Light fall-off is stronger when the light is close, making the nearest subject brighter and the furthest darker. Further away, the light appears more even across subjects.
6. For group shots, moving the light further back or feathering it towards the back subjects helps balance exposure across the group.

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The explanation of the inverse square law is simplified — light does fall off with distance, but the demo can make it seem like exact stops always change so neatly. In practice, room reflections and modifiers can alter results.

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Key points

1. Light colour is measured in Kelvin (K): warm/orange light ~2600K (candles, incandescent bulbs), neutral daylight ~5500K, cool/blue light ~7000K (shade).
2. If camera white balance doesn’t match the light source, colours look wrong – too orange or too blue.
3. Auto white balance (AWB) can work, but may shift between shots, making editing difficult in a series.
4. Preset modes (daylight, shade, fluorescent, tungsten) give more consistency but may not be exact.
5. For best accuracy, use custom white balance with a grey/white card or manually set the Kelvin value to match the light.
6. Mixed lighting (e.g. daylight + tungsten) causes major problems: best solutions are to eliminate one source, block it from the subject, or gel a flash to match and then correct in-camera.
7. Colour casts from nearby coloured surfaces (walls, grass, neon signs) can distort skin tones – avoid or control these for clean results.

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The claim that auto white balance always shifts unpredictably is overstated. Modern cameras often keep WB consistent in burst series. Still, AWB can vary, so the point is valid but slightly exaggerated.

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Key points

1. Direction of light is important because it creates shadows, adding depth, mood, and three-dimensionality to photos.
2. Flat/front lighting is flattering and useful for portraits or headshots, but can look boring if overused.
3. Overhead lighting often needs fill from a reflector to avoid shadows in the eyes.
4. Butterfly lighting (light slightly above and in front) creates a small shadow under the nose and chin, sculpting the face.
5. Loop lighting (light to the side at an angle) creates a nose shadow loop, adding gentle depth.
6. Rembrandt lighting (further to the side) produces a triangle of light under the eye, giving a dramatic effect.
7. Split lighting (light directly from the side) divides the face into light and shadow, very dramatic.
8. Backlighting requires a second light or reflector to keep the subject visible.
9. Low upward lighting creates “Halloween lighting” – usually unflattering unless used for effect.
10. You can find light direction outdoors by looking at shadows on your hand or the subject’s face.

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The “45 degrees” guideline is useful, but presented as a rule. In reality, light angle depends on subject and mood — students should treat it as a starting point, not a fixed requirement.

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Key points

1. Quality of light = how soft or hard the light appears, affecting the sharpness of shadows.
2. Small, direct light sources (like a pop-up flash) create hard light with harsh shadows.
3. Large light sources (like big windows or umbrellas) create soft light with smooth, diffused shadows.
4. Diffusion (curtains, scrims, frosted glass, paper) softens light by spreading it out.
5. Closer light sources appear larger relative to the subject, producing softer light.
6. Relative size matters – a small softbox can be soft for a watch, but harsh for a person.
7. Hard sunlight creates strong shadows; bouncing or diffusing it makes it softer.
8. Bouncing light off walls or ceilings is an easy way to make flash lighting more flattering.

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Extra Thoughts

1. The properties of light are fundamental to photography. In addition to intensity, colour, direction, and quality, understanding how light interacts with surfaces is key.
2. Incident light is the light falling directly onto a subject, while reflected light is the light that bounces off the subject or surrounding surfaces towards the camera.
3. There are two primary types of reflection relevant to photography:
   • Specular reflection: Occurs when light reflects off a smooth, polished, or glossy surface (like glass or highly reflective metal) at a predictable angle. This results in bright, concentrated highlights that can sometimes cause glare or reveal reflections of light sources (e.g., the sun or a flash). Polarising filters can be used to reduce unwanted specular reflections, particularly from non-metallic surfaces like water or glass.
   • Diffuse reflection: Occurs when light reflects off a rough or matte surface in many different directions. This results in softer, more spread-out light and evenly illuminated areas, without concentrated highlights. Diffuse reflection helps reveal texture and detail in subjects.
4. Understanding these properties allows you to control how light defines texture, depth, and overall mood in your images, producing creative and technically proficient results.

Exercise

1. Set up a still life scene
2. Use a flash flash or continuous light and some DIY modifiers to demonstrate the following properties of light:
   1. Intensity
   2. Fall off demonstrating the reciprocal square law to have a subject lit with the same intensity but different fall off across that subject depending on how close the light is to the subject
   3. Colour both warmth and tint
   4. Colour casts by putting a strongly coloured object out of shot, that impacts the colour of the object
   5. Direction:
      1. Flat
      2. Overhead
      3. Split
      4. Backlighting
      5. Halloween
   6. Hard light
   7. Soft light
3. Find a willing model, or try self portraits, to demonstrate directional effects on portraiture:
   1. Flat
   2. Overhead
   3. Butterfly
   4. Loop
   5. Rembrandt
   6. Split
   7. Backlighting
   8. Halloween