100 Quick Tips To Master The Light

100 Quick Tips To Master The Light

Light is a must in photography. It is as important as it is necessary, at a technical and creative level. That's why today, in our series of 100 express tips, I dedicate this article to you. I hope you enjoy it and that you keep these 100 tips safe to dominate the light, to have them always at hand, because ...

... if you learn to master the light, you will dominate photography.

1. Light can be the protagonist by itself.
2. Light is a great creative component within the image.
3. Learn to master the triangle of light.
4. Through light you can awaken different feelings.
5. The portraits with hard light are much more dramatic.
6. Get portraits with diffused light in the shade of a tree, on a porch, under an umbrella or under a bridge.
7. Or at sunrise or sunset.
8. In an interior, approach whenever you can to a source of natural light, a window, a door.
9. Otherwise, place your subject near a lamp or any other artificial light that you have.
10. Use the fill flash when shooting backlit and do not want a silhouette.
11. Turn off the flash if you're looking for a silhouette.
12. Draw the outline of your subject's light by shooting against the light.
13. The backlight will also serve to highlight transparencies.
14. When the light falls directly on the window, you get diffuse light by placing a white curtain or white tissue paper.
15. Dress in white to reflect light.
16. It uses reflectors and diffusers to dominate the light.
17. Get a light box to photograph small objects.
18. Take advantage of hard light to draw shadows.
19. With the hard light of midday the colors are more vivid and bright.
20. Take advantage of the hard light moments for your street photography.
21. Low key photography to awaken feelings of melancholy, sadness, loneliness, mystery, etc.
22. High-key photography to evoke feelings of peace, tranquility, purity, joy, etc.
23. Use the high key to photograph more subtle nudes.
24. It emphasizes the forms, textures and volumes of the architecture with hard light.
25. And take advantage of this light also for high-contrast photographs .
26. Try to edit the latter in black and white.
27. Use a spot measurement in portraits with hard light.
28. Use matrix metering when there are not too bright or too dark elements in the scene.
29. When you're indoors, open as many doors and windows as you can, and open the curtains.
30. If this is not enough, turn on all the lights.
31. When you use different lights, especially artificial ones, take good care of the white balance.
32. Try to capture your portraits near a window.
33. Test your camera to know perfectly from what ISO value noise appears.
34. Make noise in your photo when you want to add mystery or achieve a photo with great nostalgic weight.
35. Use bright lenses when shooting in low light conditions.
36. Use the flash as a creative element to achieve original and different photos.
37. Get a tripod to shoot at slower speeds.
38. Play with lightpainting.
39. In high-contrast photographs, use the spot metering mode .
40. Shoot in RAW for better control of light in the edit.
41. Where there is light there is shadow, learn to make the most of shadows. 
42. Take advantage of the blue hour for architectural photography and urban landscapes.
43. Photography desert landscapes with hard light to enhance the feeling of aridity and warmth.
44. Use front light to highlight details.
45. It uses lateral light to enhance the shapes and textures.
46. Avoid overhead light in portraits.
47. Use contra-centric light to achieve unnatural effects.
48. Read "The register of light" by Michael Freeman.
49. If you just started photography, then read our Lightbook better, also for you.
50. When you use external flash try to bounce it on the ceiling or on a wall (better to be white).
51. Avoid the built-in flash except when you need it as a fill flash.
52. Photography translucent elements against backlight .
53. To achieve a backlit silhouette, expose to the background. The more light contrast there is between the background and the figure, the better result you will get.
54. The golden hours are perfect to capture silhouettes and more elongated shadows.
55. In winter the shadows are more elongated.
56. The best backlit portraits in profile.
57. In macro photography uses ring flash.
58. Use the Beauty Dish in your studio portraits.
59. If necessary, upload the ISO, sometimes a photo with a bit of noise is better than a dark photo or no photo.
60. Capture lights in long exposure.
61. Leverages color temperatures more warm for warmth and romance to the image, such as the golden hour.
62. The colder and bluish color temperatures , such as cloudy days, will help you transmit coldness, loneliness, isolation, distance, etc.
63. The light changes according to the hours of the day and according to the seasons.
64. Take advantage of cloudy and foggy days to get diffused light.
65. The flare or flares do not have to be a mistake, you can also force them to include them as creative element.
66. Look for contrasts of light and shadows.
67. Follow beams of light.
68. Take pictures at different times in the same place and study the light.
69. Photograph an illuminated object from different directions and observe the differences.
70. When photographing the snow, overexpose 1 or 2 steps.
71. The turquoise blue of the paradisiacal beaches stands out with the hard light of midday.
72. To add a point of aggression to your model, retrieve it with hard light.
73. The overhead light is ideal for very general planes and adds depth.
74. Check the histogram when you take a picture.
75. Learn to read the histogram ;).
76. Edit your photos with Lightroom if possible.
77. Plan your sessions well to optimize light to the fullest.
78. Use applications, like this one , to help you plan the light.
79. The low light of sunset and sunrise highlights the reliefs and textures of the landscapes. 
80. Do not even think about trying long exposure photography with bright midday light, unless you have a neutral density filter. 
81. Use Bracketing or Exposure Bracketing when you want a scene that is uniformly illuminated and has many contrasts of light and shadows.
82. Avoid portraits outdoors at noon to avoid encountering unwanted shadows. A trick to save this situation is that the subject looks up and convert the overhead light in front. You will have to photograph from a higher place;).
83. The midday hard light flattens the scene and reduces volumes. In winter it is somewhat less flat, because the sun is lower.
84. Take advantage of the midday hours of a very sunny day for infrared photography.
85. Transmit peace and calm in your photos by doing them in the twilight.
86. The blue hour is perfect for capturing reflections.
87. Go for a tripod and get nocturnal landscapes with the help of moonlight.
88. Illuminate your model laterally to achieve very dramatic or mysterious portraits .
89. Make good use of lighting in portraits and you can disguise imperfections or enhance beauty.
90. Try using a light window as a background in your high-key photographs.
91. When it comes to portraying someone with glasses, change the angle to avoid reflections in the glass.
92. Soften the expression of your model with diffuse light.
93. In landscapes, lower the ISO value and pull the tripod.
94. Black and white photographs tolerate light ends better, for example, midday contrasts.
95. Use silver molds for cakes as a light reflector.
96. If you like studio photography, get some spotlights of continuous light.
97. To have a complete domain of light, try using a photometer. 
98. Learn how to use manual mode to master light.
99. Observe the light, whether or not you have a camera. Study it when you walk down the street, when you go on an excursion, analyze how it affects, how it changes, how the landscape changes at different times. 
100. The light speaks, listen to it. And enjoy it.

I hope that these 100 tips will help you understand the light and learn to master it. When you get it you will see how you will have taken a giant step photographically speaking. And, if you have found it useful, give your contacts this article to enlighten them by sharing it on your favorite social networks. Thank you and see you soon!