Understanding Light Book Two

Photzy
UNDERSTANDING LIGHT: BOOK II

Premium Photography Guide
Written by Kent DuFault
CONTENTS
01 Seeing Light and Putting It to Use p.22 09 Squeezing Light p.113

·· in Your Photography ··
02 Creating Light with Known 10

p.41 Dispersing Light p.119
·· Characteristics ··
The Power of Reflectance,
03 Mixing Light of Known 11
p.50 Absorption, and Transmission p.123
·· Characteristics ·· of Light
04 Controlling Light 12
p.64 Bending Shadows p.130
·· to Establish Shape ··
p.74 Coloring Shadows with Light p.135
·· to Establish Texture ··
06 Controlling Light p.83 14 Working with Continuous Light or p.141

·· to Establish Composition ·· Strobe (Electronic Flash) Light
p.94 Lighting Tools of the Trade p.144
·· to Establish Color ··
08 The Full Removal or Partial p.105 Conclusion p.153

·· Removal of Light ··
INTRODUCTION
In “Understanding Light: Book One” we talked about the
physical properties of light: how it moves, how it changes, and
how it reacts. We also talked about how it affects the human
Is it possible that mind, and the importance of shadows.
photographers no longer
have to concern themselves In “Understanding Light: Book Two” we are going to concentrate
with light at the point of on how a photographer uses light as a tool for creation.
image creation in the
In the first book we established the importance of light to
camera?
photography. There is a physical importance, but there is also an
aesthetic importance.
Truly great photographers develop the skills of recognizing light

and skillfully altering light. Those skills sound much easier to
master than they really are.
I had a photographer tell me recently that light was no longer

important to the creation of a photograph. She told me that she
carries no lights with her on assignment. Yet, her portraits exhibit
sophisticated lighting schemes. How can this be? She creates the
lighting artificially in Photoshop.
I thought about that for some time. Is it possible that

photographers no longer have to concern themselves with light
at the point of image creation in the camera?
I don’t believe so.
My photographer friend has a different story than most of us. She

holds a Master’s Degree in Fine Art. She has, in fact, studied light
and the effects of light most of her adult life.
UNDERSTANDING LIGHT: BOOK II // © PHOTZY.COM 4

That’s why she can recreate the effects of light in Photoshop.
My point for telling the above story is that software will continue
to get easier for us to edit photographs. There may come a time
When you can truly when you simply push a button and a software program will
recognize and control light create light for your picture in post-production.
you will have mastered the
fundamental building block However, a machine doesn’t have the ability to make aesthetic
of photography— choices (not yet anyway), and if you don’t understand light (the
way my friend does), you won’t be able to recreate realistic
lighting in your editing.
When you can truly recognize and control light you will have
mastered the fundamental building block of photography—
whether it is in-camera or in post-production editing.
The title of Chapter One of “Understanding Light: Book Two” is

“Seeing Light and Putting It to Use in Your Photography”.
Let’s take a short self-quiz together and see what we recognize

about the light in the following photographs.
I would like you to write your own comments before you read
mine. Tell me as much as you can about the light in each
photograph: the quality of the light; the color temperature of
the light; the source of the light; if the light is being manipulated
somehow; what mood does the light invoke (if any); and what
physical properties of the scene are being altered as a result of
the light.

Image #1
Isengardt
https://www.flickr.com/photos/isengardt/8067147673/

Image #2
Javi Sánchez de la viña

https://www.flickr.com/photos/javisanchezfotos/12059102693/in/photostream/

Image #3
Jonathan Leung
https://www.flickr.com/photos/jonathan-leung/16342927001/in/photostream/

Image #4
きうこ
https://www.flickr.com/photos/kiuko/5418153946/in/photostream/

Image #5
micadew
https://www.flickr.com/photos/micadew/16561976719/in/photostream/

AUTHOR COMMENTS
What is to be learned from that? Diffused

light will let you capture a larger range of
tones than harsh, direct light.
The light sources in this photograph are

providing light at a very slow wavelength
(that’s what creates the orange and red
tone). Did you notice that in the back left
side of the photograph the color balance
returns closer to normal? The light source
(back there) has a faster wavelength.
Slow wavelength produces warm tones.

The faster the wavelength, the cooler
(bluer) the tones become. This coincides
with Kelvin Temperature: the slower
Image #1 – The light sources in this the wavelength, the lower the Kelvin
photograph started out as very harsh Temperature, the warmer the color
pinpoint lights. They have, however, been spectrum; the faster the wavelength, the
substantially softened by the physical higher the Kelvin Temperature, and thus
characteristics of fog. Fog disperses light the color balance becomes cooler (bluer).
much like a diffusion screen, or a softbox, Artificial constant light sources, such as
or light wispy clouds. The dispersion of the tungsten bulbs, generally produce slow
light created a situation of lower contrast. wavelength warm light. Electronic flash
That, in turn, allowed the camera to record and daylight generally produces fast
more detail into both the highlight and wavelength cold light.
shadow areas.

Here is an important lesson in light, and to tungsten or to a color temperature
photography, that we can learn right here. in the lower Kelvin range. Would that
have destroyed the mood? Possibly; the
How you set the ‘color balance’ setting on photographer must decide for his or
How you set the ‘color your camera can vastly change the look
balance’ setting on your herself.
and mood of your photograph. When
camera can vastly change readying to create a photograph, evaluate The diffused light, the fog, and the
the look and mood of your the light source and see if it’s warm or hunched over figure definitely set a mood
photograph. cool, and then set the light balance for this photograph.
accordingly for natural color. Conversely,
if you want to alter the color of the image, Personally, I am ambivalent about the color
set the white balance to an incorrect balance. Both the warm and cold tones
setting. could have worked here.
If the photographer desired a normal color

balance in picture #1, what should he or
she have done? Set the color balance

the light waves must pass through the
atmosphere for a longer period of time.
In the atmosphere are particles of matter:
dust, pollution, etc. The atmosphere acts
as a diffuser, causing the light to soften
and spread out. As we learned in our
discussion of Image #1, this creates lower
contrast, which in turn allows the camera
to record a greater range of tone.
Another benefit to having the Sun low

in the sky is, when shooting people, the
intensity of the light has been reduced;
they can then look toward
the light source without being blinded.
I used to work for a portrait studio that
Image #2 – When I evaluate the light in specialized in outdoor portraits. I can tell
this scene, among the first things that you that as little as ten to fifteen minutes
I notice is that the shadows are long. can make all the difference in the world
(Remember in Book One when we talked to the quality of light at sunrise or sunset.
about the importance of shadows?) What Now, another benefit to this time of day
does this tell us? Our light source, the sun, is that the wavelength of the light source
is low in the sky. I’m sure most of you have becomes longer and slower making the
a basic understanding that photographers light warmer—and that can generally
tend to like early and late (in the day) appear very nice in a photograph. Plus, as
light. Do you know why? It’s because of we’ve already learned, if we don’t like the
the same principles discussed in Image warmth we can make adjustments to our
#1. When the sun is low to the horizon, White Balance setting on the camera to
compensate.

Has the light been manipulated in this Here are really important points for you
photograph (outside of what Mother to remember!
Nature has provided)? No.
·· We have the light that is lighting our
Could the photographer have manipulated scene
“Could the photographer the light in this instance?
have manipulated the light ·· We have the camera that records the
in this instance?” Sure! scene
They could have added a fill flash to

lighten the shadows in the foreground. But
that would have really killed the mood,
don’t you think?
What if the photographer had added a

filter onto the lens of the camera? Could
that have altered the light source?
YES!
Now, you may be wondering: “Wait a

minute! That doesn’t change the light
source. That changes the camera setup.”
I can’t say that you’re entirely wrong.

The only thing that really matters is how 5. But, the blue filter only allows light
those two elements interact. in the blue spectrum to pass through
(see Book One if you don’t know
So, how does putting a filter on the lens why). The photographer has altered
Be honest. How many change the light?
of you would have said, the light before it hit the recording
“There is nothing I could Let’s walk it through with Image #2. Let’s source (be it film or a digital sensor).
have done to alter the light put a deep blue filter on the lens. (If you’re My purpose in walking you through that
source here.” having trouble remembering how a filter exercise is to get you thinking about light.
alters light, refer back to Book One.) How do you read light? How can you alter
1. Light emanates from the sun; it it? How can you control it? No matter what
passes through the atmosphere and the situation.
hits the objects in our scene. Be honest. How many of you would have
2. As we learned in Book One, light said, “There is nothing I could have done
reflects off of an object at varying to alter the light source here.”
degrees based on the object’s
translucence and reflectance values.
3. Our camera is pointed at the scene

and the reflected light is traveling
back toward our camera. At this
point, the light is as Mother Nature
delivered it.
4. The light reaches our lens and

penetrates through as we snap the
shutter…

Do you think those purple walls affected
this image? Yes! They definitely added
to the cooling effect of the light. How?
Through absorption and reflectance.
Has this light source been manipulated?

Yes, in two ways.
1. The harsh light coming through

the window reflected off of the
bedspread creating soft, diffused
light on the cat’s face.
2. We learned in Book One how light

absorbs color when it reflects off of
an object. The purple walls altered
this light in color tone. If you look
carefully at the cat, you will see a
purple/magenta tone to her coat on
Image #3 – What is the quality of light the shadowed side. That is a result of
happening here? Hmm? This is a tricky the reflected light.
one. We have harsh direct light, AND soft
Did this lighting create a mood? I tend to
diffused light in one image! We have
think not. The cool tones remove the warm
harsh direct light, AND soft diffused light
afternoon effect that the photographer
in one image! What does the color of
was going for.
the light tell us? It was midday. The light
is harsh and cool. It’s so cool in color
temperature that even the reflected
diffused light didn’t warm up very much.

I want to address several important points with you. ·· The color balance could have been adjusted in-
camera.
Take notice to the contrast range on the cat’s face and
the front part of her body as compared to her back ·· The image could be warmed up in post-
and the upper part of her head. production.
Firstly, this is a great example to practice evaluating Many of you might be thinking: “Why would I mess
light. If the cat had been sitting in the direct sunlight with it when I can just fix it in post?” My answer to
with her face pointed toward the window light, would that is that some of you still shoot film, and others
this image have worked? Probably not; the contrast don’t use post-production software. Plus, I want you
range would have been too much for the camera to to be the best photographer you can be, and that
capture the important details in the face. Couldn’t the means trying to get it perfect in-camera and then use
photographer have changed their exposure to keep the post-production for tweaks.
detail in the face? Yes, but the rest of the image would
then become too dark. Understanding the light helps Another consideration to the post-production fix is
you to place a subject in your frame and make decisions this: What if you have mixed lighting, and thus mixed
on your exposure to get the best shot possible. color temperatures, in one image? You could find
yourself in a sticky situation where you’re trying to
Secondly, if the photographer had wanted to ‘warm correct the color in one area of the picture, and that
up’ the light, could they have done that? Here’s an creates
even better question. Could they have warmed up the a weird color balance in another part of the image.
light quickly, since this cat isn’t likely to sit like this for It’s always best to try and get it straightened out in-
very long? camera.
There are several ways that the light could have been Now, that being said, sometimes a shot just isn’t
altered in color temperature to adjust the ‘mood’ of going to sit and wait for you. This cat is a perfect
the photograph. example. I’m a firm believer in the “Shoot first, get it
perfect second” field of thinking. It’s better to get the
·· A warming filter could have been placed on the shot than miss it while you fiddle with your camera
lens. (Refer to Book One for filter information.) settings.

As a photographer, when confronted with
varying light sources such as this, what do
you do?
Honestly, this is one of those examples

where ‘Auto White Balance’ may be your
best friend. Auto White Balance works by
looking at all of the color temperatures of
light in the scene and coming up with the
best ‘middle of the road’ setting.
Another option is to examine the scene

and determine the dominant light
source, and then set your color balance
accordingly. However, be aware that the
WB setting affects ALL of the light within
the scene.
Image #4 – Wow. There is a lot of light Do you see any of the light sources being
happening in this photograph, isn’t manipulated in this scene?
there? I count three light sources. All
of them are emitting light at different The sunlight coming through the windows
wavelengths. We have midday sunlight is being softened and dispersed by
that is coming through the windows at a particles in the air. Based on our previous
fast, blue wavelength. We have a yellow discussions, do you think that this image
incandescent light in the upper left that would have been possible without the
is emitting slow, warm wavelength light. particles dispersing the light? No, not
Finally, we have the fire burning in the really. It would have completely changed
foreground, which is an extremely slow, the look of the image. It would have
warm wavelength of light. way too much contrast for the camera

to record. That would have resulted in a Here is an important point for you to
severe loss of detail in the highlights or the remember:
shadows or both.
If you are interested in photographing a
If you are interested in Did you notice any other manipulation of scene that is lit with strong direct light,
photographing a scene that the light sources? try looking for an interesting silhouette.
is lit with strong direct light, Silhouettes lend themselves to this type of
try looking for an interesting Yes, there is more manipulation. The light. You can see how the photographer
silhouette. light traveling from the window is being made use of it here by placing the kettle
refracted through those wall panels in and wall panels into a silhouette.
the background. Remember translucence
(from Book One)? That refracted lighted
has been altered as if it passed through
those panels. The panels worked the same
as a camera filter.
Do you think that the photographer could

have manipulated this light to change the
image?
They could have used a camera filter, or

in post-production changed the color
balance of the entire scene. In my opinion,
I like it as it is.

The quality of light here was harsh and
direct in the background, but softened up
in the foreground. How was it softened
up? By bouncing around on those walls on
either side of the woman. Also, by placing
her back to the brightest light source, only
soft, reflected light illuminated her face.
Did the photographer manipulate the light

source in this case? Yes, through his choice
of positioning and direction of the model.
What if he had placed her at the top of the
ramp? The light would have been much
different, and the resulting photograph
would have been much different.
Image #5 – What’s obviously different Would you say that the light affected the
about this example? It’s a monotone “mood” of this image? I think so. The
image. When you’re shooting with the happy mood of her smile is accentuated
idea of black and white in your mind, by her bright, open surroundings. Imagine
does the quality and color of light matter? this same woman, with this same smile,
Absolutely! The quality of the light sitting in a dark, moody setting with
performs the same tasks that it does in a harsh lighting, or even if she was in a
color image: contrast control. The color bright setting but had harsh light creating
balance of the light can affect the black strong shadows on her face. That would
and white conversion of a digital image, totally have changed the mood of this
or with the use of black and white film the photograph.
color balance of the light will affect the
tonal range of the final photograph.

There are two fundamental points that In photograph number two I want you
I would like you to contemplate as a to go to a different location with the
result of this exercise. same subject. Use whatever light you
find there plus an additional light source
1. Light is an important component that you bring with you (electronic flash,
for establishing mood in your plug-in lamp, reflector, etc.) to produce a
photographs. photograph where you make choices to
2. When producing a photograph manipulate both light sources to produce
consider the subject matter and a particular mood for your subject.
how you might coordinate the light Finally, for your third photograph I
to that subject matter to create the want you to take your subject into a
proper mood. completely darkened room. Using only
Assignment: I want you to produce three light sources that you introduce, use those
photographs of the same subject. In lights to create a mood for your subject.
photograph number one I want you to Keep these points in mind for all three
take your subject to a random location. photographs: the quality of the light, the
Then, using whatever light is provided color balance of the light, how you can
to you by the circumstances, produce a manipulate the light sources, how those
photograph where you make conscious light sources will create the mood that you
choices on how to use that light to have imagined in your mind, and finally,
produce a mood for your subject. what post-production tricks might you use
later to enhance your in-camera efforts.

1
SEEING LIGHT AND PUTTING IT TO USE

IN YOUR PHOTOGRAPHY
SEEING LIGHT AND PUTTING IT TO Now, I know I’m not telling you something
USE IN YOUR PHOTOGRAPHY new when I say, “Certain photographs
stop us in our tracks when we see them.”
I may have gotten a little ahead of myself They are showstoppers. There is any
“Certain photographs with the quiz; it touched upon many of the number of reasons why that might be.
stop us in our tracks when points I wanted to discuss in Chapter One. But one thing is for sure: the photograph
we see them.” They are portrays a mood. Mood creates emotional
Still, they are so important that it doesn’t
showstoppers. change. Emotional change triggers a
hurt to cover them again.
chemical response in our brain. And that is
ESTABLISHING MOOD what makes the photograph memorable.
I honestly believe that this is an element There are a number of elements that
of photography that many photographers can be used to establish mood: subject,
today are failing at. background, props, composition, and
processing/shooting techniques.
The manufacturers have made it so easy to
just point our camera in a certain direction, However, the number one tool for
snap the shutter, and we think it’s going to creating mood is light.
be great.
A simple change in the light, or how you
choose to use the light, can completely
alter or enhance the mood of a scene.
Let’s take a look at two photographs.

Kent DuFault Kent DuFault
https://www.flickr.com/photos/35449761@N04/20687643050/in/dateposted-public/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/35449761@N04/20253361844/in/dateposted-public/
This photograph screams a cold and lonely mood… This is the exact same photograph as it appeared to the naked eye. This
Wouldn’t you agree? isn’t awful. It’s still pretty interesting. All elements of the photograph are
the same except for one thing: controlling the light. In this example, the
photographer controlled the light by changing the color balance on the
camera settings.
In the second version, the one that appears most like what the scene
‘really’ looked like, the color balance was set to daylight.
In order to add mood, the photographer changed the color balance to

tungsten. That action corrected the ‘window light’ to ‘closer to normal’,
but skewed the exterior daylight to a deep blue… creating mood.

Your challenge is to learn how to use light 3. If you think of the ‘direction’ of the
to create mood. light as a 360-degree horizontal circle
around your subject, now consider
That may seem like an easy challenge, but the ‘angle’ of the light, which is a
it’s harder than you think. 360-degree vertical circle around your
Let’s think for a second
about how light can change It’s requires multifaceted thinking, and subject. The angle of the light is just
the mood of a photograph. oftentimes the process must occur within as important as the direction—maybe
seconds. even more so when it comes to
creating a mood.
(Remember the cat photo in our quiz?)
4. Finally, it’s the old soft light versus
Let’s think for a second about how light hard light story. There is no doubt
can change the mood of a photograph. that this factor changes the mood
of a photograph, especially
1. The color of the light can certainly photographs like portraits. But I know
affect mood. We just demonstrated you’ve seen the difference in other
that. genres of photography as well, such
2. The direction of the light is definitely as landscape photography.
a factor. Many times a simple change I don’t know about you, but I like to learn
of the camera position changes by dissecting photographs. Let’s take a
the direction of the light relative to look at a few images and dissect them
the subject, which in turn changes together; let’s figure out how the light
the mood of the photograph. created a mood. Or perhaps it didn’t.
This is important in certain genres
of photography, such as street
photography.

Here is a landscape with the
light depicted, as it would have
appeared to the naked eye. You
can tell that the sun was not yet
to the Golden Hour because
of the contrast range. This is
really pretty harsh, direct light.
Remember in our quiz when
we talked about making use
of a silhouette under harsh
light? That’s exactly what this
photographer did! Now… let’s
imagine if this image were
much warmer in color.
Rino Peroni
https://www.flickr.com/photos/35449761@N04/24567173801/in/dateposted-public/

Wow! Suddenly the mood has
completely changed! Now a
viewer can imagine walking
through a field of grass in the
late afternoon, hearing the
crickets chirp, a slight breeze
blowing in their face, the
warmth of the sun on their
skin. We talked about this in
Book One, but just to reiterate:
colors in the warm spectrum
(red, yellow, orange) evoke
feelings of warmth, happiness,
optimism, and energy. What if
the color spectrum were shifted
toward the cool end? How
would that affect the mood?
I mean, clearly, this was a
beautiful scene no matter what.
Could the color balance make
that much difference?
Rino Peroni
https://goo.gl/FEuLw3

Here is a very important point:
When you’re confronted with a scene that you want to

photograph, you can make light-related choices that will affect
the mood of that photograph.
Each of these “solutions”
In the above scenario, what choices could you have made
has benefits and drawbacks.
regarding the light?
1. You could have returned to this spot during the Golden

Hour, hoping that Mother Nature provided you with the
warm light that would give the correct mood.
2. But, let’s say, this is it. This is your one opportunity to create
this photograph. You could have added a warming filter
(which we know alters the light), or for a more dramatic
alteration of the light perhaps a yellow filter.
3. You could also tweak the color balance setting on the

camera.
4. And of course, you could make adjustments in post-

production.
Each of these “solutions” has benefits and drawbacks. Also, each

technique would alter the image slightly, providing a “slightly”
different mood.

We have altered the light on the
exact same picture. What is the
mood now? Autumn? Frost?
Storm? I hope that you can see
how much power you carry in
your decisions about the light.
Rino Peroni

Let’s dissect another image for mood…
I can hear some of you saying, “Well…

that’s a landscape photograph, and of
course the color of the light would affect
the mood.”
Remember, it’s not just the color of the

light. It’s also the direction, angle, and
level of diffusion.
Let’s try a completely different subject.

How about insects?
The subject matter here is
very interesting. But the
photograph lacks impact.
If you were to come across
this photograph on a website
such as Flickr, I can almost
guarantee you that you would
glance at it and move on. It’s
an interesting subject. Why
does it lack the “Wow Factor”?
It’s all about the light, my
friends. From landscapes, to
portraits, to a macro shot of a
sewing thimble, the light you
choose makes your photo or
breaks it. Let’s look at another
insect photograph that stars
an insect that is very similar
to this one, but with very
different light…
Charles
https://www.flickr.com/photos/bike4freedom2/14204861781/

This photographer didn’t use
the color of light to create
mood. He used the direction
of light to create mood. You
can’t help but look at this
photograph and feel like you
have little bugs crawling all
over you. In the first version,
the flat light created a flat
image. In the second version,
backlight created mood
(and a more interesting
composition).
Wohin Auswandern
https://www.flickr.com/photos/wohinauswandern/4146824312/

I can hear some of you saying, “Well, with insect photography
you have to shoot what you find. The second photographer was
just lucky that he found those insects in a position where they
were backlit.”
Force yourself to become a Don’t think that way!

student of light.
You’re reading this book because you want to become the best
photographer that you can be. There are a million little building
blocks to help you achieve that growth. This one—LIGHT—is the
foundation of it all. Every situation offers you choices with light…
every single one. It’s what you do with your choices that will
define what kind of photography that you can achieve.
Some of you know this, and many of you probably don’t.
For almost three decades, I owned a commercial photography

studio. I specialized in corporate and industrial photography. The
majority of this time was spent in the pre-digital era so I didn’t
have the luxury of fixing it in post-production. This “forced” me
to become a student of light.
Force yourself to become a student of light.
When I was hired for an assignment, I was often given the task of
beautifying, or creating a mood, or bringing interest to, some of
the most mundane objects and places on earth.
I think it might help you to see some of those photographs

and have me discuss how the light was implemented to solve a
problem.

The photograph of the cornstalk was created for
an agricultural magazine cover. The art director
wanted to depict a cornstalk as “art”—almost
as if it could be a statue. To create the “mood”
they were looking for, I used very dramatic
light. It was a mixture of hard, direct light and
soft, diffused light. There were a total of four
lights used. One light was covered with a deep
blue gel. (Think back to some of the theory
we talked about in Book One.) The room was
completely darkened. The background was a
neutral, light gray, seamless paper. One light
had a medium softbox attached to it. Two
lights were equipped with a lighting attachment
called a “grid”. (We are going to get into light
modifiers and attachments later in the book.)
Take a piece of paper and sketch out how you

think the lights were set up…
Kent DuFault

Now we can see how the lighting was
created to establish the mood we were
seeking.
There are a number of “lighting” lessons

that can be learned from this diagram.
Let’s talk about them before we move on.
1. We’ve discussed, both here and in

Book One, that when attempting to
use gelled light the shooting area
should be darkened of full spectrum
light. In the cornstalk photograph we
wanted to introduce some deep blue
light into the right hand side of the
image. This was because that color
matched the logo for the magazine.
You’ll notice that I used a light gray,
seamless paper. Gray paper is more
effective than white or black paper. It
Kent DuFault
will reflect a more accurate rendition
of the color of the gel. Why not
use blue paper and just hit it with a
regular full spectrum light? It could
be done that way, but that method
would be less accurate to reproduce
a predicable color. On this set we
had full spectrum white light. Why is
that full spectrum light not affecting

the gel? Notice how they are all positioned to shine “away”
from the seamless paper.
2. Take notice of how the main softbox light in front of the

cornstalk is positioned almost perpendicular to the subject.
Think of a spotlight in the Positioning the main light in this manner provides the
theater. softest edge light that you can possibly get. If that softbox
were turned so that it was directly facing the subject, the
light would still be soft, but it would be harder and with
stronger shadows than when it’s positioned as in this
diagram. This is what’s known as “feathering” the light.
3. We are all probably familiar with what a “halo” light is in a

portrait. You know what I’m talking about, when a person
has that little rim of bright light around their head? Go back
and look at the cornstalk photograph. Do you see the halo
lighting along the curved edges of the plant? This halo
lighting was created with the two electronic flash heads that
had grids on them. We will discuss grids later. But, just so
you have some context, grids control the spread of light
into a tight pattern. Think of a spotlight in the theater. You
don’t necessarily need a grid for halo lighting. In this case
we wanted a halo light without any light spillage onto the
plant or the background.
Let’s look at another example:

This photograph was also created for an agricultural magazine
cover. Did you notice the blue? Guess what? It’s the same
magazine! This assignment presented a much different problem.
How did we solve the problem? The use of light!
For this image, the art director wanted something bright,

colorful, and eye-catching. They wanted to show the sprinkler in
motion, activated, with water spraying but with studio lighting
and full detail on the product itself.
That was a tall order. Here’s how we pulled it off by using light to
create the effects the client was looking for.
There were a total of five lights used. Two of the lights had
gels. One light had a medium softbox with a softbox egg
crate. (If you’re curious what an egg crate is check it out here:
http://bhpho.to/1KpqF3f.) The last two lights were fitted with
10-degree grids.
Now, here is something very interesting that can be learned

about using light.
This image was shot using two exposures. For each exposure
a different bank of lights was fired. For the first exposure,
the entire scene was racked out of focus on the lens and the
background magenta gelled light was fired. Then, the lens
was re-focused on the product to make it sharp. The second
exposure was fired right after the water was turned on.
What was the end result of this lighting trickery?
Go back and look at the photograph again. Do you see the

soft-edged shadow around the head of the sprinkler? That
shadow was created by the first exposure where the entire
image was out of focus.
Kent DuFault

Let’s look at a lighting diagram…
Here are some light lessons to be learned from this example.
1. Heavy black plastic makes a great background when you

want to reflect gelled light in a dark room. It’s even better
if you spray it with water first. Do you see those funky
highlights in the background? That’s a combination of dark
room, black plastic, gelled light, and out of focus.
2. If you’re ever trying to show spraying or splashing of a

liquid, the absolute best way is by backlighting it.
3. The use of light can be a lot like painting. Imagine yourself

with different brushes. A softbox is a big wide brush; a grid
light is a small tipped brush, etc. Just like paint, light can
be applied in sections and at different times. If you change
settings such as focus, or move objects in between your
exposures, you can get really fascinating special effects.
Find yourself a corner in your house where you can control
the light and have some fun trying to bend light to your will!
The two images that we’ve looked at from my commercial

photography days are good examples of using light to create a
mood. But, what about when you’re out in the field when you
Kent DuFault don’t have control over every aspect of the situation.
Let’s have a look at that…

This photograph was taken while shooting a feature story for a magazine in Florida. The story was about
a National Park called Cumberland Island. It was a documentary-style assignment, just showing the
landscape, flora, fauna, wildlife, and creatures of this fantastic island. When I say it was a documentary
assignment, what I mean is there was no possibility to change things. I was there for one day, and I had
to work with what was given to me by nature.
Now, I want to ask you a question. When you’re photographing a subject and there is very little
possibility of controlling the environment, do you just shrug your shoulders and go with whatever you
see? No, not if you’re growing as a photographer.
A photographer is always looking for ways to make a shot better, add mood, and make a statement.
Sometimes that can be complicated as in the previous commercial examples, or it can be a small, simple
technique such as this example.
This green anole was sunning on the tree branch. It was a pretty chilly day, so he was fairly inert and
didn’t seem to mind us plucking around him. The problem was that the light covered the log from top to
bottom. This made the anole kind of disappear.
I had someone with me to help me to carry my gear. One item that I always carry with me when out on
assignment is various pieces of cardboard or Foamcore. If you read Book One, you know I’m a huge fan
of Foamcore. It has so many uses to a photographer.
In this instance we had a two-foot by two-foot square piece of Foamcore with us. I took out my
pocketknife and cut a hole in the board that was about six inches long and three inches wide. The anole
was probably eight inches in length. I had my helper hold the board so that the sun was only passing
through the hole and hitting the anole. The rest of the tree branch fell dark. This simple change in
lighting totally changed the mood of the photograph.
Kent DuFault

COORDINATING SUBJECT MATTER TO THE AVAILABLE LIGHT TO ESTABLISH MOOD
This photograph was created when I was hired to illustrate a

corporate brochure for a large commercial builder. There were a
number of key features that the client wanted to highlight. One
of those features was that they had one of the highest on-time
project completion records in their industry. They had workers
on the job from dawn until dusk (and sometimes around the
clock). I had one day to capture the images that would illustrate
the mood and message that the client wanted to tell their
customers.
I arrived on-site shortly before sunrise.
Now, let’s think back to my statement above… Coordinating

Subject Matter to the Available Light to Establish Mood.
My available light was a warm sunrise with intermittent cloud

cover. I could have walked about one hundred yards and taken
a completely different picture that was filled with the glow of a
warm sunrise.
However, I took a moment and considered what “light” would

better tell the story of working around the clock to complete a
project.
This shot really sold the idea. It could be sunrise. It could be

sunset. The silhouette of the carpenter creates a strong graphic
element that says “work”.
Kent DuFault

Assignment: You may be a beginning photographer; you may
be an advanced photographer; you may have even taken on
some professional assignments—I don’t want you to feel like I’m
only addressing the needs of a professional photographer. All of
you will benefit greatly by learning how to recognize light in a
situation, how to make choices to create a mood based on your
knowledge of available light, and how to manipulate the light,
or the situation, to create the photograph that you see in your
mind. Here is your assignment:
I want you to pick a subject—try using a family member or a

friend; someone who won’t mind giving you a day. Do this
on a day when you have the entire day to work on it. I want
you to start early, at sunrise. Pretend I’m your client. I want
photographs of your chosen subject to illustrate my brochure. I
want photographs that say the following: strength, history, honor,
health, and humor. Use everything that you’ve learned about
“light” so far to create photographs that give me these moods.

2
CREATING LIGHT WITH KNOWN CHARACTERISTICS

So far we’ve studied how light moves and and transfer it into a finished photograph,
reacts. (Did you read Book One? If you’re you have to know how to create light of
not sure at this point how light moves and known characteristics.
reacts, you should read Book One.) We’ve
also studied how to make decisions and Some of you may be thinking: “Oh, that’s
This is where the story takes adjustments concerning available light for studio photography, and that doesn’t
a twist. to create a mood in our photographs. really involve me.”
And, we’ve learned that establishing a But it might…
mood is a primary element to a successful
photograph. Let me give you an example.
Almost every photographer begins their A relative of mine (put yourself in

photographic journey by just taking my place) asked if I would take their
pictures of whatever is around them. daughter’s high school senior pictures.
They said that they had a particular
Many of us then graduate into the desire outdoor location that they were interested
to make some choices that will improve in using. Their chosen spot was the
our photographic effort. grounds of a local university that was quite
The next step beyond that is to pre- beautiful. I said, “Great! Let’s go for it.”
visualize an image in our minds and then We met there on a Saturday afternoon.
go about creating that vision for the
camera. This is where the story takes a twist.
If you intend to take your photography After greeting each other in the parking
to a professional level, you must develop lot, the parents reached into their car and
this skill. Oftentimes, the pre-visualization pulled out a 16x20 color print of their
doesn’t come from you. It comes from son, who had his senior pictures taken
someone else such as an art director or a at the same location two years earlier.
client’s idea. To be able to take their idea In his photograph, the sun was setting

behind him. He was looking back over Okay. That was a tall order. Even for
his shoulder towards the camera. Warm someone with as much experience as I
rays of light were splaying out through have. It’s always easier to create something
the trees around him. In his right hand he new than to try and recreate something.
clutched a guitar. It was a gorgeous shot
Now, this is when they for sure. I told them that I would try, but I made
dropped the bomb on me. no promises. Bear in mind, it would
Now, this is when they dropped the bomb have been an impossible request for a
on me. photographer that didn’t understand light
and the characteristics of light.
They said… the most important shot of the
day… to them… was for me to recreate Here is how the situation played out.
the image of the son, using their daughter,
looking the opposite way, and holding her The parents took me to the spot where
violin in a similar manner. They wanted the the son’s picture had been created. They
“look” to be as close as possible because assumed that in order to recreate “the
they were going to hang them together look” we had to be in the same spot.
over the fireplace. I had to explain to them that even though
we were in the exact same spot the light
would be completely different.

This is a very important point. The
position of the sun changes constantly,
and not just by the hours of the day but
day by day as it moves in the sky; the
changes are drastic over a month and
even a year. This is important to you as
a photographer because (for example)
you could create a portrait, and a week
later you wish to return to that spot
and shoot again. The light will not be
the same. That’s why it is so important
to learn to “read light”. When those
parents showed me the photograph
of their son, I had to read the light in
that picture. I then had to look for a
similar light source somewhere on the
grounds of that college. When I picked
the location (that eventually became
the finished portrait) the parents were
all up in arms. They didn’t like it. There
were buildings and cars around. The
son’s picture had been created at the
edge of a wood. It was picturesque.
I explained to them that the camera
only sees what I let it see. That spot
The final photograph ended up being almost
an exact match to her brother’s photograph
provided the light that we had to work
in regard to color, lighting, and background. with.
(I wish I could show you the brother’s
photograph, however I don’t have a copy of it.)
Kent DuFault

We began this chapter with the comment ‘Creating through the trees on the front side of her. All
Light with Known Characteristics’. those elements were required to match her
brother’s picture.
1. Let’s talk about how I worked through that
problem with this particular photograph. 5. Now came the difficult part. I was not equipped
for this situation. I had one 4ft. by 4 ft. white
2. Upon examining the previous photograph of the reflector and one Canon 580 EXii electronic flash
brother, I noted several things. There was strong unit. This was not the lighting gear to be using
backlight; the tone of the image was very warm; against this strong backlight situation.
and, finally, the main light on the boy was soft,
even, and flat. 6. Careful placement of the girl helped reduce the
intensity of the backlight by passing it through a
3. I came to the conclusion that the previous denser area of leaves.
photographer had come prepared to shoot this
photograph. To compensate for the very strong 7. I also made a decision to shoot this as an HDR
backlighting, they were most likely carrying one image. I don’t typically like using HDR on shots
or two very powerful studio flash units. Because of people, but, in this case, it saved the day. I
the main light on the boy was so soft and even, I could use my Canon flash to provide some fill
was certain that the flash units had been used in light from the front. However, the light was hard
soft boxes. The light coming from the main lights and direct. It was much different light than on
was very warm; this told me that they probably her brother’s picture. We also used the reflector
had warming gels on the lights themselves. to bounce some of the backlight onto the girl.
4. The first problem was to find a location that had 8. I explained to my model what we were doing
low, warm backlight coming through some trees. with the HDR technique. I told her that she
When I found that location, it was unfortunately needed to be very still and hold her smile. I did
facing a parking lot. I kept looking until I found a three-stop bracket: normal, 1 stop over, and 1
an angle where we could place the girl facing stop under. I set the flash to fire once on the first
to her left, with several trees behind her, no cars exposure.
that were visible, and the sunlight was passing

9. I knew that the raw files would be slightly Assignment: Using whatever
underexposed and flat in contrast. equipment you have, I would like
you to go out and recreate the
10. I was able to pull all of that back into a great photograph of the girl holding
exposure during the HDR process in Photomatix the violin. Feel free to try and
HDR software, and then I used some nitpicking accomplish the task the way I did
adjustments in Photoshop for color, tone, and it. Or, discover your own way.
clarity. Imagine that your photograph is
In the end they were very happy, and so was I going to hang on the wall next
because I didn’t firmly believe that we would get the to my photograph. How are you
shot. going to solve that problem with your knowledge and
resources?
My entire purpose in sharing this episode with
you is because I want you to understand how In the above scenario, I created light of known
important it is to read light, and then have the characteristics using what I had.
knowledge to transform your efforts into excellent Think about how you would create light of known
results. characteristics…
How would you create hard light?
How would you create cold light?
How would you create a pinpoint of light?
How would you create a massive, wide light source?
Let’s talk about the known characteristic of hard versus

soft light. (Much of this was also covered in Book One
if you’re feeling lost.)

The smaller and further away a light How would you transform that light source
source is in relation to the subject, the into a softened light source for the second
harder the light source becomes. The image?
This is the purpose larger and closer a light source is in
of this book and the relation to the subject, the softer the I suggest you take a thin bed sheet and
exercises—to get you light source becomes. have two helpers hold it spread out in
thinking about front of the light source. Position your
light as a malleable element Are you thinking about your assignment? subject on the other side of the sheet.
of your photography. Let’s play out a scenario… Guess what? You have a broad, soft light
source.
We have one light source!
What if you don’t have a bed sheet? What
Let’s say it’s the headlamp on a car. if you have nothing but the car and your
You are to create two headshots using subject?
only that headlamp. One with the How do you turn that into a soft light
hard and direct light (thus it’s creating source?
a mood of danger) and one with the
light softened (thus creating a dreamy, This is the purpose of this book and the
ethereal mood). exercises—to get you thinking about
light as a malleable element of your
How will you do this? photography. You’re going to work the
First, let’s read our light source… light like a baker kneads his bread dough.
A car headlamp is a fairly small light Okay… Think… What if you searched
source with bright, direct, intense light. for a spot where you could park your car
Our first image that depicts danger with the headlight hitting a white garage
should be pretty easy; the light source door? And, what if you positioned your
matches the mood. subject so that the light reflecting off of
the garage door is the light source for your

subject (not the headlamp itself, but the When considering how you might make
reflected light)? You now have soft light light of a known characteristic, you want
from a hard source. to…
There are a million ways to There are a million ways to create ·· Harden light
create light of known characteristics. If you’re ·· Soften light
light of known an amateur photographer, you’re ·· Focus light
characteristics. probably most familiar with the tools ·· Squeeze light
that the professionals use to soften light ·· Direct light
(umbrellas/softboxes/parabolics/etc.). ·· Block light
But there are dozens and dozens of tools ·· Partially block light
that are made to create light of known ·· Reflect light
characteristics. ·· Color light
When a movie is being made there is one

person whose entire job is to create light of
known characteristics. That person’s title is
“The Gaffer”. A gaffer will have truckloads
of gear to accomplish his or her job.
Later in this book, we will discuss some

of the commercially-made products
that can help you create light of known
characteristics.
This is the truth. You can accomplish many

of the same adjustments using items that
you can find around your house, or at a
hardware store, or at an art supply store.

Assignment: Make yourself a list of items that you have around
the house which you think could help you create light of a
known characteristic. Try to think outside of the box. Items might
include: fabric, tinfoil, a trashcan cover, all types of mirrors,
sunglasses, the windshield reflector from your car, wrapping
paper, flashlights, work lights, etc. Keep your list handy as we go
through the book. Add to it as you think of new items that could
alter light and create a known characteristic. Feel free to begin
experimenting with the items from your list.

3
MIXING LIGHT OF KNOWN CHARACTERISTICS

Folks, this is where we begin to separate
the wheat from the chaff. The following
chapters will now begin to immerse you in
advanced lighting techniques.
We’ve talked about how light is fluid. It

isn’t static. It moves, reflects, scatters, and
mixes.
At this point, what should be really

important to you is the subject of mixing.
If you have two, three, four or more light

sources—each with their own set of known
characteristics—and you have them all
helping to light a subject, what is going to
In this diagram, we have four light
happen?
sources of known characteristics lighting
a single subject. The blue bars indicate
They are going to mix! This mixing will
where each light source will complete occur wherever the paths of the different
its mission without being interrupted by light sources collide.
any other light source. The orange bar
indicates where no light from any source
will illuminate the subject. The red bars
indicate where (without any further
control by the photographer) the light
sources will MIX and the characteristics of
Kent DuFault
each light source will be altered. https://www.flickr.com/photos/35449761@N04/21064764603/in/dateposted-public/

How do you keep the light sources from This doesn’t mean that you have to go out
mixing? and buy a bunch of stuff to control light.
After you read this book and learn what
The light sources That, my friend, is the art of lighting! these tools do and how they do it, you can
that you use in your make your own! And, if you decide to go
Put these five terms into your mind:
photographs can spill and professional, then buy the real stuff.
Placement, Spill, Feather, Disperse and
mix with other sources. The
Blocking. At this point, you should have a very good
end result being something
that you didn’t intend. You will soon learn other terms like flags, understanding of what Light! Books One &
scrims, cookies, and dots. These are all Two are all about.
lighting terms for particular lighting tools Book One taught you how light moves and
that came from the movie industry. And can be manipulated. Book Two is about
these are just a few that are available. how you can do that manipulation of light
Photographers often refer to them as light in a controlled manner with known and
modifiers. We will discuss these devices at repeatable results.
the end of the book.
Let’s examine a few photographs and see
What I want you to grasp at this point is what we can learn about mixing light of
that, without “control”, the light sources known characteristics.
that you use in your photographs can spill
and mix with other sources. The end result
being something that you didn’t intend.
Every professional studio photographer

employs these tools when lighting their
subjects. They are also often used on
location. Flags, scrims, cookies, and dots
help place, spill, feather, disperse, and
block light.

How many light sources do you see in this photograph of the
pier? Did you say two? Actually, it’s three. As you develop your
skills with light, you must learn to look past the obvious. What
was the obvious answer to my question? Two! Daylight and the
lamps on the pier are the obvious light sources. The reason the
right answer is three is because the daylight has been mixed and
altered by the clouds. Source number one are the lamps on the
pier. Source number two is the sunset in the background where
the sky is yellow. Source number three is the light coming from
the overhead cloudy sky.
Let’s pretend you and I are standing on the beach looking at

this scene. What adjustments could we make that would alter
the outcome of this photograph with mixed light sources of
known characteristics? What do we know about these three
light sources? The sunset has a long wavelength in the warm
spectrum. It has a low intensity compared to the other two
sources. The sky is in the short wavelength, at the cool end of
the spectrum. It is the largest, broadest light source of the three,
and it is providing most of the light in the scene. The lamps are
very bright by comparison to the other two. They are also an
extremely long wavelength with very a warm color, and they
have low intensity—they are not affecting much of the scene.
Neil Kremer
https://www.flickr.com/photos/neilarmstrong2/5450288948/in/photostream/

Helpful Tip – Those lamps on the pier Back to our scene of the pier. We’ve identified our light sources.
We identified what we know about them. Now what? Now we
could produce any number of colors (in your
make some choices that will intelligently affect the outcome of the
picture) depending on how the light is being photograph. We have two primary tools at our disposal to adjust
generated (fluorescent, neon, tungsten, this mixed light: white balance and the use of a filter.
Location photography sodium vapor, etc.). Perhaps you won’t like
What would changing the white balance do to this image? The
(with mixed light sources) is it if the lamps appear an odd color in your light balance chosen to create the image was ‘daylight’. You can tell
all about making intelligent photograph. Let’s say the lamps turn out that by looking at the open sky above the clouds. It has a normal
choices. green? For a test, take a quick, properly color balance. The overall color balance, of everything lit by the sky,
exposed shot and review the image. Then shifted toward a cool blue. The photographer could have changed
the overall color of his image by setting his white balance to cloudy.
you’ll know what color they’ll record as That setting would have shifted the entire image toward a more
in your photograph. If they look green it normal color balance by removing the blue hue. Another option
would mean they were fluorescent lamps. would have been to put a warming filter in front of the lens. That
Set your white balance to fluorescent and option would have altered the entire image toward a warmer color
spectrum.
take another shot. The green would be
corrected, but you must see what happens Important Point: White balance is a key
to the color in the entire picture. Maybe the tool on your camera; when you’re out on
overall color is better when the lamps are location and you’re trying to adjust mixed
green, or maybe not. Location photography light of known characteristics, look to your
(with mixed light sources) is all about making white balance to help you.
intelligent choices.

Here we have a similar situation to the previous shot that we
discussed. We are out on location. We have multiple light
sources of different wavelengths. The difference between this
image and the previous one is this: in the previous image the
photographer had lighting circumstances presented to him that
he had to solve. In this case, the photographer identified light
sources that would give him the effect that he was seeking and
put them together like a puzzle.
Here are the light sources. The upper light on the building is a
sodium vapor lamp. The lower light on the building is a zenon
short-arc lamp. The yellow tape and the right side of the man are
illuminated with a flash source and a warming gel. The shirt and
the paperwork are illuminated with a small portable flashlight
covered by a light blue gel.
Let’s figure out how we could duplicate this image.

Croswald9
https://www.flickr.com/photos/59101414@N02/13075431083/in/photostream/

First, of the four light sources, there are from the lights on the building. We will
two that we have limited ability to change. adjust the power of that light source to
Those are the lights on the building. With match the exposure for the building lights;
Both of these lights those lights, the only thing we can change in addition, we don’t want this light to
require careful planning is the level of exposure. Here is the first “spill” onto the front of the man, as that
because we don’t want thing that we do: establish the color would dilute the blue gel effect on his
them to mix, and we don’t balance and exposure for those two lights. shirt and the clipboard. (Remember our
want them to destroy the discussion about light mixing and the use
mood. Now, the two sources that we are going of gels and full spectrum light.)
to add have two jobs. Number one: keep
the model from disappearing into the Finally, we set the light with the blue gel
background. Number two: maintain the onto the man and adjust the intensity so
mood for the theme of the photograph. that it also forms a proper exposure with
the background lights. The blue gel shows
Both of these lights require careful up nicely because we have been careful
planning because we don’t want them to to keep that part of the model in deep
mix, and we don’t want them to destroy shadow from any other light source.
the mood.
Side Note: Did you notice that the man’s
First, we set the light that is illuminating shirt and each of the two background
the yellow tape and the background. Here lights form a triangle (one of the best
is the important consideration. We want formulas in composition)? The yellow
the intensity to match the exposure for the tape serves as a leading line. The tie and
lights on the building. Our shutter speed dangling strap serve as focal points. None
and f/stop have been determined. We of these elements of composition would
want every aspect of the photo to have work without proper lighting!
some detail. Secondly, we want to warm
up the light that illuminates the yellow
tape so that it ‘appears’ to have come

Kent DuFault

Kent DuFault

This is a mixed light situation that anyone could find themselves
having to solve. We have numerous light sources here. But,
when you consider the situation, one light source stands out
as our primary concern and that is the flash that illuminates
the boy and his girlfriend. Of secondary consideration is the
background because we don’t want the background to turn into
a black hole.
Since our main light source is the electronic flash, our color
balance is pretty much determined for us. We must set it to
daylight or the electronic flash setting to get accurate color.
Our concern in adjusting the background light sources is

exposure. We can work with shutter speed, aperture, and ISO
to hit the sweet spot for the least amount of noise, along with a
shutter speed that doesn’t create camera shake, and a depth-of-
field that keeps our two subjects in reasonable focus.
Once we’ve made those determinations, how do we make

adjustments to the flash that’s lighting the foreground? By
adjusting the power level up or down as needed.
Meagan
https://www.flickr.com/photos/meaganjean/5417966134/

Important Point: When attempting to
adjust mixed light of known characteristics,
always start your thought process with
By building the lighting the light sources that you have the least
scheme slowly, one light control over. If you’re in a situation where
at time, you will know how you have control over every light source,
each light is affecting the such as a studio setting, always start
subject and background. with the main light and then add each
additional light one at a time. Check the
effect of each light before going on to the
next one. By building the lighting scheme
slowly, one light at time, you will know
how each light is affecting the subject and
background.

What if you find yourself in a photographic situation where
your main light source isn’t giving the light that you want or
need? This photograph is a perfect example. The photographer
wished to capture this car in a race. He had several criteria.
He wanted the driver and as much of the car as possible to be
sharp and in focus. He wanted the background and wheels to be
blurred to indicate speed. He wanted to keep his ISO as low as
possible. The available light was cloudy bright but very flat.
So, how do you make choices to achieve this photograph under

these lighting conditions?
SuperCar-RoadTrip.fr
https://www.flickr.com/photos/xavier33300/13982692870/

Here’s what we know… The photographer did an excellent job!
The available light was bright enough to keep the ISO Important Point: A portable flash can be a useful
low, with an appropriate shutter speed for a panned tool in almost any photographic situation. It’s not
exposure, and an appropriate aperture to provide limited to those moments when there is simply not
enough depth of field. enough light. The key is to get a grasp on how to
work with that flash so that it provides you with the
So, what’s the problem? The problem is the quality light of known characteristics that you’re expecting
of the existing light will not provide an interesting AND how to ‘mix’ that light with the available light
photograph. It is too flat. for consistent results. The only way to achieve that is
This photographer solved the problem by adding through knowledge and practice. If you’re unfamiliar
a second light source (a flash) and making with flash, you may want to check out the Photzy
adjustments to the two mixed light sources of known publication, “Electronic Flash – Parts and Practices”. If
characteristics. you are familiar with electronic flash then proceed to
the following assignment.
The first adjustment he made was to add a graduated
filter to the camera lens. This altered the color
balance and the exposure level of the light in the sky
(source #1) to create a more pleasant color scheme.
Secondly, he added a slight fill light to the car from a

portable flash (source #2). That adjustment had two
effects. It brightened the color, clarity, and contrast of
the car, and it helped keep the driver and car sharp
and in focus as he panned the camera with a slow
shutter speed.
The key to success for this image was ‘balancing’ the flash
to the background light so that it didn’t appear ‘fake’.

Assignment: Take your electronic flash
into various photographic situations where
you encounter mixed lighting sources.
Follow the steps we just did together here
in the book. Evaluate the light sources.
Determine their characteristics. Determine
how, and if, you can make adjustments
to them. Integrate the electronic flash
into the shot as an additional light
source. Make final adjustments and
create photographs with known lighting
characteristics that you pre-planned. We
would love to see your results. Please feel
free to post them on our Facebook page
with the hashtag #MixedLightPhotography

4
CONTROLLING LIGHT TO ESTABLISH SHAPE

Light is one of the most important Defining shape is one of the most
tools that you will ever master as a important elements in a photograph
photographer. Did you consider light a because it provides the mental cues for
“What is the light doing tool? I witness far too many photographers the brain to register a three-dimensional
to my subject? And, is who snap away with no consideration as subject on a two-dimensional medium.
there anything that I can do to what the light is doing to the subject.
Then there’s the group that speaks of the In any two-dimensional medium, shape is
to improve my photograph defined by light and shadow. If you’re a
by controlling the light?” Golden Hour, and they will diligently pick
up their cameras and shoot only during natural light photographer oftentimes your
that time of day—again, while not giving only choice for controlling the light (to
any consideration to what the light is establish shape) will be camera-to-subject
doing to the subject. angle and/or light-to-subject angle.
These adjustments could be made by the
Every time you’re about to create a choice of time of day, or more importantly,
photograph, you should be asking camera-to-subject angle.
yourself, “What is the light doing to my
subject? And, is there anything that I
can do to improve my photograph by
controlling the light?”

This is a very common
landscape photograph that
you will see floating around
the Internet. This type of
image often receives numerous
accolades and wins awards.
And why wouldn’t it? It’s a
beautiful scene. Right? Some
might argue: “Well, yeah, it’s
a beautiful scene because of
the warm light of the Golden
Hour.” While I won’t discount
that the warm light is very nice
and it helps the image, I don’t
believe that is where the true
strength in this photograph
lies. Check out the next
photograph…
David Rosen
https://www.flickr.com/photos/davidrosenphotography/15427616241/in/photostream/

I believe that the strength of
virtually all photographs lies in
the light and shadow. I believe
this version of the photograph
is as strong and maybe even
stronger than the color version.
Kent DuFault

Important Point: My purpose in sharing
these two dune photographs with you
was to get you thinking about this: the
The direction and angle direction and angle of light to your
of light to your subject can subject can influence the outcome of your
influence the outcome of photograph more than any other single
your photograph more than subjective choice. Even the smallest
any other single subjective change in the direction and angle of
choice. light can vastly change the depiction of
shape.

Here is an artistic nude, shot in the style of Edward Weston.
For those that don’t know, Weston is one of the most famous
photographers from the early era of the medium. He was a
true master of using light and shadow to create shape. This
photograph is completely reliant on light and shadow to create
shape and interest. Without that element, this image would
be simply ordinary. Consider that for a moment. Study the
photograph. The placement of the model to the sun and the
placement of the camera point-of-view to the model are exacting.
If you move any of the three (model, camera, light source) even
a few inches, the photograph rapidly decreases in visual interest
due to the loss of shape.
Peter Zuco
https://www.flickr.com/photos/drzuco/8594188322/in/photostream/

Assignment: I want you to take a person (doesn’t have to be
nude) to an outdoor location and photograph them in ways
that you utilize the light source and the subject to create shape
through light and shadow. Make the presentation of shape
the subject of the photograph, i.e. not a portrait of a person…
the person is merely a tool to create the shape. For example,
the picture of the woman (above) isn’t about a woman. The
photograph depicts shapes created by her body through light
and shadow; the shapes of her body are the subject of the
photograph. This won’t be easy. Don’t give up. Find the inner
child inside of you and experiment. Play with it. Be bold and
daring! Show us your results on the Photzy Facebook page along
with the hashtag #lightshadowshape.
Important Point: Always consider the positioning of subject,

light, and camera very carefully. This chapter is about learning
to control light to establish shape. The point here is, this is the
simplest skill that you can learn that will help you vastly improve
your photography. I’m sure some of you will think, “I already do
that”. Do the assignment, and prove to yourself, do you really do
that? Do you really take the time to consider how the light and
shadow are creating shape?
We are going to look at two architectural photographs. I would

like you to study the interplay of light and shadow across both
photographs.

telmo32 Dennis Jarvis
https://www.flickr.com/photos/telmo32/4337474832/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/archer10/10596880866/
In the photograph on the right, it is clear that the photographer wanted to use shape
to compose and create interest in his photograph. Now, study the photograph on the
left. Which of these two photographs is more interesting due to the use of light and
shape? Clearly, the answer is the one on the left. The one on the right is flat, and yields
less interest because the light is not creating shape. Now, you may argue that maybe the
photographer didn’t want to accentuate the shape of the buildings! Maybe he wanted it to
be flat and more of an abstract. I still argue the point that the photo is less successful due
to a poor use of light. Remember the dune picture above? When we removed the color,
the image was still strong.
Let’s remove the color on this image…

A Nice Tip: This is an excellent tip to
help learn to study light, especially how
light and shadow create shape. I used
this method for years when I first began
in photography. My mentor taught it to
me. Find yourself a dark tinted piece of
glass. A convenient place to locate this is
a pair of sunglasses. Just remember, you
I converted this photograph
using the exact same want the lenses to be DARK. There are
methodology that I used to also commercially-made lenses if you don’t
convert the dune photograph. mind spending a few dollars. Here is a link
Is this image stronger than the
to an example. The commercially-made
original? Is it even as strong?
Wouldn’t you agree that a version is nice because it has a neck lanyard
poor choice in light control for convenience. Now, if you read the
weakened this photograph ? description for the use of the commercially
Dennis Jarvis
https://www.flickr.com/photos/archer10/10596880866/ made version, it’s going to tell you that
the viewing lens is for black and white
photography only. That is its intended use.
BUT, there is a secondary benefit. That’s
what we’re talking about here. The lens
removes color. So, when you view a scene
through the lens (before you take your
picture) you will be seeing it only in shades
of tone. Another way of saying that is light
and shadow. If the photographer had used
a lens like this before creating the picture
of the rooftops, he would have noticed that
it was devoid of shape without light.

Assignment: Either purchase or find
yourself a dark tinted lens and begin to
study the effects of light and shadow on a
subject before you create a photograph of
that subject.

5
CONTROLLING LIGHT TO ESTABLISH TEXTURE

The idea of using light to control texture
is probably a concept that you’re more
aware of. It’s not as important as the topic
discussed in the previous chapter because
it’s less “all encompassing” to the success
of a photograph. In other words, there
are times where you wish to accentuate
texture, and therefore you need to know
how to control light to achieve that—and
there are times where you won’t want to
accentuate texture. Plus, there are times
where it really won’t matter all that much
either way.
Let’s consider a moment when you would

NOT want to accentuate texture…
Examine the two photographs of the

woman on the left. This is an example of
when you would not want to accentuate
texture.
Fox Efx
https://www.flickr.com/photos/35449761@N04/22362073039/in/photolist-A54ter
These two portraits are of the same woman. Did you notice the dark bags under the eyes in
the portrait on the right? That is texture. That is the result of the photographer placing the
light in a position to accentuate texture. Now look at the photograph on the left. The bags
under the eyes have almost disappeared. Texture is ALL about the positioning of the light
source to the subject, relative to the camera.

So when is showing texture important? It
becomes very important when the surface
structure of your subject is imperative to
your composition.
Here are a couple of examples.
Patrick Goossens
https://www.flickr.com/photos/goossens/3234321449/in/photostream/
This photograph uses texture to create a minimalistic abstract photograph of a known subject:
tire tracks sliding across the ice. Without texture this photograph wouldn’t succeed at all.

Important Tip: Study the two
photographs I’ve used to illustrate texture.
The first photograph of the tire tracks used
a fairly hard and direct light source. The
second picture of the pastry utilized a soft,
indirect light source. Yet, they both define
the texture well. Here’s the tip: many
photographers believe that to highlight
texture the light source needs to be
hard and direct, a spotlight for example.
That’s not true. The most important thing
to remember when controlling light to
establish texture is the angle of the light to
the subject, relative to the camera.
Kent DuFault
https://goo.gl/sYs8da
Texture is very important to many different types of photography. Food photography is one
example. In fact, the use of light to accentuate texture in food photography is so important, it
should be your primary consideration when using light in your food photographs.

This graphic depicts how the angle of light affects the revelation
of texture in a photograph. The angle of the light to the subject,
relative to the camera position, can be horizontal, vertical, or
somewhere in between the two. Imagine that your subject is
standing in the middle of a glass globe. As you move the light
source around the outside of the globe, ask yourself, is the angle of
the light to the subject, relative to the camera position, greater than
zero? If yes, then the depiction of texture is possible. The closer the
angle comes to 90 degrees, the more texture that will be revealed in
your photograph. Do you have too much texture? Lower the angle
closer to zero .
Kent DuFault

This series of photographs
is a great example to study
how the angle of light to the
subject, relative to camera
position, affects the texture of
the vase. Notice how at zero
degrees and 180 degrees no
texture is revealed. But, even
a slight change to 30 degrees
and 150 degrees now reveals
some texture.
Oleg Afonin
https://goo.gl/6Br9DS

This would be considered back lighting,
wouldn’t you agree? Is this 180-degree
back light? No. Remember the glass
globe. If this were 180-degree back
light the light source would be directly
behind whatever is holding these
noodles. Could that reveal texture? It
might. Imagine that these noodles are
in a glass bowl, and that the light is
passing through the bowl, skimming
between the noodles and pointing
directly at the camera. That could
indeed show texture. But, in most
cases, your light source will not be at
a 180-degree angle from the camera if
you’re attempting to capture texture.
Oleg Afonin
https://www.flickr.com/photos/nikolys_f/16205579006/in/photostream/

This is our final example on texture.
The light source-to-subject angle
relative to the camera position is
approximately 45 degrees. Texture
plays an extremely important role in
this photograph. It reveals the dappling
in the skin of the orange. It indicates
depth where the orange peel has been
removed. It shows that the inside of
the orange peel has a different surface
than the exterior. And finally, it tells us
that the entire scene is happening on a
rough surface.
Kumar’s Edit
https://www.flickr.com/photos/kumarsedit/15821953274/

Important Point: In the earlier diagram, it was pointed out that a
90-degree angle from the light source to the subject, relative to
the camera position, would provide maximum texture. Is that true
in the case of the photograph of the orange? Imagine that we
moved the light source another 45 degrees to camera left so that
the light was now at a 90-degree angle to the subject relative to
the camera position. What would happen? The area where the
skin has been removed would fall into complete shadow, and
it would no longer reveal much texture (if any). The character
lying on the cement would fall into shadow and no longer reveal
texture. The highlight on the orange would move around to the
far left, and some texture might be revealed, but not nearly as
much as we see at the current position of 45 degrees. What can
we ascertain from that information? In this particular case, 45
degrees revealed more texture than a 90-degree angle would
have. My point is this: nothing in photography is ever a hard
and fast rule. There are so many variables. You must digest the
information and apply it to your own work so that you develop
the skill of “seeing” the results and not relying on formulas.
Assignment: I want you to pick a fruit, any fruit, and place it on

a textured surface. I want you to lock your camera down on a
tripod. Set up a still life scene with your fruit. Photograph your
still life under different lighting conditions by simply moving your
light source all around the set. Practice seeing what the light is
doing to the texture.

6
CONTROLLING LIGHT TO ESTABLISH COMPOSITION

Composition is the most important tool in a photographer’s
toolbox. It’s the very foundation of your images.
I’m not going to delve into the elements of composition or how

to use them so much in this book. Photzy has published two
Light can be used in books on the subject of composition. If you want to understand
many ways to enhance a composition more thoroughly, you can check them out here:
composition. Understanding Composition and Advanced Composition.
Light can be used in many ways to enhance a composition.
Some ways include:
·· A change of camera position;
·· A change of positioning of the light source relative to the

subject;
·· Eliminating the light altogether;
·· Partially eliminating the light;
·· Altering the color of the light;
·· Squeezing the light into a tighter source;
·· Painting with light; and
·· Artificially introducing light in post-production.
Let’s study some examples to see how light created composition.

Helpful Tip: Expanding creative vision
takes work. It doesn’t come to most of
us naturally, and even those who it does
come to naturally tend to get lazy with
time. We’re human. We usually follow the
path of least resistance. So, expanding
your creative vision is a lot like going
to the gym. You’ve got to build up that
muscle! One way to do this is do the
following on a regular basis. Put yourself
in a quiet area where you have no
interruptions—this means no computer
and no phone and no kids and no pets.
Have a pad of paper and a pencil with
you. Relax for five minutes. Breathe deep.
Doodle. Clear your mind. Then spend
the next five minutes writing down every
thought. Doodle some more at the same
time. Position your mind to see your
world differently. The black and white
photograph of the plant is a great example
Kevin Dooley of the type of idea that can be generated
https://www.flickr.com/photos/pagedooley/3530201727/
from this exercise. After doing this exercise
In this abstract photograph, the use of light not only creates the composition, it is the subject. I decided to photograph a single plant,
When you study photographs like this, it should open your mind to the possibilities of how to out of focus, in black and white, using
use light outside of your normal picture-taking routine.
only light and shadows to create the
composition. I now proudly hang a set of
those pictures on a wall in my home.

A Challenge: I want you to produce five
outstanding images. Images that you
are proud of. Make all five images, out
of focus, so that the composition relies
only on light and shadow. Pick the best
of the five and share it on the Photzy
Facebook page along with the hashtag
#lightandcomposition. Try the meditation
exercise. If you use it, and it helps you
create something you’ve never attempted
before, let me know when you post your
image.
Here we have light illuminating and

transmitting through glass panels. The
photographer recognized potential in the
repeating pattern (a tool of composition)
of the windows. The photographer
manipulated the light to establish
composition by creating a camera angle
relative to the light source. As you go
Kent DuFault
about your picture taking life, always think
about how movement of the camera,
The photograph above shows you one of the images that I created after my meditation exercise.
or movement of the light source, might
This photograph may appeal to you, or it may not. It appeals to me because it came from my inner create or improve the composition.
mind. Your inner mind has photographs locked up in your head as well. Release them, and you’ll
create photographs that you will love too! The meditation exercise helps you find them.

Here we have light illuminating and transmitting through
glass panels. The photographer recognized potential in the
repeating pattern (a tool of composition) of the windows.
The photographer manipulated the light to establish
composition by creating a camera angle relative to the light
source. As you go about your picture taking life, always think
about how movement of the camera, or movement of the
light source, might create or improve the composition.
Eric Seralena
https://www.flickr.com/photos/ebproductions/17945638411/

Think about this image for a moment. Imagine you are the
photographer presented with this opportunity. How did the
photographer manipulate the light to establish composition?
Well, for one thing he chose to back light the subject.
Backlighting created strong leading lines from the shadows
leading into an S curve down the path. The silhouette of the
boy creates a juxtaposition of shape against his surroundings.
The photographer also altered the color of the light. In
composition, this is known as a color wash. The color of
the light could have been changed with a filter on the lens,
a change in the color balance setting on the camera, or in
post-production editing. When you think of light as a tool
of composition, it will lead you to creative opportunity. Try
to imagine the thought process of a photographer who isn’t
considering the light as a tool composition. How would they
most likely have set this shot up? They probably would have
set it up from the other direction, the quick and easy thought
being that the light must illuminate the subject from the front.
Nagesh Jayaraman
https://www.flickr.com/photos/howard_roark/4225446260/

Before I tell you… you tell me… what did the photographer
do to manipulate the light to establish composition?
………………………..
They manipulated the light through their choice of camera

position.
Think about it. This image is really quite extraordinary.

It directs the viewer’s eyes right to the heart of the story,
and it does so strictly through the use of light! What if the
photographer had chosen a camera location up close to
the other people standing at this geyser? This image would
completely lose its impact. The camera POV manipulated the
light to create a stronger image.
Berit Watkin
https://www.flickr.com/photos/ben124/5397759488/

The photographer manipulated the light here by their choice
of placement of the subject within the environment. Now,
I can already hear you saying, “Oh come on now! That’s
not manipulating the light.” Sometimes it’s hard to get
photographers to think of their craft like a painter.
A painter starts from scratch and slowly builds their painting

until there is a final product.
Try to think of your photographic efforts in the same way.

Each choice that you make is slowly building up your “canvas”
until you have a final product.
This photographer could have placed this model anywhere in

the vicinity. In fact, I’m willing to bet that many of you reading
this guide would have decided that this light would be terrible
for this portrait.
Yet this is a really pleasing image. The reason it works so well

is the interplay of light on the model’s face and body. The light
establishes the composition.
As you’re creating your photographs, be open to trying

something different with the light. Be playful. Look for ways to
use it differently, to establish composition.
DeusXFlorida
https://www.flickr.com/photos/8363028@N08/4559571133/in/photostream/

Assignment: Use a
combination of light
painting and compositing
in your editing program
to create a compelling
image (where the use
of “light” establishes
the composition). Your
version doesn’t need to
be as elaborate as the
image to the left, but use that image to
spark your imagination and push yourself a
little bit further creatively, and technically,
than you might ordinarily have. Share your
best result with Photzy on Facebook.
akshay moon
https://www.flickr.com/photos/akshaymoon/4732030995/in/photostream/
Talk about light! This photographer has used light in so many ways it’s hard to know where
to start talking about it. One of the reasons that I wanted to share this with you is to illustrate
the pure creativity in the use of light. I consider myself a pretty creative individual, and I’m not
quite sure I would ever have come up with this. I hope you feel inspired. Use light painting. Use
compositing. Use every tool at your disposal to create great photographs with light.

The last bullet point (listed at the beginning of the chapter)
talked about using post-production to alter light to create
a composition. This bridal portrait is a perfect example of
using post-production techniques to create light that forms
a composition. I can’t speak as knowledgably about other
editing programs, but if you’re using Photoshop software you
can literally “create” lighting in a photograph. I know a very
successful portrait photographer who owns no photographic
lights, not one, not even a portable flash. She creates absolutely
stunning compositions by creating light in Photoshop. I want
you to learn how to do this. If you haven’t already done so,
check out my two free videos in the Photzy Locker that discuss
using the raw adjustment brush. Those videos will give you
an excellent primer on how to start creating light in post-
production.
Robbert van der Steeg
https://www.flickr.com/photos/robbie73/3815477638/

Assignment: I want you to select five
of your existing photographs that you
felt didn’t quite meet your expectations
because the lighting was bad. I want you
to take those images into your editing
program and attempt to improve them
by creating a lighting-based composition
in post-production. I would then like you
to pick your best effort. Composite the
before and after images into one image
and upload it to Photzy’s Facebook page.
Hashtag it #lightandcomposition. I’ll make
an attempt to review any images that are
posted and give you my thoughts on your
efforts. (One per reader please.)

7
CONTROLLING LIGHT TO ESTABLISH COLOR

We talked about this a bit in Book One. At this point Assignment: Before I tell you
I’m going to hit on the highlights. It’s important anything about the four points
to mention again because the color of the light in above, I want you to tell yourself
your image vastly affects the mood that it creates something.
for the viewer. So, being able to make a decision
to change the color of the light makes you a better 1. If you wanted to control the light
photographer. coming from the light source to
establish color in your picture, how
You can potentially change the color of light at four would you do it?
different points in the image creation process.
2. If you wanted to control the light
1. At the point where the light is generated (at the reflecting off of an object to establish color, how
source) would you do it?
2. At the point where the light reflects off of an 3. If you wanted to control the light as it moves
object (absorption and reflection) between subject and camera to establish color,
how would you do it?
3. At the point between the camera and the subject
(reflection and transmission) 4. If you wanted to control the light at the point
of imaging within the camera to establish color,
4. At the point of imaging within the camera. how would you do it?

Let’s think about question number one. Our source is now another type of hot light
such as Fluorescent or LED.
·· One consideration would be:
what is the light source? Can you ·· These sources offer little latitude
Part of growing as a get to the light source to possibly for change. You can find fluorescent
photographer is making the control it? You may have options bulbs in different color temperatures
effort to think about and to control a tungsten light source but they are limited. Some LED photo
understand the process. that you wouldn’t with an electronic lights allow for color temperature
flash. What if the source of light adjustments whereas others don’t.
was the sun? Part of growing as a
photographer is making the effort ·· But you can always put a gel in front
to think about and understand the of these lights.
process. Our source is the sun.
Our source is a Tungsten light. We can ·· For you to take control of the light
alter the light source to establish color coming from the sun to establish color
by… there are three potential options: time
·· Changing the voltage to the light of day, weather, and time of year.
(such as a dimmer switch) -- Sunrise and sunset generally (not
always) produces light in a very
·· Changing the bulb to one of a warm color spectrum.
different color temperature -- Light coming from the sun,
from approximately 1/2 hour
·· Putting a colored gel in front of the after sunrise until 1 hour before
light sunset, will become increasingly
cooler (moving towards the blue
spectrum), generally peaking at
around noon to 2 p.m. depending
on the time of year.

-- Why is the sunrise and sunset not When the light source is the sun,
always in the warm spectrum? The controlling the light to establish color is
answer is weather. Cloud cover probably your least favorable choice. The
When the light source can alter the color spectrum of other choices give you more control. It’s
is the sun, controlling sunlight. What else can alter the still important to understand it though.
the light to establish color color spectrum of sunlight? Snow! That knowledge might help you plan a
is probably your least Smoke! Any airborne substance successful photo shoot. In other words, if
favorable choice. has the possibility of altering the you’re traveling to Buenos Aires, Argentina
color spectrum of light coming to shoot travel photos, and it’s important
from the sun. Anything else? Yes, to you to have warm, inviting light, you
the time of year. Summer months may not want to plan your trip during their
where the earth is angled toward winter months.
the sun tend to have warmer light.
Winter months where the earth is
angled away from the sun tend to
have cooler light.

This photograph was taken in Buenos Aires, Argentina on
June 20th. That date would be a winter day for them in the
Southern Hemisphere. Even though it doesn’t get cold enough
in this location to have snow, did you notice the predominance
of a cool blue tone at sunset? The angle of the earth plays a role
when using the sun as your light source to establish color.
nestor ferrato
https://www.flickr.com/photos/nestorferraro/14283202208/in/photostream/

Now let’s take a look at question two. Knowing this, how do you control reflected
light to establish color?
·· This is a factor of light that we
If you bounce full discussed in Book One (and it has Well, let’s say you’re going to bounce
spectrum light off of a been mentioned in this book). When some light and you would like it to be
red wall, most of the light light reflects off of an object, that warmer than the source. You could tape
reflecting off of that red wall object will absorb colors of the light sheets of yellow or gold paper to your
is going to be in the red spectrum that are complementary to bounce surface!
spectrum. its own color and will reflect primarily
colors of the light spectrum that are What if you’re setting up a portrait and
close to the object’s color. Let me the only wall that you have to bounce
simplify that statement: if you bounce light from is yellow and you don’t want
full spectrum light off of a red wall, the reflected light to be that warm. What
most of the light reflecting off of that could you do? You could tape pieces of
red wall is going to be in the red white paper over the wall. What if you
spectrum. This would be true of any wanted to warm up the reflected light a
color. That’s why you generally use a little bit? You could tape up white paper
white object to bounce light off of in onto the wall in a checkerboard pattern!
photography, because it reflects the Some of the reflected light would be
entire spectrum of color. And what absorbed and some wouldn’t.
does a black object reflect? Almost
nothing! It absorbs most of or the
entire spectrum of light (depending
on the density of the black and the
specular quality of the object).

This photograph of the black cat was created using full
spectrum light from a Nikon flash unit. The light from the
flash was passed through a 24-inch softbox. That softened the
light but did not change the color characteristics of the light.
However, when you examine this photograph, much of the
image has taken on an extremely warm tone. Why? The light
was reflected off of that very red-toned wooden floor. The
reflective surface changed the color characteristics of the light.
How could the photographer have changed the characteristics
of his reflected light to control color? He could have tipped his
light source up thereby eliminating most of the light hitting
the floor. He could have laid something white onto the floor
just outside of the camera frame, which would have kept the
light closer to its original characteristics .
Ryan Li
https://www.flickr.com/photos/hilighters/7060762991/in/photostream/

The most important thing here, in There are hundreds of filters that are
understanding and controlling light, is available for camera lenses, and they all
to remember that a reflective surface do one thing. They alter the light traveling
(that is not pure white) will alter the color between the subject and the camera to
characteristics of the light that reflects off control some aspect of the light.
This is a very simple thing. of it.
We are talking about filters. It’s that simple.
You can use this knowledge to your
advantage to correct the light if you I’m not going to delve deeply into camera
don’t desire the reflected results. Or, you filters as that could be a complete book
can use this knowledge to create a color all its own. However, I will show you a few
scheme of your choice as it reflects off of a examples so that you begin to get a feel
surface. And most importantly, you can use for how a filter alters the light between
this knowledge to assist you when you’re subject and camera to control color.
planning a photograph, so you don’t get
unexpected results.
Let’s discuss question three: altering the

light after it has reflected off of the subject
and before it enters the camera.
This is a very simple thing. We are talking

about filters.

We will start with a polarizing filter. Yes, a polarizer reduces
reflections. However, it will also alter the light thereby
changing the color of the image. The example on the left is
with the polarizer in one position. The example on the right is
with the polarizing filter rotated 180 degrees. Clearly, the color
has changed.
Angus MacRae
https://goo.gl/h1keEB

Another popular filter is the graduated ND filter. Now, most
of us know what the graduated ND filter is used for. It is used
to reduce the exposure of one part of the image while leaving
the rest unaffected. It doesn’t matter if you purchase the most
expensive graduated ND filter on the planet, it will alter the
color of the light traveling from subject to camera. The less
expensive filters tend to alter the color more. This is not
necessarily a bad thing. It’s just something that you need to
know so that you can make informed decisions when creating
your pictures.
Kain Kalju
https://www.flickr.com/photos/kainkalju/5894855297/

Important Point: In order to achieve Question four…
the color that you’re seeking for your
photograph, you may have to use bits How do you control light to establish color
and pieces of the information found in all at the point of imaging? It’s easy with
four bullet points, (on how to alter light digital cameras. It’s not so easy if you’re
How do you control light to an old-school film shooter. With digital
establish color at the point to establish color), from the list at the
beginning of this chapter. For example, photography you simply change the color
of imaging? balance setting! It’s that easy.
you might utilize point #3, which is to
alter the light after it is reflected off of the In our important point (above), if we didn’t
subject and before it enters the camera. like the warm hue that the ND filter added
Let’s say you use a graduated ND filter as to the entire image we could correct it with
pictured above but you don’t like the color the color balance. Simply lowering the
in the neutral areas. To solve this you will Kelvin temperature on the white balance
utilize point #4 to correct the color of the setting would remove the warm hue
light at camera. We will now discuss that. caused by the graduated ND filter.

8
THE FULL REMOVAL OR PARTIAL REMOVAL OF LIGHT

Tell me if I’m wrong about this. Those two techniques would be:
When you’re studying photography, and 1. The use of a neutral density filter; and
specifically light or lighting as it relates
to photography, you’ll often hear about 2. The use of a graduate neutral density
There are very few
“softening light” or “bouncing light”. filter.
photographers left in the
world that are skillful at the One element of light control that is A neutral density filter is designed to
controlled removal of light. rarely discussed is the removal, or partial remove a specific quantity of light.
removal, of light.
Remember in our previous chapter when
And let me tell you something, this is one we discussed the four possibilities of
of the most powerful tools of lighting that altering light during the picture-taking
you can master. process?
There are very few photographers left in A neutral density filter is applicable to
the world that are skillful at the controlled possibility #3—it alters the light that is
removal of light. reflected off of the subject before it passes
If I were a betting man, I bet you’ve heard through the lens to the imaging device.
of and maybe even utilized two light A graduated neutral density filter takes
removal techniques. You may not have that process one-step further: it reduces
even understood that was what you were the light in a known quantity from a
doing. portion of the frame and then tapers off
to allow the full amount of light to pass
through to the camera.
There is a lot of information written on the

use of filters, so I won’t delve too deeply
into that here.

The main point that I want you to Earlier, I said, “There are very few
comprehend is that light reduction is photographers left in the world that are
another tool for you to mold your scene skillful at the controlled removal of light.”
When I said that, I wasn’t into your pre-visualized concept for a When I said that, I wasn’t necessarily
necessarily thinking about photograph. thinking about slapping a filter on the front
slapping a filter on the front of a lens. I was thinking more in terms of
It may be as simple as putting on a light a photographer who makes choices that
of a lens. reduction filter, such as the ND filter, or it fully or partially block light to enhance the
might be something more complex. composition or beauty of their image.
Let me show you several examples:

In this scene, as the construction worker was going about his
business, there were small, dense clouds blowing by briskly
in the wind. At times, the sun was completely exposed; other
times it was completely obscured; and in between there were
moments where it was partially visible. As you can see, this
situation gave the photographer the choice to block light
to improve the picture, or not. By waiting for just the right
moment, the photographer was able to “partially” block light
to create a frame (the clouds) for the subject (the worker)
while enhancing drama with color and the sun (a focal point).
Kent DuFault

Partially or fully removing light might be as simple as your
choice of camera position. The light illuminating this image
was coming from the left. The light was partially blocked by
leaves. The little patch of sunlight was the reason the lizard
was there in the first place, to warm up! Now, here’s where
the photographer made a conscious choice to remove light
and make his picture better. Imagine if you can, that the
camera position was more to the left and looking back at the
lizard. At that POV the light would have also illuminated the
background. An illuminated background would have reduced
the weight that the lizard carries in the composition. By
choosing this camera POV, the background is almost black
and the lizard almost pops off of the image!
Kent DuFault

This photograph was created for a large medical company
brochure. When the photographer began to work and set up
the shot, he recognized the reduction of light could work in
his favor for “highlighting” the subject in what was otherwise
a pretty busy and colorful scene. He carefully placed the
subject in the sunlight and in front of the reduced light inside
the building. The subject now carries more weight in the
composition than even the bright red areas of the shot due to a
carefully planned reduction of light and subject placement.
Kent DuFault

Here is a great example on the use of partially blocked light by
utilizing a specific subject and camera position. When setting
up this portrait, the photographer was mostly interested in
highlighting the shape of the man’s hair. However, he decided
that a total silhouette wouldn’t work because it would remove
the “personality” from the image and it would simply become
an abstract. Now, consider this… the image could have been set
up so that it illuminated the subject from the front. The shape of
the hair would have still been there. But would the impact still
be there? The photographer decided that it would be a much
stronger image if there were no detail in the hair: just the outline
of it. He positioned his subject so that the background was pure
white. The light source was behind the subject and to camera
left; it illuminated only the man’s face. The hair and neck had no
illumination, and in fact, the photographer placed a black card
close to the subject to absorb light. Was this a conscious removal
of light to create a better photograph? Yes. Simply by controlling
the angle of light to subject, and the environment, light removal
created a stronger photograph.
Kent DuFault

Assignment: I want you to create five
photographs where you make conscious
decisions to totally, or partially, remove
light to improve the final photograph.
When you’ve completed all five images, I
want you to pick the best one and upload
it to the Photzy Facebook page along with
the hashtag #lightremovalphoto. I want
you to also explain to me in your post how
you did your removal of light, and why
you think it improved the shot. Try to be
really creative with this. Don’t go with the
easy shot like simply making a background
dark. Really analyze the situation (such as
the man in the Rule Tire photograph) and
come up with the best solution. Make a
list of items that you could use to remove
or partially remove light. Items such as a
blanket (for total removal), a white sheet
(for partial removal), cardboard with holes
cut into it, mottled or colored pieces of
glass, etc.

9
SQUEEZING LIGHT
When you read the phrase “Squeezing Bottom line is, “squeezing light” means
Light”, what do think of? Do you have a to compress it or cut it off, so that it only
vision of a wet rag and you’re wringing illuminates a small area.
Now, if you’re a it out to get every last drop? That’s
beginner, and you don’t not exactly what I have in mind when For example, when you’ve been to the
have lots of equipment, I say squeezing light—maybe a better theater, “spotlights” are squeezing the
with some ingenuity you term would be compressing light. I say light.
can still practice the art of “squeezing light” because that’s the term Most ways to accurately squeeze light
squeezing light! my mentor used to teach me. require additional equipment. These
Let’s review a couple of things. commercially-made devices include barn
doors, snoots, grids, egg crates, and top
·· We know that light ALWAYS travels in hats. Don’t be alarmed if you have no
straight lines. idea what those things are. Most lighting
equipment began with the movie industry,
·· We know that most light sources do and they love to give things goofy names.
not send out their light waves in one Towards the end of the book, I’ll be going
direction. over these commercially-made light
-- An example of one that does control devices so that you know what
would be a laser. they look like and how they work.
·· We know that when the path of a Now, if you’re a beginner, and you don’t
light wave is interrupted it reflects have lots of equipment, with some
or refracts at an angle of incidence ingenuity you can still practice the art of
compared to the interruptive surface. squeezing light!
All that is a bunch of fancy language.

This is a snoot. You can make one by simply wrapping several
sheets of printer paper around your flash head and then taping
them together. This will produce a soft-edged spotlight effect.
The closer the subject is to the flash, the tighter the spotlight
effect will be. This cannot produce a hard-edged spotlight
effect (like you would see in a theater). The reason is that
this can squeeze (tighten) the spread of the light, but it can’t
change the direction of the light waves. So, all of the light
waves that are being forced inward start bouncing around in
every direction inside the snoot, and as soon as they emerge
from the device, they will begin traveling in straight lines
again. So, how do you create a hard-edged spotlight effect? The
light beams have to be focused so they’re all traveling in the
same direction. Isn’t lighting fun?
Kent DuFault

This photograph was created using the paper snoot in
Figure 49. The cat was approximately four feet away from
the snoot. You can see, at that distance, the squeeze was still
pretty tight. As a professional photographer that worked in
a commercial photo studio for almost three decades, tuck
this advice into the back of your mind: “Squeezing light is an
important key element to dramatic photography, especially
in the areas of portraiture, food, and product photography.”
There was almost always some squeezed light in every
picture we produced for clients.
Kent DuFault

The photograph on the right shows a set of barn doors on a
large tungsten light. Notice that they are flat black in color.
They can swing in and out essentially blocking some of the
light coming out of the light source. That is the squeeze in
the light pattern. Barn doors are good for creating a narrow
ribbon of light—a long, narrow strip of light. They aren’t the
most accurate in light control, however the effect is useful.
How could you create the effect without actually buying a set
of barn doors? Easy! Get yourself two pieces of foam board
(a nice size to work with is 20x24 inches). Paint them flat
black. You can then clip them to a couple of light stands (or
have your kids hold them), leaving just a thin, open space
between them for light to pass through from your light
source.
zoetnet
https://www.flickr.com/photos/zoetnet/4851575722/

Assignment: Create four photographs.
Create two using a homemade snoot.
Experiment with how the light reacts due
to the snoot. How far does it spread? Is
it hard or soft light? What subjects would
work well with that type of lighting. Create
two more photographs using homemade
barn doors as a light modification tool.
Two sheets of foam board or cardboard
can work (it’s just less durable), and paint
them flat black. Then position them
in front of your light sources to create
dramatic ribbon lighting.

10
DISPERSING LIGHT
Dispersing light is a concept that most photographers 1. If you’re going to bounce light, what affects the
are familiar with. You know… soften the light for dispersion aspect of the bounced light?
pleasing effects. That’s all softening the light is— a) The answer is the specular quality of the
dispersing it; changing the direction of the light waves surface.
so that they are coming from different directions. That -- A mirror is a highly specular surface with
multi-directional light reduces shadows, which in turn little surface texture. The bounced light
makes the light appear soft on a subject. coming from a mirror will not disturb the
light waves very much, and therefore, it
You are also probably somewhat familiar with how to would continue to be a “hard” light.
do that: bounce the light off of something or shoot -- A white plaster wall is not a highly
it through something that breaks up the light waves. specular surface and it has a lot of
Devices such as the umbrella, softbox, and the little surface texture. The bounced light
plastic domes and cubes that you place over your coming from a white plaster wall would
flash are doing that exact job—breaking up the light be very disturbed and therefore is quite
waves. soft.
I talked about dispersion quite a bit earlier in this -- Does the color of the bounce surface
book (and in Book One). I want to reiterate a couple affect the dispersion? No. It will affect the
of points about dispersion so that you can put the color absorption, as we discussed earlier.
concept to practical use in your photography. But it will not affect the dispersion. A
brown plaster wall will reflect the same
disturbed (softened) light as a white
plaster wall. However, it won’t reflect the
same quantity of light, or a full spectrum
color of light, due to absorption.

2. If you’re going to shoot light “through” a b) If you look at commercially-made products
surface, what affects the dispersion aspect of the used to soften light by passing light through
light? a surface, almost all of them use a shear
a) The answer is the transmission quality of the white rip-stop nylon. You can buy this same
surface where the light is passing through. material at a fabric store. In fact, if you’re
-- If you pass the light through a clear truly interested in learning to master the art
glass window, the dispersion would be of light control, a fabric store is your best
minimal because clear glass has a high friend. In the previous chapter when we
transmission rate. discussed the removal of light, the absolute
-- If you used dirty glass, the light would best tool to remove light (i.e. keep it from
disperse (and soften the light) due to the bouncing around or keep a background
dirt breaking up the light waves. absolutely jet black) is “black velvet”. I had
-- This is great practical information. Think tons of black velvet in my studio, as well as
about it. Let’s say you’re shooting a fashion tons of sheer white rip-stop nylon fabric,
portrait in an old warehouse and all you and we used it constantly. If you’re trying to
have is a single off-camera flash. No control light on a budget you need these
umbrellas. No softbox. No nothing. And, three things: white foam board, white rip-
the light is too hard for what you’re trying stop nylon, and black velvet.
to accomplish. Look for a dirty window.
Then put your model on one side and the
flash on the other. Bingo! Softer light.
-- You could also use frosted glass or
Plexiglas. I used to keep an old sheet of
frosted Plexiglas that came from a shower
enclosure in my studio. When we used
it to light a subject, it produced a warm,
soft, mottled light source that I couldn’t
achieve with anything else.

Assignment: Acquire some white foam
board (or an equivalent), white rip-stop
nylon and/or other translucent frosted
surfaces through which to pass light. There
are many of them, from shower curtains to
drafting paper. Rip-stop nylon is the most
durable, and black velvet (sorry, there isn’t
anything that works as well). Using these
three items, create five images in which
you have controlled the light to create
an effect that you pre-visualized. Use
whatever lights you have available from
portable strobes, to table lamps, to even
the sun. Upon completing this assignment,
show me your very best image by
uploading it to the Photzy Facebook page.
Use the hashtag #photolighting.

11
THE POWER OF REFLECTANCE, ABSORPTION,

AND TRANSMISSION OF LIGHT
In these light books I’ve really tried to studied light for most of my adult life. It
hammer home the ideas of reflectance, wasn’t until I took light seriously that my
absorption, and transmission of light. I’m commercial photography career took off.
I’m trying to impress upon trying to impress upon you, not just the If you have aspirations of growing beyond
you, not just the knowledge knowledge of what they are, but also how an amateur photographer you should
of what they are, but also to master them in your photography. be studying both of these Light books
how to master them in your frontwards and backwards. You should
I know, I know, there are some of you out do every assignment. You should spend
photography. there who have purchased this book and time with the light as you’re setting up a
you’re thinking, “I don’t see what the big shot. You should really analyze what you’re
deal is! Yeah. Light bounces around. It doing and what the results are.
bounces more off of white than black. And
sure, who doesn’t know that light gets That’s really what I wanted to say here.
softened when it blasts through a white But before we go on, let’s look at some
thing. I learned that when I bought my first professional photo studios and see if we
STO-FEN Omni-Bounce for my portable can recognize what we’ve learned being
flash”. used in a real-life setting.
Do you know why the painting Masters

were considered Masters? There are
a number of reasons why, but one of
them was that they spent their entire
lives studying light. How did light travel
between surfaces? How did light reflect
from a surface? How did it diffuse in some
cases? How did light affect the surface
it illuminated? They spent a lifetime in
the pursuit of understanding light and
then capturing it in their paintings. I have

Let’s look at image #1 starting from the left. The
first arrow points to a square reflector on a light
stand. The surface is shiny and mirror-like. It has
high “specular surface” and would be used to
reflect a “hard light”. The second arrow points to
a “black curtain”. The curtain is used to “remove
light”. The curtain is likely made of “black
velvet”. The third arrow points to the bright white
surroundings. White, irregular surfaces reflect a
clean, soft light source. The fourth arrow points
out the mottled, reflective inside surface of the
parabolic reflector. It would produce a mildly
softened light source, not as soft as a softbox, but
softer than the mirror-like reflector at arrow one.
Why? Remember, two things affect the softening
of light when reflected: the specular surface and
the surface texture. In this case, it has a specular
surface but it’s also textured. The texture softens
the light. The fourth arrow points to the outside of
the parabolic reflector. What have we learned that
is related to what you see there?
I’m waiting… The removal of light! The outside of

the parabolic reflector is made of a dense, black
material. It allows zero “transmission” of light. That
allows the light to be “squeezed” into a direction
that the photographer chooses. Squeezing the
light allows it to be “pointed” at a subject!
Kent DuFault

Now look at image #2 starting from the left. The first arrow
points to a box of various gels. These gels would be put over
the lights. The gels would have various levels of “transmission”
and “absorption”. They would be used to alter the light
between the light source and the subject. The second arrow
points to the inside of the parabolic reflector. Here you get a
better look at the surface being used to reflect the light. The
third arrow points to a sheer curtain hanging by the window. I
want you to notice that there are a variety of curtains hanging
there. Each one would offer a different effect on the light
passing through the window. This is taking advantage of
“transmission” and “absorption”. The sheer curtain would
work just like white rip-stop nylon. It would “transmit” much of
the light, but it would highly “disperse” the light as it passed
through. The curtains to the right of the arrow are denser. Their
transmission value would be lower. They would be useful if there
were direct, harsh sunlight coming straight through the window.
Arrow number four points to the floor. I want you to take notice
that it is a very neutral tone. Why would they set the studio up
that way? That way the floor doesn’t influence the light bouncing
around the studio. What if the floor was reddish hardwood
flooring? Light absorption and reflectance could be a problem.
The light reflecting from the floor would have a red bias. If that
were the case they would have to cover the floor with a pure
white surface. That’s why you’ll notice many photographers
using white seamless paper. It has a variety of uses, but one of
them is to keep the “color of light” on the set clean.

Image #3 gives you a good look at the inside material of a wide
variety of light modifiers. It also shows you the wide variety
of shapes. The concepts that you’ve learned apply in several
ways. The variety of interior surfaces changes the specular
quality of the bouncing surface. Some of these devices allow the
photographer to insert different colored panels inside the device.
Those panels change the reflectance and absorption qualities of
the modifier. The different shapes of the modifiers are examples
of squeezing the light. The light emitted from a square modifier
will not have the same lighting pattern as the round modifier or
the rectangle modifier. By choosing a particular light modifier the
photographer is making an initial selection as to how he or she
wants to squeeze the light. I say “an initial selection” because
most of these devices can have even more attachments put on
them that will squeeze the light further.

Check out the photograph to the left. There is a board covered
with a white material. How is that choice affecting the image?
You might say, “Well, he or she wants a white background.”
Sure. But it’s more than that. I’m really pushing you to become a
student of light. Yes, it’s a white background. What else is going
to happen? Some of the light reaching the background is going
to bounce back onto the subject. The background is affecting
how the subject will be lit. What would you do if you wanted
a white background but didn’t want a “reflectance” to change
your image? Move the background much further away from the
subject and light it up with its own light source. The second
arrow, in the top example, shows you that something has been
slipped over the reflector. You can see the elastic band. What is
it? If you look in the lower image on page 125 you’ll see that it is
the equivalent of white rip-stop nylon. It’s a sheer white surface
with a high light transmission rate. Do you know why white rip-
stop nylon makes such a good light diffuser? Why not just white
nylon? The rip-stop is accomplished by weaving strong threads
in a hash mark pattern throughout the fabric. Knowing what we
now know about light, what is happening there? The hash mark
pattern is breaking up the light waves! Tada! Soft light… Now
look at the bottom image. What is the photographer using on
either side of the model? Yes, that’s right: white foam board. Take
notice that one side is white, which is perfect for “reflectance”,
and the other side is black, which is very useful for “removing
light” or “squeezing” light.

Assignment: We have now studied real
life application of light modifiers. You’ve
been given tons of ideas on how you
can modify light using everyday items.
I want you to push yourself. I want you
to create five more photographs where
you completely alter the light. Stretch
your creativity with light. Pick the best
one and share it with me on the Photzy
Facebook page along with the hashtag
#Iamalightingmaster. Tell me what you did
to alter the light and how it pushed you
creatively. I’ll give you my evaluation and
response.

12
BENDING SHADOWS
If you have followed my writing, or
photography at all, you know I’m a big fan
of shadows. In my opinion, shadows add
as much to a photograph as the light. They
are integral and tied together.
When I say “bending shadows”, I’m

talking about taking control of your
light sources to create the best shadows
possible for your photograph.
Do you want dense black shadows? Do

you want wispy light shadows? Do you
want long shadows? Do you want short
shadows? Do you want shadows that
aren’t flat but roll over three-dimensional
objects?
My point here is, give the shadows their

due. If you study the work of master
photographers and painters, you’ll
immediately notice their creative use of
Martina Lombardo shadows.
This photograph is a perfect example of bending the shadows. Bending the shadows is a
technique where the photographer makes decisions during the creation of a photograph,
which controls the placement of the shadows as well as the type of shadows. In this example,
the photographer’s careful placement of the light source created shadows that bent around the
subject’s face and hat to create a perfect frame for the lit portion of the face. The shadows drive
the viewer’s eyes right to the model’s face. The photographer used no fill light and allowed the
shadows to go densely black. The light source was fairly hard and close to the subject’s face.
You can tell this by the quick transition from light to dark. Then the photographer used post-
production techniques to further enhance their vision .

This is a unique use of bent shadows. The photographer
used the light and shadow coming from a window shade to
highlight the contours of the female model. Now, take note.
It’s not the light that is clearly defining the contours. Why?
Because the light source is coming from directly in front of
her (remember our discussion about the angle of the light
source to the subject, relative to the camera position, and
its effect on texture? In this case, the contours of her body
are the texture), the contours of her body are better revealed
through the bent shape of the shadows.
Pablo Miranzo
https://www.flickr.com/photos/pablomiranzo/7908912250/

Did the photographer bend the shadows? I can hear some of
you arguing, “The photographer didn’t bend the shadows.
They were there already. She didn’t change them.” I argue the
point that she did. She changed them by choosing a camera
POV and by altering the camera POV to an angle. This bent
the shadows “within the frame of the picture”, thus resulting
in a very strong image.
Georgie Pauwels
https://www.flickr.com/photos/frosch50/14537156353/in/photostream/

Bending the shadows can be as simple as choosing the
right time of day to create your photograph. Consider this
photograph. Would the photograph be improved if the
shadows were longer? How about if the photo were created
at a different time of day and the shadows fell on the other
side of the fence? These are the questions that you must
ask yourself when you consider bending shadows in your
photography.
Zoltán Vörös
https://www.flickr.com/photos/94941635@N07/12885918475/

13
COLORING SHADOWS WITH LIGHT

I spent some time
searching on various
photography
websites using
the keywords
“colored shadows”.
It became quickly
apparent to
me that many
photographers
don’t know what a
colored shadow is.
For example, in the photograph on the

right, that is not a colored shadow. That is
an object, in silhouette, in front of a “lit”
colored wall. Many photographers refer
to silhouettes as shadows. By definition,
a silhouette is not a shadow. I don’t really
have a problem referring to a silhouette
as a shadow if that’s what you want to
do. (But just in case you want the real
definition stored away in your brain, I
know there are those of you out there that
will argue this point.) But, according to
Webster’s Dictionary, “A silhouette is the
dark outline of an object against a lighter
background. A shadow is a dark shape
that appears on a surface when someone
or something moves between the surface
and a source of light.”
Thomas Leth-Olsen
https://www.flickr.com/photos/thomasletholsen/6634864181/

So… What is a colored shadow and what
creates it?
By definition, shadows are typically black

or gray. They appear that way because of
a lack of light. When light of a certain color
spectrum is introduced into a shadow area,
the shadow area will pick up the color of
that light.
Let’s look at a few photographs to

explain it.
Dean Hochman
https://www.flickr.com/photos/deanhochman/9949554753/
These colored glass balls are creating colored shadows. Why? First of all, let’s define that we have a shadow. A light source is
hitting those objects. They are interrupting the flow of light. That creates a shape on the surface that the balls are sitting on. So
yes, indeed this is a shadow. How did the shadows become colored? Take a moment and think about what we have learned with
absorption, transmission, reflection, and refraction. The balls are translucent so they are transmitting light. But they are not clear
glass. They are colored. So the rule of absorption takes effect. They are absorbing all the colors of the light spectrum except for
the one that they allow to pass through. It’s the light that they are passing through that is coloring the shadows. If the balls are
translucent, why is there a shadow? There is a shadow because of refraction. The curvature of the balls refracts the light so not
all the light passes through, and thus a shadow is created. That’s why if light passes through a clear “flat” window no shadow is
created. The flat glass does not “refract” the light.

Is this a colored shadow? Is it a shadow? Yes, by definition
there is a shadow on the wall and sidewalk, but the man is
a silhouette, and yes it is a colored shadow. This shadow is
not colored using the same principles of light as the previous
example. Think about it. What is coloring this shadow? A
shadow is formed when an object disrupts the light source
before it hits another object. But what if there is more than
one light source? That is exactly what is happening here. A
secondary light source, in this case the sidewalk, is bouncing
some clean, uninterrupted light into the shadow. This is causing
the shadow to be less dense. Compare the shadow of the tree
to the shadow in front of the person walking. That shadow is
completely dense and lacking color because no light source is
bouncing into it. Now, let’s think about the rules of light that
we’ve talked about. The shadow was an area that originally had
no light at all. It would be black and without color, except, white
light was introduced by bouncing off of the sidewalk. That white
light was then reflected by the red wall; the reflected light was
altered due to absorption so only red light was reflected. The
reflected red light opened up the shadows creating red shadows.
Now… you should be going “Wow!” because there aren’t many
photographers today who truly understand this concept of
light. There is a lot of complicated physics going on here. But,
if you can grasp the basic concepts of reflection, absorption,
transmission, and refraction, it is a powerful and creative tool!
Zaytsev Artem
https://www.flickr.com/photos/rrrtem/4985567419/

Here is our last example. These colored shadows are being
created from a completely different set of circumstances. There
are three lights with three colored gels on the lights: cyan,
magenta, and yellow. Have you heard the term CMYK? This
is a printer’s term that stands for cyan, magenta, yellow, and
black. When a printer prints something they use those four ink
colors to create every color in the spectrum. In this scenario
we are achieving colored shadows through absorption (each
light is only passing through the color of the gel in front of
it, and reflection). The wall is white. So when all three of the
colored lights hit it you basically get something close to white.
The shadows would normally be black. Right. But we have
extra light bouncing around. So the shadows are being “filled
in” with a colored light from another source. Where two light
sources interact over a shadow area, new colors are being
created such as the green, blue, and red areas. Think about this.
This is really important, and it’s not readily apparent by looking
at the photograph. The room where the individuals were
standing was completely dark. The only lights happening in the
room are those three-gelled light sources. If the lights were on
in the room, that full spectrum light would have wiped out the
colored shadows.
Michael Zimmer
https://www.flickr.com/photos/zayzayem/7484954614/

Assignment: I would like you to create five
photographs where you bend the shadows
AND color them. Share your best one of
the five with me on the Photzy Facebook
page. Tell me what your plan was and
how you set it up. Did it work out exactly
as you envisioned or did you get a happy
(or unhappy) surprise? Please hashtag the
photo #shadowplay.

14
WORKING WITH CONTINUOUS LIGHT OR STROBE

(ELECTRONIC FLASH) LIGHT
When I began the journey of becoming Now, here we are today. Continuous light
a professional photographer back in the sources still do not have the power output
early 1980s, there really was no choice but of an electronic flash unit. However, I now
to go with electronic flash (strobe) lighting. believe that continuous light sources are
a better choice (especially if you’re just
Over the years, continuous Continuous light sources at that time were beginning your journey to become a lighting
light sources got better. all tungsten. They were usually very heavy. master). Why do I choose that position?
They were very hot; and there were always
concerns of someone getting burned or 1. Continuous light sources are now cost
starting a fire. effective.
Over the years, continuous light sources 2. Every type of light modifier is now
got better. They burned cooler; there available for continuous light sources.
were daylight-balanced options; and they
became smaller and more lightweight. 3. Continuous light sources are now
small and extremely lightweight.
But, there was still one main issue with
continuous lights: power! They simply 4. They now burn cool instead of hot
didn’t have the output of an electronic (most of them).
flash, and they needed to be plugged 5. The new LED lights last a very long
in. If you needed a smaller aperture, you time and they don’t burn out.
were forced to go to a slower shutter
speed. That’s the other stumbling block 6. They now draw very little power and
of the pre-digital era. Film was not very can be battery powered in some
forgiving at high ISO sensitivity, and once cases.
you loaded a roll of film you were basically
stuck with the ISO that you had chosen. 7. Many of the units offer a variable light
color balance control.

8. Modern DSLR cameras offer high quality up to much higher
ISO settings than even just a few years ago. This helps
negate the lack of power issue.
9. Modern cameras offer an instant view of the photograph.

That stands for, “What You With continuous light sources you can see and learn about
See Is What You Get.” light control much easier than with electronic flash (strobe)
lighting. It’s true that many electronic flash units offer a
“modeling light” to help the photographer visualize what
the light will do to the subject. However, these modeling
lights are not very accurate, and they can confuse beginning
photographers because they don’t accurately represent the
power output of the flash head (even the ones that say they
have power ratio settings to mimic the flash output aren’t
accurate, trust me). So, working with electronic flash (strobe)
lighting is a lot of trial and error whereas continuous light
is WYSIWYG. That stands for, “What You See Is What You
Get”.
If you plan on turning professional, you will need to learn the art
of electronic flash lighting.
If you’re simply learning, start with continuous light sources and

perhaps one portable electronic flash unit.

15
LIGHTING TOOLS OF THE TRADE

Lighting tools of the trade are commonly I want to mention a particular product.
referred to as “light modifiers”. You may have heard me mention it in
other books and articles that I’ve written
These are commercially-made devices that for Photzy. It’s called “Rosco Matte Black
help the photographer predict and create Cinefoil”, commonly referred to as “Black
It’s true. Photography accurate lighting scenarios. Wrap”. It’s a product that is similar to a
equipment is expensive. heavy gauge aluminum foil. It’s a dense,
If you’re not thinking of turning
professional, you probably won’t want to flat-black color so it has zero reflection,
purchase many of these devices. zero transmission, zero absorption, and
zero refraction. It can be molded into
However, there is an advantage for me to shapes to squeeze light. It can be used
show them to you. Back when I started my to remove light. You can cut holes in it to
commercial photography studio I had a allow just partial removal of light. It’s quite
mentor who told me, “Learn to make as versatile for light control, and it won’t burn
much of your gear as you possibly can. This if you use it on a hot light. You can check it
will help prevent you from going broke.” out here: http://www.amazon.com/Rosco-
Matte-Black-Cinefoil-12/dp/B001KVMK38
It’s true. Photography equipment is or http://www.gamonline.com/catalog/
expensive. As you look at these light blackwrap/.
modifiers, think about how you might
create some device on your own that
would achieve similar results. If you’re
going to attempt to create your own
light modifiers you must understand the
principles of reflection, transmission,
absorption, and refraction. If you don’t
fully understand these principles, you are
likely to create light modifiers that won’t
work accurately for you.

LIGHT DISPERSION
This category includes softboxes, umbrellas, and parabolic

reflectors. Each of these products has a multitude of variations
and accessories.
Softbox variations are generally size, shape, assembly, and panel

removal. Softbox accessories often include grids, baffles, and
reflective inserts.
When looking to purchase a softbox, make sure you pick one that
has the appropriate mounting system for your light source. Also,
if a softbox is going to break, it will usually occur where the metal
rods push out into the corners. Look to see if the corners are
reinforced with extra cloth. A removable diffusion fabric is really
a must in my opinion. You can find cheaper soft boxes that will
not have this option, however they are not nearly as versatile and
they tend to not last as long. The other accessories are nice but
not essential. The difference between a baffle and a grid is this.
A grid will give you a defined angle of light that it will produce. A
baffle merely works to point the light in a certain direction. These
two terms have become somewhat interchangeable in recent
years. Look for a rating that gives you the degree of light output.
Umbrellas have a couple of features that you won’t see in a

Kent DuFault
https://www.flickr.com/photos/35449761@N04/23572494862/in/dateposted-public/ softbox.

You can purchase a bounce umbrella or a shoot-through umbrella
or one that has a removable cloth backing so that it can be used
both ways. I’ve owned all three types. My one comment is that in
my experience, while the removable backing is convenient, this
type of umbrella tends to break sooner than the models that only
do one job. I have a shoot-through umbrella that was purchased
new in 1983 and it still works perfectly. The main difference
between a bounce umbrella and a shoot-through umbrella is
the type of light produced and the control of that light. A shoot-
through umbrella offers the softest light but the least amount
of light control; it’s going to send light everywhere. A bounce
umbrella is also soft, but slightly harder than a shoot-through.
It offers the advantage to “feather the light” by turning the
umbrella one way or the other. A parabolic style umbrella, which
offers an accessory in the form of an extra diffusion disk, offers
the best of both styles. Of course, this umbrella will cost more
money.
Important Point: The soft box and umbrella light modifiers

address the dispersion of light. Their sole purpose is to soften
light through dispersion. Some of the accessories such as the
grid, baffle, removable inserts, and black cloth backing are used
to “rein in that dispersion effect and give the photographer some
control over the light”.
Kent DuFault

LIGHT REFLECTION
Reflectors can soften light. They also reflect hard light. They can
change the color of the light, and in a pinch they can be used to
remove light by blocking it.
Reflectors come in more options than you can possibly imagine.

But here is something to consider. Reflectors are the easiest
light modifier for you to make on your own. So, if you’re looking
to save a few bucks, this is a place to look hard. Why consider
buying commercially-made reflectors? There are a number of
reasons.
·· Convenience – Most of them collapse down into a small

package.
·· Ease of support – Commercially-made reflectors come with

devices to hold them in place, including legs and clamps to
secure them to light stands.
·· Clean predictable light – Commercially manufactured

reflectors are tested to produce clean, accurate light.
Kent DuFault

Of the three styles (pictured above), my you’re under some trees. I’ve set these
favorite is the rectangular collapsible hard boards up as far as a football field
frame. This type is easy to “point the length away (about 91.5 meters) and
light” toward the subject. They offer bounced beautiful light back onto a set.
They collapse down interchangeable fabrics to use the reflector The soft side is for use up close and works
pretty small and are fairly for different jobs. They will hold up in a more like the collapsible models. The
lightweight (unless you’re light wind outdoors. They collapse down disadvantage to these types of reflectors
carrying a dozen of them). pretty small and are fairly lightweight is that they are quite heavy and bulky and
(unless you’re carrying a dozen of them). they don’t collapse. They also don’t offer
an interchangeable fabric system.
My least favorite style is the round
reflector. I owned several of them and The interchangeable fabric system usually
rarely used them. They are more difficult includes a dense, white, glossy fabric
to direct the light. While they do offer for reflecting clean white light, a sheer
clamps to hold them to a light stand, they white rip-stop nylon fabric to shoot a light
don’t hold their position nearly as well through the panel, a dense black fabric
as the rectangular models. They are very used to remove light, a bright silver finish
difficult to control outdoors, even in a light fabric to reflect a hot specular light, and
breeze. The main advantage of this style a bright gold finish fabric to reflect a
is that they fold down really small, and specular warm light.
they weigh hardly anything. This style also
offers different fabrics to do different jobs.
The rigid metallic reflectors are the best

if you work outdoors all the time. They
will hold up well in the wind. Most of
them offer a hard side and a soft side.
The hard side is excellent when your set
doesn’t offer any sunshine nearby. Maybe

LIGHT ABSORPTION AND TRANSMISSION
Now we are getting into the nitty-gritty of light control. These

are products typically used by professional photographers to
fine tune the lighting in their image. The Cucoloris is actually
a crossover from the theatrical and film industries. It is used
to provide shadowing on a background. This adds depth
and perspective. It’s probably the least used device by a still
photographer. However, if you’re shooting portraits, it can
be a valuable tool. It can save you a lot of money. Instead of
having to buy all kinds of different backdrops, you can create
background effects using the cookie and colored gels. The flag
is used to block light, or light removal as I referred to it earlier.
A full flag would be the one on the left in the picture. It blocks
all light. It’s useful to control the spill of your light sources and to
shade the lens to avoid lens flare. The flags with the black nylon
remove light in calculated amounts. A 1/4 flag would remove
1/4 of the light. A 1/2 flag would remove 1/2 of the light, and
so on. I want you to notice the 1/2 flag in the picture with the
red rim on three sides. The reason there is no red on that fourth
side is because there is no rim on that side. It is simply nylon.
This allows the photographer to feather in the flag and remove
a portion of the light from their set while not casting a shadow.
A dot is similar to a flag except it’s small. The largest dot is
Kent DuFault
https://www.flickr.com/photos/35449761@N04/23054837664/in/dateposted-public/ around 10 inches. They also come in tiny rectangular sizes. Dots
are excellent if you like doing tabletop photography, product
photography, or macro work.

Many photographers become confused by scrims because they
look a lot like reflectors. Remember our terms ‘reflectance’
and ‘translucence’. Where a reflector operates under the term
reflectance, a scrim operates under the term translucence. A
scrim is placed between a light source and the subject. It allows
some of the light to pass through. The light that is passed
through is softened by dispersion. An inexpensive scrim will
simply soften the light as it passes through. More expensive
scrims will have a “rating” that will tell you how much light will
be lost as it passes through. For example, a -1 stop screen style
scrim will reduce the light source by 1 stop. A -1 stop white fabric
scrim will reduce the light by 1 stop AND soften the light. Scrims
come in hundreds of different variations. If you have one to three
scrims in your lighting kit that’s probably all you’ll ever need. A
Kent DuFault
large square one (such as the second from the left in Figure 42)
is helpful for outdoor portraits in the sunshine. A screen scrim
or two is helpful for fine-tuning the light on almost anything.
You can make your own unrated scrims with PVC tubing and
white rip-stop nylon. In my commercial studio, we had dozens of
homemade scrims. They worked great!

LIGHT COMPRESSION (SQUEEZING LIGHT)
Barn doors, snoots, and grids are tools used to squeeze light.
Barn doors offer some flexibility because you can swing each
panel in an out until the light pattern is what you’re looking for.
Barn doors also sometimes offer the ability to slide in colored
gels or grids. The downside to barn doors is that they tend to
have a lot of spill between the door panels. However, you can
work around that by using Black Wrap (that I mentioned earlier)
to control the spill. Snoots are used to squeeze the light pattern
tighter into a circle. Some snoots offer the ability to change the
pattern and insert gels. Others are totally fixed. In the photo to
the left, the snoot in the middle left is sometimes referred to as
a “top hat”. This type of snoot is completely fixed. The highest
level of light control (when squeezing light) is the use of spots
or grids. I’m not going to talk about spots because they are
highly specialized and quite expensive. They would typically
only be used in a studio setting. Grids, on the other hand, are
inexpensive and really easy to use. When I had my commercial
photo studio, I used grids in almost every shot that I ever set
up. Grids are labeled by degrees. You can purchase them in
sets or individually. A set would typically include a 10, 20, 30,
and 40-degree grid. You can even purchase all of these lighting
accessories for your portable flash. In the lower right corner of
Kent DuFault
https://www.flickr.com/photos/35449761@N04/23681221286/in/dateposted-public/ the photo to the left is a snoot attachment for a portable flash. In
my opinion, the usefulness of the accessories starts with the grid,
then the snoot, and finally the barn doors.

CONCLUSION
In your quest to become a master of light in available light, but what if you’re shooting in a factory
photography you must first learn to recognize types and the available light is spotty and you must show a
of light. You must train yourself to spot different light detailed portrait of someone doing some job? You’re
sources, analyze what they are, use your knowledge of going to have to light that person up. And if you’re
light to determine how those light sources will affect going to be professional at it you’re going to have to
your photograph, and then apply your knowledge light them up in a way that looks good and doesn’t
of light manipulation to make those light sources look unnatural to the environment around them!
work for you and not against you. Don’t rely on post- Now, some of you may be thinking, “I’m not going to
production to fix a photograph. You’re better than be shooting in any factory. My goal is to shoot high
that. school senior portraits.” All these principles apply.
I don’t care if you’re shooting factories, portraits,
Secondly, you must learn how to work with available weddings, bugs, or flowers. Your knowledge of mixing
light. When I had my studio, we were often hired to created light with natural light is key to you becoming
go photograph in factories and other manufacturing a master photographer.
facilities. I often (most of the time) had no idea what
light would be there until the day of the shoot. I I’ve spent most of my life as a photographer. When I
would always start my job by walking around and think about it, it’s been 41 years since I first seriously
analyzing the available light. It’s easier now than back picked up a camera and wanted to create better
in the film days, but don’t let that make you become pictures than anybody else. It’s been a lifelong
lazy. The better you make your shot in-camera, the passion. I’ve done it for so long that in everything I
better the results will be in the final outcome. You do, I notice the quality of the light around me and the
must develop an expert-level knowledge in working shadows as well. I have to believe that you purchased
with available light and how you’re going to mix the this book, and perhaps Book One as well, because
available light with your added light sources. It is an you want to understand light and become a better
absolute necessity. photographer than anyone else.
Your third task is to develop journeyman skills in the I hope that I’ve helped you along your path.
art of creating light with known characteristics. Going
back to that last paragraph… you must work with the

About the Author
IF YOU’D LIKE TO CONTINUE

LEARNING AND IMPROVING YOUR
PHOTOGRAPHY PLEASE VISIT
PHOTZY.COM
Kent DuFault is a professional photographer and author.

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/kentdufault/
Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/people/35449761@N04/
Clippings: https://www.clippings.me/kentdufault
Gurushots: https://gurushots.com/kentdufault
500px: https://500px.com/kentdufault
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UNDERSTANDING LIGHT: BOOK II

01 Seeing Light and Putting It to Use p.22 09 Squeezing Light p.113

02 Creating Light with Known 10

06 Controlling Light p.83 14 Working with Continuous Light or p.141

08 The Full Removal or Partial p.105 Conclusion p.153

Truly great photographers develop the skills of recognizing light

I had a photographer tell me recently that light was no longer

I thought about that for some time. Is it possible that

I don’t believe so.

My photographer friend has a different story than most of us. She

UNDERSTANDING LIGHT: BOOK II // © PHOTZY.COM 4

The title of Chapter One of “Understanding Light: Book Two” is

Let’s take a short self-quiz together and see what we recognize

UNDERSTANDING LIGHT: BOOK II // © PHOTZY.COM 5

UNDERSTANDING LIGHT: BOOK II // © PHOTZY.COM 6

Javi Sánchez de la viña

UNDERSTANDING LIGHT: BOOK II // © PHOTZY.COM 7

UNDERSTANDING LIGHT: BOOK II // © PHOTZY.COM 8

UNDERSTANDING LIGHT: BOOK II // © PHOTZY.COM 9

UNDERSTANDING LIGHT: BOOK II // © PHOTZY.COM 10

What is to be learned from that? Diffused

The light sources in this photograph are

Slow wavelength produces warm tones.

UNDERSTANDING LIGHT: BOOK II // © PHOTZY.COM 11

If the photographer desired a normal color

UNDERSTANDING LIGHT: BOOK II // © PHOTZY.COM 12

Another benefit to having the Sun low

UNDERSTANDING LIGHT: BOOK II // © PHOTZY.COM 13

They could have added a fill flash to

What if the photographer had added a

Now, you may be wondering: “Wait a

I can’t say that you’re entirely wrong.

UNDERSTANDING LIGHT: BOOK II // © PHOTZY.COM 14

3. Our camera is pointed at the scene

4. The light reaches our lens and

UNDERSTANDING LIGHT: BOOK II // © PHOTZY.COM 15

Has this light source been manipulated?

1. The harsh light coming through

2. We learned in Book One how light

UNDERSTANDING LIGHT: BOOK II // © PHOTZY.COM 16

UNDERSTANDING LIGHT: BOOK II // © PHOTZY.COM 17

Honestly, this is one of those examples

Another option is to examine the scene

UNDERSTANDING LIGHT: BOOK II // © PHOTZY.COM 18

Do you think that the photographer could

They could have used a camera filter, or

UNDERSTANDING LIGHT: BOOK II // © PHOTZY.COM 19

Did the photographer manipulate the light

UNDERSTANDING LIGHT: BOOK II // © PHOTZY.COM 20

UNDERSTANDING LIGHT: BOOK II // © PHOTZY.COM 21

SEEING LIGHT AND PUTTING IT TO USE

Let’s take a look at two photographs.

UNDERSTANDING LIGHT: BOOK II // © PHOTZY.COM 23

In order to add mood, the photographer changed the color balance to

UNDERSTANDING LIGHT: BOOK II // © PHOTZY.COM 24

UNDERSTANDING LIGHT: BOOK II // © PHOTZY.COM 25

UNDERSTANDING LIGHT: BOOK II // © PHOTZY.COM 26

UNDERSTANDING LIGHT: BOOK II // © PHOTZY.COM 27

When you’re confronted with a scene that you want to

1. You could have returned to this spot during the Golden

3. You could also tweak the color balance setting on the

4. And of course, you could make adjustments in post-