What is Natural Light?

Natural light is all around us. For photographers (and everyone else
for that matter) sunlight is our only source of natural light.

Natural light differs from ambient light because ambient can refer to
the light that pre-exists in a scene. This could be street lights, car
headlights, shop signs etc. Ambient light doesn’t have to be naturally
occurring; it only means you (as the photographer) didn’t add it to the
scene when taking the shot.

Using sunlight in your photography is cost-effective but you are at the

mercy of the weather and whether it’s delivering the quality of light
that you are needing.

4 Properties of Natural Light

Sunlight can be discussed using a few different photography terms
and approaches. There are normally 4 considerations photographers
look at when using natural light in their photos – Direction, Colour,
Intensity and Quality.

1. Direction of Light
In which direction is the light falling? Is the direction of the light
where you need it to be? While it’s very hard to change the direction
of natural light unless you’re using reflectors you may have to move
your subject into the path of the light to get the right finish.

There are 3 main directions that you can use natural light in a
photo

Front
By simply positioning your subject into the direct path of the sunlight
facing straight on you can create a front-lit image. This can
(depending upon light quality) make the subject look flat unless you
angle it to create shadows, which give depth.
Side
To create depth turning your subject side onto the path of the natural
light is a wonderful way to give a subject more depth and shape. In
portrait photography, a 45-90 degree angle is used with natural light
photos to create this more 3D appearance of a person.

Back
If you position your subject in front of the daylight you’ll shroud them
in a silhouette, leaving an outline of their shape visible to the camera.
Given that light only travels in one direction, the nearside (that the
camera sees) will be darker. You’ll need a reflector to bounce light
back towards the subject to fill in that detail.

2. Colour of Light
Daylight can also appear in different colours depending on the time
of day you are photographing.

Colour temperature, as photographers refer, alters from when the sun

rises (giving out cool light blue tones), through to midday when the
sun appears more balanced and whiter. When the sun starts to set
this is the time of ‘Golden Hour’ where the light turns warmer and
more orange/red. This is because the red waves of light are longer in
the spectrum of visible light.

Just after the sun has set you may also get a period referred to as the
‘Blue Hour’ or Twilight when there is still a hint of light in the sky
sometimes being reflected off the moon.
3. Intensity of Light
The intensity of natural light is connected to its quality. With different
qualities, you’ll get different levels of intensity.

The intensity of natural light can range dramatically from strong

summer sunshine leaving heavy shadows to soft, diffused light on an
overcast day with very few shadows.

Time of day also may also have a bearing on the intensity of natural
light if the skies are clear. When the sun is lower in the sky shadows
that are cast will appear longer than they would be when the sun is
higher.

4. Quality of Light
There are 3 common qualities of light that will guide your natural light
photos in terms of under which condition to shoot. They are hard,
soft and reflected.

What is Hard Light?

Hard light appears most when the sun is unfiltered on a bright day
with no clouds in the sky.

Strong sunshine equals strong shadows. Hard light intensifies colours

and makes everything appear a little crisper (as long as the shot is
sharp). It can though make scenes look flat when used as a front-lit
source.

Hard light is symbolised by a quick transition from light to shadow.

Think about when you go outdoors on a bright summer’s day and the
light is intense – that’s hard light.

What is Soft Light?

Soft light is the total opposite to hard light. You’ll need a cloudy day to
see the effects of soft light when shooting outdoors. The clouds will
diffuse the sunshine and spread it wider meaning it is less intense.
The transition from light to dark is much longer and this means you
can demonstrate more shape in a subject. Portraits, for example, are
much more flattering under soft light as it is most gentle to the skin.

What is Reflected Light?

When you get natural light that is bounced off of surfaces this is what
we call reflected light. Light can be reflected off of walls, the ground,
or any other surface.

Reflected light can create a soft glow as the light intensity is

dramatically reduced and spread wider when bounced. It’s worth
noting that if you reflect light off a coloured surface then colour
transfer can occur i.e. bouncing light off a red wall means that your
subject can end up with tones of red falling on it.

You could consider dappled light an alternative style of natural light.

It appears when light is passing through an object (such as tree
branches). Some light is absorbed, other areas make it through
creating this patchy ‘dabbled’ look.

It can be quite pretty when used accurately but sometimes, if

overlooked, can leave bright areas in backgrounds distracting the eye
or unwanted dark areas on the subject.
Camera Equipment for
Natural Light
Natural light photography doesn’t require a specific camera or certain
accessories, just a clear understanding of what light you’ll experience
based on the weather conditions. With that said there are some
camera settings for natural light photos that will help you manipulate
the exposure if needed.

DSLR/Mirrorless Camera
OK, obvious much, but we don’t just mean you need ANY camera. A
camera that will allow you to alter exposure settings such as aperture,
shutter speed and ISO are really helpful for natural light photos.
Sometimes soft light may occur on a very dull, dank day and you’ll
need to boost the exposure to show off detail which is why a camera
with manual settings is useful

Reflector
Given that light only travels in one direction you may find a need to
bounce it in another direction to fill in shadows and this is what
reflectors are made for. You can pick them up pretty cheaply in white,
silver, gold and black to bounce light with different intensities and
colours.

Polariser / ND Filters
It’s not essential to have a lens filter for natural light photography but
you will see advantages to having them at certain times. ND (neutral
density) filters reduce the amount of light entering the lens – great for
sunny days when you want a shallow depth of field but you’d be
otherwise overexposed without an ND filter.

A polariser helps take the glare and flare out of lights slightly so if you
are shooting into the light on occasions then a polariser filter will
soften the effects of a harsh glare.
Natural Light Photography - Cloudy v Sunny
Days
We said earlier that the weather will have a massive effect on your
light quality, intensity, direction and colour. Photos taken on a sunny
day will look totally different to an overcast one.

Many natural light photographers love the soft, even light of a cloudy
day. Photos taken under these conditions can have a bluish tone and
little contrast. This type of natural light is ideal for any photos
involving models or products with muted colours.

Whereas sunny days have strong, direct light which can cause harsh
shadows. However, when done right, this quality of natural light can
be powerful. It’s best for wide, distant photos or for up-close images of
products with contrasting patterns or textures. If you’re a landscape
photographer you’ll find that shooting early morning sunrises will
give you dramatic hard light.

Shooting under Midday Sun

During most of the day, the sun is almost directly overhead. This
creates shadows and hard light. You may have to work harder to find
a position that doesn’t have shadows. On the other hand, the bright
light is ideal for photographing texture.

Generally, most photographers avoid shadows by shooting in the

shade, underneath a porch or tree. The light, when overhead, won’t
always illuminate the areas of your subject that you mean as the
camera is on a different angle to the incoming light.

Shooting on a Cloudy Day

Watch out for subtle changes in light as the clouds may be shifting
constantly. Days when the cloud cover is total means you’ll have a
more consistent set of images. When shooting on a cloudy day we’d
recommend widening your aperture by 1-2 F/stops.

This can help increase the contrast between your subject and the
background.
Using Natural Light Indoors
When indoors, the natural light will be coming in through a window.
Unless the light is passing through a thin sheet or net curtain hung
over the window then the quality and intensity of the natural light
won’t change – unless you have tinted windows.

Treat natural light indoors no different to as you would if shooting

outdoors. Have the most important area of your subject face toward
the window. This reduces the chance for shadows and means the
audience’s attention will be drawn to the right area.

Make sure the incoming natural light illuminates all the areas of the
subject that you want to show in your photo. If it isn’t you’ll need to
add in a reflector bounce light back onto those areas.

5 tips to success when shooting with natural light.

1. Shoot at the right time of day – The intensity and colour

temperature of light changes during the day. Wait for the right time
to shoot.

2. Use the right quality of light for your subject – Think about how you
want your subject to look (strong, dominant, crisp or soft and gentle).
Wait for the right light quality to shoot to help complement your
subject.

3. Bounce light with reflectors – Natural light may not shine

everywhere you need so use a white reflector to fill in shadows
without transferring colours.

4. Use filters to balance exposures under strong light – Use an ND

filter (like sunglasses for your lens) to reduce the brightness when
shooting on very sunny days.

5. Avoid dappled light for larger subjects – If you’re shooting large

objects under dabbled light parts of the subject will be darker than
others making the composition look messy. Look for larger pools of
light with bigger subjects and shoot small objects (flowers etc) under
dappled/soft light.