- Working with Available Light
Sketchnote
- Hard light
A relatively small, direct, usually focusable source, with or without lens, that produces strong High-lights and dark shadows. The quality is more dramatic and controllable, but generally less flattering, than Soft Light.
- Soft light
Diffused, Bounced, indirect light; the opposite of Hard Light. The soft shadows and subtle highlights produced are so luscious one wonders why this light isn't used for everything. At times it seems to be. The difficulty of hiding and controlling a soft source, however, especially when shooting reverse angles, and its reluctance to "go the distance," limits its use
- Diffusion panel
A translucent material, such as that covering the lamps in a luminaire, used to distribute light over an extended area and to conceal the lamps and interior of the luminaire.
- Reflector
Flat devices, mostly white, silver, or gold, that redirect the sun's and other source's rays. Lighting with reflectors is like lighting with lights - except no cables. Just cloud and wind worries.
- Butterfly
A slightly high-angle, slightly Diffused source, cen-tered on a (frequently female) subject's face to minimize nose shadow, skin texture, and double chins and emphasize cheekbones and beauty.
- Loop
Which is named for the loop-shaped shadow that it creates under the nose, is the most frequently-used pattern.
- Rembrandt
The dramatic emphasis of a few planes or features of the subject by using Accent Lights or shadowing devices that keep the rest of the scene very dark.
- Split
At its most basic level is constructed with a single light source placed 90 degrees offset from the subject and a bit higher than eye level, lighting one half of the face, and leaving the other in shadow.
- Rim light
Subjects appear to have seen the light, then turned their back on it. Angle: The source looks down the barrel of your lens when the subject moves; sometimes several sources are aimed at the subject from wherever they can be hidden, more or less behind the subject.
- Back light
Back Light separates subject from background, saints from sinners, and one pro from another. Angle toward the lens from above and behind the subject, or above, behind, and slightly to the side of it, high enough to cut lens Flare. It is especially helpful for video images that may suffer loss-of-edge contrast. Confusing this source with Background Light, and, for Motivation purists, using it at all.
- Short light
Refers to when the main light illuminates the side of the face that is turned away from the camera.
Broad Light
Typically, a semi-hard, non-focusing light with a wide Beam Angle. Unlike a true Soft Light, direct illumination from the Lamp is not blocked and the Aperture is usually smaller.