Photo Assignment 2: Three types of light
January 30, 2023
Truthfully, I struggled to come up with ideas for this assignment. I waited until the last minute, which is never a good idea. Today, Monday January 30th, was a very overcast and drizzly day. There was not much sunlight to work with. The second photo is a result of that issue. I used my window and the slight sunlight I had left to create a direct light affect, though it is not how I envisioned that part of this project to go.
Using artificial light is easy, at least in my experience. I knew the bathroom lights at the sorority house would look beautiful in photos. I’ve filmed video interviews in here before so I was comfortable with my ability working in there. Alivia was a great model to have. She has been in SMU Look before and has worked with me. She is lively and fun, so I tried to show that through her photo in the mirror. She is smiley and loves the color pink, so I knew this outfit would be perfect.
Like I mentioned in the first paragraph, working with direct light today was difficult. Izzy was a greta sport in leaning into her first job as a photo model. I captured this natural laugh after a few rounds of poses and took Professor Hart’s advice of leaving the camera up after a few seconds to get the perfect shot. I think I nailed that. The lighting could have been better if I had planned accordingly, but I had no idea it was supposed to snow today. That’s Texas weather for ya.
Claire’s room was also difficult. I could not get my ISO to look right, so the photos turned out a little grainy. Shooting with diffused light was harder than I thought it would be. Sometimes it’s better to have your subjects looking directly at you, but I thought this pose worked well here as Claire was actively working on her computer. I love taking portraits because I am able to catch people in their most natural state.
I think that I have shot in all three types of light without knowing it. On game days I get the best results in direct light. The players and crowd are well light and you can see clear faces. The colors always look better and more crisp. It is also easier to edit when I’ve shot in direct light. Sometimes I have shot in diffused light and have underexposed my photos. Usually this happens in a travel shoot for SMU Look and we have planned the timing wrong. I have used artificial light for studio shots - which also takes some trial and error. I wish I could count the amount of fully black and fully white photos I have from messing with the flash.
Though this assignment was harder and more stressful than I initially thought it would be, I loved doing it. Like I mentioned earlier, I love taking portraits. I love seeing people’s natural and posed state. I love waiting for the perfect moment to snap - like Izzy’s unprompted laugh.