Photography is my passion. It is easy to create artistic pieces or capture a memory. One of the struggles of photography is lighting, and as a result, there are many different styles of photography.
My Modern Met: Emma Taggert is a Contributing Writer at My Modern Met. Her article, Discover Daguerreotype Photography and How the Pioneering Process Is Still Used Today discusses the use of daguerreotype photography in the modern world. Introduced worldwide in 1839, the daguerreotype was the first commercially successful photographic process. The earliest daguerreotype cameras were made by opticians, craftspeople, and sometimes the photographers themselves. Those who fell in love with the signature aesthetic of the 19th-century technique continued to produce images on metal plates, and the daguerreotype process is still practiced 180 years later. An example of a modern photographer that uses this process is British photographer Adam Fuss, who uses the technique to achieve ghostly images that capture themes of fear, desire, and hope.
Real Simple. Rachel Sylvester is a lifestyle editor at RealSimple.com. Her article 5 Beginner-Friendly Tips for Taking Better Photos, According to Professionals summarizes tips from professionals for the average person. The top five tips are
1. keep filters to a minimum, filters can male images look unreal
2. look for the light, natural light is the best
3. perfect your pose, standing different ways can create a long, straight line in an image, and holding the camera high can make your head look big
4. go for a pro, look for a pro who’s compatible with your personality and aesthetic
5. take time to curate, when your photos get out of control they are no longer a resource. Delete the bad shots
Fstoppers. Wasim Ahmad is a multimedia journalist with a master’s degree in photography. His article How to Easily Set Up a Portrait With Paramount Lighting gives tips on how to set up lighting to capture portraits. Paramount lighting is an easy way to consistently capture solid portraits of almost anyone. It is based on the style of the old Paramount Pictures movie studio look, with special attention paid to the shadow that falls perfectly under the nose of your subject. To achieve this look you need one main light and one backlight.
Make Use Of. Matthew Wallaker is a technical writer and blogger. His article Low-Key Lighting: What It Is and How to Use It discusses the use of low-key lighting which adds dark tones and increases the contrast between the subject and background accentuating the subject's shape. The advantage of this setup is that only one light source is required.
Fstoppers. Alex Cooke is a professional photographer. His article How Shadows Can Improve Your Portrait Photography discusses the importance of shadows. Shadows can be a fantastic tool not just for contrast but to create a sense of drama or to tell a story with your images. Knowing when, where, and how to subtract light is a subtle skill that enhances your technical skill and can expand your creative voice.
