Fundamentals of photography: light and texture

Light in photography: light is an important factor in photography. It can only be seen by our eyes after it is reflected on the object. It can be said that there would be no colorful world without light. Light energy contributes to lighting, modeling and meaning.

Quality of light: In photography, the quality of light can be divided into hard light and soft light, which is represented by the shadow of the object.

Strong light: light will travel in a straight line until it hits something and reflects. Direct light from a single light source may produce heavy shadows and specular reflections. Specular reflection occurs on a smooth surface, and the reflection angle is consistent with the incident angle. Direct light is strong light.

Soft light: Diffuse reflection will be produced when light shines on an unsmooth surface. Diffused light will still be reflected according to the law of incident angle, but the uneven surface has a large number of tiny reflecting surfaces in different directions, so the emitted light will be emitted in different directions. This is why there is a layer of diffuse reflection material in front of the soft box to spread light. When the light passes through the diffuse reflection material, it will scatter, avoid the highlights on the surface and fill the shadows. This is soft light (also called soft light).

basic concept

Direction of light: Many times, we will find that light comes from overhead. The sun is above us most of the time. Most buildings are illuminated by overhead lights. We are used to the top light. Maybe this is why we react strongly to side light. Will have an unexpected and more dramatic effect. Maybe this is part of the reason why we like to watch the sunrise and sunset. The light from below looks unnatural and produces a feeling of death or fear. We usually can't see the light in this direction.

Color: Temperature will affect the color of light. In nature, the color of incandescent light will change from red to orange and then to yellow with the increase of temperature. We have an instinctive reaction to the fact that light blue is cool and orange is warm. We can use green projection to make a person look weird, or we can use sunlight to make the picture look normal. Color will affect people's intuitive feeling of the picture. This is why the stage lighting will change different colors according to the content of the scene.

The following figure illustrates the role of light in photography.

We can understand directional light as a way of lighting. When light shines in one direction, it is the direction of light. According to the direction of the light source, it is divided into light in all directions. The following figure shows how to set the direction of the light source to shoot the parallel light in the above picture.

Other directions

The photos below show various lighting scenes, all of which are emitted by a light source. In this series of shots, the light source rotates 360 degrees around the model. Therefore, you only need one light source to create a completely different atmosphere. The direction of lighting equipment is different, and people's faces will show different dramatic effects. Of course, not every lighting setting is suitable for all models.

Side lamp

The projection direction of light is about 90 degrees from the shooting direction, and the objects irradiated by side light have obvious dark edges and projections, which has a strong expressive force on the three-dimensional shape and texture of the scene. The disadvantage is that it often forms too eclectic semi-bright and semi-dark hue and gradation, and often forms uneven scenery of large scenes. This requires that the proportional relationship between the scene and the shadow on the light receiving surface should be considered when composing the picture. (as shown in the figure below)

Backlight is also called "backlight"

The light from the back of the object can only illuminate the outline of the object, so it is also called side light. There are three forms of backlight: front backlight, side backlight and top backlight. In the case of backlight, most scenes are in the shadow, and only the outline of the photographed scene distinguishes this scene from another scene, so it has distinct layers and can well show the atmospheric perspective effect. This kind of light is often used to shoot panoramic and distant views, which gives the picture a rich sense of hierarchy.

top light

Illumination of light from above an object. Under the top lighting, the horizontal illumination of the scene is greater than the vertical illumination, and the brightness range of the scene is large, lacking the middle level. Shooting people under the top light will produce unusual effects, such as bright forehead, black eye socket, drooping nose shadow, prominent cheekbones and shadows on both cheeks, which is not conducive to shaping the aesthetic feeling of the people.

How to make girlfriend's face thinner?

This is a light distribution method, and only one light source is needed. It can deepen the shadow of the character's cheeks and make the face symmetrical and thinner. The setting of light should make the projection through the model's face produce a "virtual makeup" effect composed of eye shadow, blush and lipstick, so that the face of the character has a certain sense of hierarchy. Use a flash to emit strong light and hit the model's face from the front; The nose of the model should face the direction of the light source, and the head should not be lifted too high, otherwise the expected effect will not be achieved; At the same time, the height of the flash should be adjusted so that the visible projection of the model's nose extends to the middle of the nose and upper lip.

What happens if you take a portrait of a tall man?

First, set the main light.

Control the projection, and then give the model appropriate light. Only when the set "sunshine" shines perfectly on the model can the photographer notice the remaining auxiliary light or effect light. These rays are only used to supplement the main light, because there will be shadows where there is light. If the intensity of the auxiliary light and the main light are the same, then there will be two competing shadows, which is a very unnatural light situation.

You can also use a secondary flash when shooting, such as highlighting too conspicuous shadows, or configuring a backlight to create light effects such as light bands or highlights.

The common use of the second flash is the overhead light.

The light from the flash lamp (with ordinary reflector and compact honeycomb cover, or beam tube) hits the model's head obliquely from behind. If the background and the hair color of the model are dark, the top light can set off the image of the model's head more vividly, which can also prevent the dark hair from mixing into the same dark background.

What if the teacher has no flash?

Just turn on the lighting function of the mobile phone and let the model hold it by herself, haha.

Finally, see how the hit drama "Taking in the name of people" is used.

Even show your face, face!

The face is big, so take a side view, it is a front view, soft light! Side main light source! Help gather the reflector, so that the front face is not too dark, or your salary will be deducted!