How does photography control light?

The light in photography can come from any direction in the three-dimensional space with the subject as the center. For the convenience of expression, we use several general light directions, such as front light, back light, side light, side front light, side back light, top light and bottom light.

Method/step1i. Smoothing

The irradiation direction of light is the same as or basically the same as the shooting direction of the camera. Shadows are hidden behind the characters, and there is no obvious relationship between light and shade in the picture composition. Sunlight makes the brightness of the subject even and soft, which makes it easier to cover up skin defects. At the same time, it also lacks a sense of three-dimensional sense and shaping, and it is easy to make a "pie face" as the saying goes.

Key points of shooting: pay attention to the creation of layering and three-dimensional sense of the picture. We can consider widening the separation between the subject and the background through color difference to improve the three-dimensional sense of the picture.

2 seconds, backlight

The irradiation direction of light is opposite to the shooting direction of the camera. The edges of the main characters have obvious light contours, and the contrast between light and dark is obvious. Backlight, also known as "contour lighting", is the most exquisite way to use light in portrait photography, with realistic picture effect and rich modeling characteristics.

Shooting points: 1. When shooting in backlight, in order to prevent the lens from entering light (except special effects), try to use a hood or hood. 2. In order to prevent the contrast between light and shade of the picture from being too large, you can use a light supplement tool such as a reflector or a flash to control the brightness balance.

three

Third, sidelight

The irradiation direction of light forms an included angle of 90 degrees with the shooting direction of the camera. The main characters are clearly divided into light receiving surface and backlight surface, and the direction of light and the relationship between light and shade are very clear. Side lighting gives the subject a distinct sense of layering and three-dimensionality, which is called "texture lighting".

Shooting points: 1. The use of sidelight shooting is suitable for people who are bright and tough, and is not suitable for wedding photos that generally emphasize romance. 2. A reflector or flash can be used to fill the dark part to reduce the light ratio, which is suitable for the soft picture effect of the wedding dress.

END8, light control

Since light plays an extremely important role in photography, how to control light to achieve the ideal shooting effect under ever-changing conditions?

Photography is the art of painting with light, so we must always pay attention to the change of light during shooting. Under complicated lighting conditions, we should correctly arrange the exposure combination, and strive to control the distribution of light in the picture, so that the light can reasonably express the subject we want to express. Because most of us shoot in natural light, we focus on how to control the light in outdoor natural light.

(1) morning and evening light control

We like to shoot sunrises and sunsets in the morning and sunset. Due to the color temperature of the light, the yellow-red tone brings a certain warm color to the scene in the morning and evening, and gradually turns into a blue tone or a bright gray tone around the picture, giving the scene a better side light and producing a better contrast. It is an excellent light for shooting landscapes. Due to the large contrast, it is necessary to be extra cautious when exposing twilight. When shooting, you need to use a smaller aperture to ensure a greater depth of field and achieve the purpose of being clear from near to far. Shutter speed depends on weather conditions. The key is what kind of shooting effect you want to achieve, and how to sidelight according to the expected effect you want to achieve. When the sun has just risen and not set, if you measure the sky, or use the methods of average measurement and circumnavigation measurement. Will make the main scene too dark; The side light will make the sky too bright. The correct metering method is to avoid metering at the place where the sun rises, and to spot metering at the junction of the scene and the sky, so that both light and dark are acceptable. The location of spot metering should be sky 1/3 and scenery 2/3.

The sample diagram is as follows:

How to measure and control the light under the condition of sunrise in Huangshan Mountain? Please see the picture below:

My experience is that by measuring the light here, we can make the light-dark ratio conform to the light-dark landscape ratio in the picture, and appropriately reduce the value of 0.5- 1EV, we can get the works with ideal exposure.

Another example is the following work:

On the banks of Pujiang River, at sunrise, thick clouds appeared in the sky. Although the sun hasn't come out yet, the horizon is already bright. When shooting, we avoided the bright glare area on the right and measured the light at the junction of the horizon and the sky. The exposure standard takes into account the level of the ground scene illuminated by the morning light and retains the effect of clouds above the horizon.

Therefore, to control the twilight, we need to pay attention to:

1、 ? Adjust according to the light condition; 2. Considering the level of dark scenes; 3. Contrast light and shade as much as possible

Not too big; 4. Treat the change of visual angle with near-middle visual angle.

If the sun is photographed in the picture, exposure and photometry will be more difficult. Perhaps, the picture will be in a mess, and the scenery is almost a silhouette effect. Therefore, it is necessary to reduce the EV value by 0.5- 1 according to the light intensity at that time to ensure that the sky is not too bright and the ground scenery still has a certain level.

As shown in the figure below:

Taking the edge of the small tree (the junction of black and white) as the metering point, the bright part of the morning light and the dark lawn on the river bank are taken into account, and the distant mountain shadow is also faintly visible, and the contrast of the picture is moderate.

Experience tells us that the effect will be ideal when measuring light at three positions.

(2) Light control in rainy days

Most photographers hide when it rains and feel that they can't shoot. In fact, as long as it doesn't rain cats and dogs, the clouds in the sky often have wonderful level changes that can't be seen on sunny days. If the light is well controlled, the effect will be more satisfactory. The rain is close to the sky and the background is gray, so it is not easy to show it in the picture. But the scenery in the rain is like a mist. There is little dust in the air, and the scenery is fresh, which is suitable for shooting pictures with medium contrast.

As shown in the figure below:

This photo taken with an umbrella shows the beautiful scenery of Lijiang River in the rain. The air of Lijiang River in light rain is fresher, just like a thin layer of fog hanging over the river. The air has a good sense of perspective, and the interface of clouds is hazy. The key is to improve the sensitivity properly, use a moderate aperture and use a tripod, and the picture is still very ideal.

As shown in the figure below:

It was sunny in the afternoon, but suddenly it was covered with dark clouds, thunder and thunderstorm. A rare landscape appeared on the Rhine River in Frankfurt. I quickly covered the camera with a plastic bag, ran to the iron bridge and took this photo in the rain. The key is to use the reflected light of the river as the metering point, moderate aperture and tripod.

(3) Light control in foggy days

Fog is really not conducive to shooting, but when the fog just rises and is about to disperse, the scenery is faintly visible. We can use the fog to strengthen a perspective relationship and show some indescribable hazy feelings. Due to shooting in fog, the water vapor is heavy. So the camera must be covered with plastic bags or something.

For example, as shown below:

The misty scenery is looming, and the radar standing in the dense fog is as wonderful as a mirage. The key lies in the side light at the top of the dark hillside in the fog, which avoids the big contrast and loses its proper level. The lower part of the hillside in the picture is still horizontal, and the shooting effect is acceptable.

Fog days are also very different, so you need to wait in dense fog. When the fog gradually dispersed, the close-up gradually became clear. This is because you can take a hazy and unpredictable visual picture by using the fog perspective. This kind of light is used properly, which can not only produce a good sense of perspective, but also bring unpredictable suspense, and the artistic conception of the work is unique. If a UV mirror or a medium gray mirror is added in front of the lens, it can not only reduce the spotlight of the lens, but also increase the contrast of the scene and enhance the perspective of the scene.

For example, as shown below:

This photo was taken on the top of Mount Emei in the fog. Here, the mountains are high and the forests are dense, and the fog dissipates and the fog fills the air. When shooting, the key is to take a large area of clouds as the basis of photometry, take the nearby rocks as the close-up view, put the swinging cable car and wire rope in the middle of the picture, and the other end of the cable extends far away. The hovering eagle becomes the crowning touch of the picture, which makes people wonder how far the opposite mountain peak is.

(4) Light control in snowy days

Snowy days are similar to shooting in desert and seaside conditions, with strong reflection and scattered light. If automatic exposure is widely used, a large area of snow will inevitably show a gray tone, lacking the transition from dark gray to white tone. Exposure compensation can be appropriately increased according to the principle that exposure is white plus black minus. In addition, due to the bright light in snowy weather, the influence on the lens exposure effect is not obvious, so the fluttering snowflakes are often used by photographers to form a fuzzy and dynamic line, which is helpful to enhance the visual effect of the picture.

For example, as shown below:

Shooting students walk down the high steps of the library with flying snow all over the sky, the steps form a good horizontal line, the characters cross the horizontal line in a straight line, and the flying snow covers the picture with diagonal lines. The background is completely black and white, which is conducive to highlighting the characters and the picture is relatively simple. The key is to control the exposure speed slowly without affecting the clarity of the characters. In order to prevent melted snow from penetrating into the lens, it is necessary to cover the camera with plastic bags.

Another example is:

This is a photo taken in the snow of Yuanmingyuan under the drizzle. According to the principle of adding white and reducing black, the exposure should be increased appropriately after photometry to show the texture of snow. The light green tone of willow branches echoes the milky white tone of Xue Rui in early spring, and the picture presents a quiet atmosphere in the garden.

(5) Lighting control in stormy weather

Any weather may be encountered in photography creation. In case of a storm, you might as well take some time to take some photos. This kind of weather is almost thick clouds rolling, turbid waves are sky-high, the environment is bad, and the risk is great. Typhoon "Meihua" came, it rained cats and dogs, and a rare scene was filmed.

For example, as shown below:

By the river, I saw the storm roll the river to the shore, and immediately braved the wind and rain to take this once-in-a-lifetime scene. The key is that the camera should be stable, the aperture should be moderate, and the level of clouds should be properly considered. The scenery was dark in the storm with dark clouds. When the heavy rain gradually subsided and the prospect was faintly visible, you could see that the storm rolled the river to the shore, showing a rare landscape.

In short, in addition to the above-mentioned effects, there are many different situations of various lamps.

As we know, when the light is completely thrown at an object from one direction, it will leave a thick shadow in the opposite direction of the object; When light, reflected light and artificial light are thrown at an object from several directions, a shadow will be left around the object; There is no shadow around the object when the light shines evenly on it from around it. Photographers should make use of this characteristic of light to skillfully realize composition and complete ideal photographic works.

For example, in addition to the ceiling lights and foot lights, there are also the illumination height problems of these lights, including high illumination angle, flat illumination angle and low illumination angle, and the picture effect after shooting will also change greatly.

It should be pointed out that:

1.？ Generally, it is not suitable to shoot people with smooth light and top light.

2.？ Backlight and side backlight are ideal light for taking flowers.

3.？ In the case of thick clouds, wait for the opportunity to apply the regional light well.

4.？ In the case of backlight and side backlight, flash or white cardboard can be used to fill the light for the characters.

5.？ Make full use of the role of light and shadow in picture composition.

6.？ Scenery photography takes two kinds of changing light (critical light) as the best light in the morning, evening and sunny to cloudy.

7.？ If possible, try to use RAW format, so as to keep the best shooting data under different lighting conditions, which is conducive to later adjustment.