Light quality
I came across the phrase ‘quality of light’ recently. How does it relate to improving my photography? Garry Hope
AAs photographers, we deal with light all the time. We often think of the intensity of brightness as the light value that’s most important, because it directly relates to exposure. While ‘light quality’ will still have an effect on exposure values,
I regard it as having a greater impact on the mood or style of the image.
There’s an old saying that there’s no such thing as bad light. It basically suggests that you can take good images in any light, as long as you know how to adapt your approach and technique to the conditions. To me, this premise relates more to light quality. Landscape photographers know that early and late in the day can provide lower, warmer and potentially more interesting light, while the harsh overhead sun in the middle of the day can be more difficult to shoot in. Essentially this is quality of light. But we don’t always want low, warm light. For floral photography, for example, bright overcast conditions are often favoured, because it’s easier to capture the detail within the subject.
Quality of light is an aesthetic response: one photographer’s favoured light quality might be different to another’s, depending on their approach, choice of subject and artistic preferences. In terms of improving your photography and light quality, studying images and how they are lit (whether naturally or artificially) will help you begin to understand how the quality of light can have a bearing on the success of an image.
You also need to understand another important factor with light: its direction in relation to the camera. Many images are photographed with the light source behind the shoulder of the photographer, but sidelighting and backlighting are just as valid, and can change the mood of the image. Quality of light is hugely important in photography: learning to harness light effectively helps you to lift your images from record shots to fine-art photos.