Understanding the effects of your lighting

Lighting is very important when taking a photography, but its more important that you know how to use the light. Understanding the change in light, direction it's coming from and how the lighting can make a photographs mood. When you're shooting outdoors and clouds darken the sky, you change position so that you subject is lit from behind, or you move from a brightly lit spot to a more shady one will all result in a different looking photograph. If you make a point to look at the lighting on your subject you'll soon be able to predict what kind of feel it can give to it. The direction of light is important because of shadows, mainly those that are visible to the camera. Light cast shadows that can emphasize or diminish the texture and volume of your subject. When you look at the lighting on a scene you need to take in account both the direction of the light and the position of the camera. A safe thing to do is to stand with the light over your shoulder making the entire subject evenly lit, however this can often be a boring front lighting. Compare lighting positions like front lighting with side and back lighting and notice the change in visible shadows. Before you shoot take a second to think about other ways positions will effect the lighting and the look this will have with your subject. There is never any harm in taking photos of all the different options and deciding which you are more pleased with. Experiment with different lighting and settings to become familiar with the effects it has on your shot. When shooting out doors remember that a clear, sunny day makes bright highlights and dark hard edged shadows, while on an overcast day at dusk or in the shade will create a soft more diffused light. These are key things to get comfortable with, but are not the only things that lighting can do.