# Creative Use of Light (share your tips!)



## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

*bookmark post* 

I don't have a professional enough camera that will pick up light well enough to use it, but I love seeing everyone else's examples. If I ever get a better camera it would be because I'm so envious of the lighting and texture details that all of you guys get with your cams.


----------



## Enzos_Mom (Apr 8, 2010)

That is such a cool picture!


----------



## sharlin (Feb 26, 2007)

I'm a firm believer in using overexposed "hotspots" in the frame to make a dramatic difference. All of my Rainbow Bridge pics have been taken with just that thought in mind. Glare, overexposure, deep shadows can all add such a different feel to the picture.


----------



## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

sharlin said:


> I'm a firm believer in using overexposed "hotspots" in the frame to make a dramatic difference. All of my Rainbow Bridge pics have been taken with just that thought in mind. Glare, overexposure, deep shadows can all add such a different feel to the picture.


Love it! Especially since overexposure sounds like an error, but it's actually a great technique to make a focal point or to make a space blank.


----------



## RallySoob (May 26, 2011)

I'm totally amatuer and just use my cell phone for most my pics but the lighting on this one is neat imo. probably due to a combo of poor camera + bright sunlight but i like it. I'm naming it the 'road to heaven'


----------



## Enzos_Mom (Apr 8, 2010)

Another total amatuer here. This is one of my favorite pics that I've taken...I love how the sunset blacks out everything in front of it. ETA: In a perfect world, the power lines/poles wouldn't be in the way of the church steeple. Guess we can't win 'em all.


----------



## inge (Sep 20, 2009)

I like this one:


----------



## rik6230 (Jan 8, 2008)

Great thread and great pictures  Light brings the emotion into a photograph and for me it is not always easy to control. It is not only the available light but also the camera settings. You can read more here.

I think I took these pictures on the same day but the emotion is totally different. (in my opinion 

I also used a tele lens and that is responsible for the effect what is called 
atmospheric perspective. Here you can read what that means 




















Can you use this technique for dog photography ? Of course.


----------



## DNL2448 (Feb 13, 2009)

Rik, I think that is my favorite picture of Paco! He is just so handsome and regal. Thanks for posting that and the links.


----------



## rik6230 (Jan 8, 2008)

DNL2448 said:


> Rik, I think that is my favorite picture of Paco! He is just so handsome and regal. Thanks for posting that and the links.


Thank you Laura  

But if Paco didn't hat that little light spot in his eye this photo would be worthless. That is what I like in photography; total control and perfection.
An illusion, I know I will never reach that but that is my goal


----------



## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

RallySoob said:


> I'm totally amatuer and just use my cell phone for most my pics but the lighting on this one is neat imo. probably due to a combo of poor camera + bright sunlight but i like it. I'm naming it the 'road to heaven'


That's pretty kick butt for a cell phone picture.


----------



## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

Enzos_Mom said:


> Another total amatuer here. This is one of my favorite pics that I've taken...I love how the sunset blacks out everything in front of it. ETA: In a perfect world, the power lines/poles wouldn't be in the way of the church steeple. Guess we can't win 'em all.


Good sunset pictures are hard to do. I actually like the power lines in this one.


----------



## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

I was hoping Rik would come to this thread. Thanks for the protips and for the awesome Paco pic.


----------



## Enzos_Mom (Apr 8, 2010)

tippykayak said:


> Good sunset pictures are hard to do. I actually like the power lines in this one.


Thanks. =) That one was actually done with a point and shoot while in a moving vehicle. lol I was very proud of myself.

BTW, I was the passenger...not the driver...just thought I should clarify. lol


----------



## rik6230 (Jan 8, 2008)

Yesterday I was looking for this pic but I couldn't find it. It is not a good picture but it shows what I mean with camera settings. For this one I used "spotmetering" Read more or here 

I met this bird in a public garden. The background is water and some plants and trees. But because I used spotmetering (on the white part of the bird) the background is totally black. (This is no photoshop or other trick 
I made this picture on 05.17 at 09.25 PM. The exposure time was 1/8000 !!
For me this is a difficult part of photography. I understand what is happening but I need more experience to predict the outcome of a picture in these extreme circumstances. 










exif


----------



## inge (Sep 20, 2009)

I took this one yesterday. The thing with a thread like this, is that I realize I want a better camera. I have a G9 (Canon), and it can do a lot, but especially when I try to do moving images (Like Tess flying in the air to catch a ball), it fails me.


----------



## Noey (Feb 26, 2009)

I love these pictures, I'm ok at close images, I have yet to do well with images from distance. I have a few...but they are what I call accidents.

That Paco picture is beautiful.
And I've always loved how fog works with light.

Sharlin, that sun is HUGE, I've never seen a sun that big...I've always wondered why we never see this in Virginia. Very cool.

These are mine...I like playing with natural light. I'm randomly ok. I have really bad memory and constantly have to reset everything on the camera.


----------



## ActionJackson (Oct 25, 2010)

took this one at the beach on saturday night


----------



## ActionJackson (Oct 25, 2010)

I have a couple more good ones but they are on my laptop. I'll post them tomorrow


----------



## esSJay (Apr 13, 2009)

Here is one of my faves... I love the outline of the subject.


----------



## ActionJackson (Oct 25, 2010)

Steph that one would probably look really nice in black and white.....it has some great lines to it


----------



## jmamom (Dec 3, 2009)

Another amateur using an iPhone camera - but I love how it picked up light in these two pictures.


----------



## rik6230 (Jan 8, 2008)

Great pictures. 



esSJay said:


> Here is one of my faves... I love the outline of the subject.


Beautiful picture Steph ! 

Just before sunset (on sunny days) the sky change from light blue into dark blue. (You don't have much time. It takes maybe 10 or 15 minutes  That is a perfect moment for pictures. 
This one I took in Venezuela at 5.47 pm. (At 6.00 pm it is totally dark ) 










Exif:


----------



## RallySoob (May 26, 2011)




----------



## soxOZ (Dec 13, 2007)

Back lit shots are really neat, but if you miss the exposure point you can turn a great photo into an ordinary shot.
If you include the sun remember to expose for the subject or you'll end up with just a very dark looking dog...
That is not if you were trying to get a silhouette shot... 

Here are just a couple I took one morning on our front lawn when Mac & Maesie were playing...

#1...









#2...









#3...


----------



## lorinjax (Jun 9, 2011)

Hi everyone! I'm new here and just got a new puppy less than 2 days ago so I don't have any good "dog" photos to share but I AM a professional photographer and can offer advice if you need it! 
The key to shooting with backlighting is to have the subject in front of a dark background. SoxOZ shows that perfectly with the darkness of the trees and shrubs in the background. If you shoot in a big open field with backlighting you'll blow out the top of your subjects head and won't be able to recover any detail. Having the darkness gives the nice glow that people love with backlighting without losing details.  
You also need a camera that you can control your exposure with so you can expose for the subject and not the brightness of the light.


----------



## paula bedard (Feb 5, 2008)

Great thread...I need a better camera.

Love all these pics.


----------



## RallySoob (May 26, 2011)

cool lighting on this one I took last night of my girlfriend Lindsey riding my quad on the beach of Sand Lake Oregon OHV park. I love sunset pics!


----------



## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

Very cool!


----------



## Discoverer (Feb 3, 2011)

rik said:


>


Hey rik, your pictures are great and ironically some look exactly like mine


----------



## Discoverer (Feb 3, 2011)

Here is another "interesting " light photo. Heavy rain just stopped and the the sun breaks through the clouds ...


----------



## Takasnooze (Mar 22, 2011)

I could look at this thread all day. Thanks to all the photographers!


----------



## Wendy427 (Apr 4, 2009)

Discoverer said:


> Here is another "interesting " light photo. Heavy rain just stopped and the the sun breaks through the clouds ...


Breathtaking photo!


----------



## rik6230 (Jan 8, 2008)

Discoverer said:


> Hey rik, your pictures are great and ironically some look exactly like mine


Beautiful picture


----------



## rik6230 (Jan 8, 2008)

Discoverer said:


> Here is another "interesting " light photo. Heavy rain just stopped and the the sun breaks through the clouds ...


woww... Beautiful!


----------



## Mssjnnfer (Aug 9, 2009)

I'm sure this doesn't count... but I like the light in it. This was last summer, it was extremely hot out.


----------



## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

Hi all,

I found a really helpful quick-reference chart on exposure, aperture, iso, and shutter, so I'm posting it. It's by Miguel Yatco, and you can find his stuff (and more details on the items in the chart) right here.


----------



## stuck (Jan 21, 2010)

Not the best picture... But I love the last few minutes before the sun peeks above the horizon & lighting up the clouds! cheers!


----------



## Enzos_Mom (Apr 8, 2010)

Just wondering what kind of filters, if any, were used on the photos in this thread. =)


----------



## stuck (Jan 21, 2010)

I also love the few minutes AFTER the sun dips below the horizon (some photographers call it blue hr i believe), whereby through long exposure the city light are well balanced with the fading light in the sky.


----------



## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

The only filter I use is a UV filter, and I really just keep that on to protect the lens.


----------



## Enzos_Mom (Apr 8, 2010)

I have a UV filter...I also bought a circular polarizer, but I don't really know when it's best to use it or what exactly it's for, besides reducing glare off of shiney subjects.


----------



## kwhit (Apr 7, 2008)

Lucy sunbathing


----------



## Discoverer (Feb 3, 2011)

Enzos_Mom said:


> I have a UV filter...I also bought a circular polarizer, but I don't really know when it's best to use it or what exactly it's for, besides reducing glare off of shiney subjects.


UV is just to protect the lens and polarizer one of filters I use all the time outdoor. Among other things polarizing filter can darken the sky, remove reflections from water, and make foliage appear less shiny. Color saturation is also significantly enhanced. And double polarized can act as ND filter to significantly increase exposure time if needed. Google for "polarizing filter usage" and you'll find lots of useful hints and tips.


----------



## Discoverer (Feb 3, 2011)

stuck said:


> Not the best picture... But I love the last few minutes before the sun peeks above the horizon & lighting up the clouds! cheers!


Stunning picture. The only thing I would do different is to cut 1/3 from the buttom so horizont in not in a middle, otherwise is great, I really like the colors and rocks above the water.


----------



## Discoverer (Feb 3, 2011)

Here is one of my old photo taken with polarizer. See how the clouds and the colors enchanted?


----------



## Discoverer (Feb 3, 2011)

As a matter of fact the previous photo had the same mistake as *stuck *had - horizon in a middle. Here is better composition:


----------

