Photographic lighting is a topic that will never go out of style, no matter how sophisticated cameras and other technology get. Even with the most high-tech gear, photographers still need to put a lot of thought and vision into lighting their photographs in order to get great results. This Mã skill has the power to dramatically and quickly improve photographs. Light: Science & Magic provides you with a comprehensive theory of the nature and principles of light, with examples and instructions for practical application. Featuring photographs, diagrams, and step-by-step instructions, this book speaks to photographers of varying levels. It provides invaluable information on how to light the most difficult subjects, such as surfaces, metal, glass, liquids, extremes (black-on-black and white-on-white), and portraits. This new edition includes: • All new chapter entitled “Setting Up Your First Studio” • A re-vamped and expanded chapter 8, “Making Portraits” • New appendix of reliable photo gear sources • Over 100 new photographs and informational sidebars • Updated information about advances in flash equipment, LED panels, and fluorescent lights Styles of lighting continue to change, but the nature of light will always remain the same. Once photographers understand the basic physics of lighting, they can apply that knowledge to a broad range of photographic styles. Fil Hunter was a highly respected commercial photographer specializing in still life and special effects photographs for advertising and editorial illustration. During a career spanning over three decades, he worked for such clients as America Online (AOL), US News, Time-Life Books, Life Magazine (27 covers), the National Science Foundation, and National Geographic. He taught photography at university level and served as technical consultant on a number of photographic publications. Mr. Hunter won the Virginia Professional Photographer’s Grand Photographic Award three times. Steven Biver has over twenty years of experience as a commercial photographer specializing in portraits, still life, photomontage, and digital manipulation. His client list includes Johnson & Johnson, USDA, William & Mary College, Condé Nast, and IBM. He has been honored with awards from Communication Arts, Graphis, HOW Magazine, and Adobe, who have also included his work on a Photoshop ‘extras’ disc to inspire other photographers. He is also the co-author of FACES: Photography and the Art of Portraiture, another Focal Press publication. Paul Fuqua has worked as an editorial and wildlife photographer for more than thirty-five years. He started his own production company in 1970 and is dedicated to teaching through the use of visuals. Paul has written and produced educational and training material in a variety of fields including law, public safety, history, science, and the environment. For the last ten years he has produced educational material dealing with the natural sciences and the need for global habitat stewardship. Paul is also a co-author of FACES: Photography and the Art of Portraiture for Focal Press Table of Contents Dedication v Special Thanks xvii Introduction 1 Chapter 1 Light: the Beginning 5 Lighting Is the Language of Photography 6 What Are the “Principles”? 6 Why Are the Principles Important? 8 How Did We Choose the Examples for This Book? 9 To Do or Not to Do? 10 What Kind of Camera Do I Need? 12 A Word of Caution 13 What Lighting Equipment Do I Need? 16 What Else Do I Need to Know to Use This Book? 17 What Is the “Magic” Part of This Book? 18 Chapter 2 Light: the Raw Material of Photography 21 What is Light? 22 How Photographers Describe Light 26 Brightness 27 Color 27 Contrast 29 “Light” Versus “Lighting” 33 How the Subject Affects Lighting 36 Transmission 36 TABLE OF CONTENTS viii “Direct” Versus “Diffuse” Transmission 39 Absorption 40 Reflection 41 Chapter 3 The Management of Reflection and the Family of Angles 43 Types of Reflections 44 Diffuse Reflections 45 The Inverse Square Law 49 Direct Reflections 50 The Family of Angles 54 Polarized Direct Reflection 55 Is It Polarized Reflection or Ordinary Direct Reflection? 60 Turning Ordinary Direct Reflection into Polarized Reflection 62 Applying the Theory 63 Chapter 4 Surface Appearances 65 Photographer as an Editor 66 Capitalizing on Diffuse Reflections 67 The Angle of Light 68 The Success and Failure of the General Rule 73 The Distance of Light 75 Doing the Impossible 78 Using Diffuse Reflection and Shadow to Reveal Texture 83 Capitalizing on Direct Reflections 85 Complex Surfaces 89 TABLE OF CONTENTS ix Chapter 5 Revealing Shape and Contour 95 Depth Clues 97 Perspective Distortion 98 Distortion as a Clue to Depth 99 Manipulating Distortion 100 Tonal Variation 102 The Size of the Light 103 Large Lights Versus Small Lights 104 Distance from the Subject 105 The Direction of the Light 107 Light on the Side 108 Light above the Subject 110 Fill Light 112 Adding Depth to the Background 116 How Much Tonal Variation is Ideal? 120 Photographing Cylinders: Increasing Tonal Variation 120 The Glossy Box 123 Use a Dark- to Medium-toned Background 124 Eliminate Direct Reflection from the Box Top 125 Move the Light Source toward the Camera 126 Raise or Lower the Camera 126 Use Falloff 127 Eliminate Direct Reflection from the Box’s Sides 128 Put a Black Card on the Tabletop 128 Tip the Box 129 Use a Longer Lens 129 Finish with Other Resources 129 Try a Polarizer 130 TABLE OF CONTENTS x Use Dulling Spray 131 Use Direct Reflection 131 Chapter 6 Metal 133 Flat Metal 134 Bright or Dark? 136 Finding the Family of Angles 136 Position a White Target Where You Think the Family of Angles Will Be 137 Place a Test Light at the Camera Lens 137 Aim the Test Light 138 Study the Position and Shape of the Area Marked on the Test Surface 139 Lighting the Metal 140 Keeping the Metal Bright 140 What Is a “Normal” Exposure for Metal? 144 Keeping the Metal Dark 145 The Elegant Compromise 149 Controlling the Effective Size of the Light 152 Keeping the Metal Square 157 Use a View Camera or Perspective Control Lens 157 Aim the Camera through a Hole in the Light Source 158 Photograph the Metal at an Angle 160 Retouch the Reflection 160 Metal Boxes 160 A Light Background 163 A Transparent Background 164 A Glossy Background 167 Round Metal 169 TABLE OF CONTENTS xi Camouflage 171 Keeping the Light Off the Camera 171 Using a Tent 172 Other Resources 174 Polarizing Filters 175 Black Magic 175 Dulling Spray 176 Where Else Do These Techniques Apply? 176 Chapter 7 The Case of the Disappearing Glass 179 Principles 179 Problems 180 Solutions 180 Two Attractive Opposites 182 Bright-field Lighting 182 Choose the Background 184 Position the Light 184 Position the Camera 185 Position the Subject and Focus the Camera 186 Shoot the Picture 186 Dark-field Lighting 188 Set Up a Large Light Source 189 Set Up a Dark Background Smaller Than the Light Source 190 Position the Camera 191 Position the Subject and Focus the Camera 192 Shoot the Picture 192 The Best of Both Worlds 193 Some Finishing Touches 194 Defining the Surface of Glassware 195 TABLE OF CONTENTS xii Illuminating the Background 199 Minimizing the Horizon 200 Stopping Flare 203 Eliminating Extraneous Reflections 204 Complications from Nonglass Subjects 205 Liquids in Glass 205 Liquid as a Lens 206 Keeping True Color 208 Secondary Opaque Subjects 211 Recognizing the Principal Subject 212 Chapter 8 Making Portraits 215 The Single-light Portrait Set-up 216 The Basic Set-up 216 Light Size 218 Skin Texture 219 Where to Put the Main Light 220 The Mã Triangle 221 Mã Triangle Too Large: Main Light Too Near the Camera 222 Mã Triangle Too Low: Main Light Too High 223 Mã Triangle Too Narrow: Main Light Too Far to Side 224 Left Side? Right Side? 225 Broad Lighting or Short Lighting? 225 Eyeglasses 227 Additional Lights 228 Fill Lights 229 Reflector Cards as Fill Lights 232 Background Lights 234 TABLE OF CONTENTS xiii Hair Lights 236 Kickers 238 Rim Lights 241 Mood and Mã 242 Low-Mã Lighting 243 High-Mã Lighting 244 Staying in Mã 247 Dark Skin 247 The Unfocused Spot 249 Using Colored Gels 254 Chapter 9 The Extremes 257 The Characteristic Curve 258 The Perfect “Curve” 258 A “Bad” Camera 261 Overexposure 263 Underexposure 265 Using Every Resource 270 White-on-White 270 Exposing White-on-White Scenes 271 Lighting White-on-White Scenes 274 Subject and Background 275 Using an Opaque White Background 276 Light the Subject from Above 277 Use a Gobo Above the Subject 278 Add Dimension 281 Using a Translucent White Background 282 Using a Mirror Background 286 In Any Case, Keep the Background Small 287 Black-on-Black 288 TABLE OF CONTENTS xiv Exposing Black-on-Black Scenes 289 Lighting Black-on-Black Scenes 290 Subject and Background 291 Using an Opaque Black Background 293 Using a Glossy Black Surface 296 Keeping the Subject Away from the Background 297 Histograms 299 Preventing Problems 301 Overmanipulation 303 Curves 305 New Principles 306 Chapter 10 Traveling Light 309 The Lights We Use 310 Heavy-duty Portable Strobes 310 “Hot-shoe” Flashes 311 LED Panels 312 Getting the Exposure Right 313 Letting Your Flash Do the Figuring 314 Using a Meter 314 Meters and LEDs 315 Getting More Light 315 Multiple, or “Ganged”, Flashes 316 Battery Packs 318 Flash Extenders 318 Getting Better-quality Light 319 The Problems 319 Take It Off 320 Bouncing From Hard To Soft 321 TABLE OF CONTENTS xv The Omni-Bounce—A Big Help For a Little Money 323 “Raccoon Eyes” 324 Feathering Your Light 326 Forcing the Shadow 328 Lights of Different Colors 329 Why Is the Color of the Light Important? 330 Tungsten 330 Daylight 331 Nonstandard Light Sources 331 Do the Colors Mix? 334 The Remedies 337 Correcting Mixed Colors 337 Correcting Unmixed Colors 338 Filtering Daylight 339 Correcting Errors in Reproduction 340 Lights of Different Duration 340 Different Approaches 342 Other Useful Gear 348 Chapter 11 Setting Up Your First Studio 353 Lights: An Early Issue 354 Getting Your Lights Right 356 What Kind of Lights? 356 Flash 357 Continuous Lights 358 How Many Lights? 359 Light Stands 359 Booms 361 Light Modifiers—Which Do I Need? 361 TABLE OF CONTENTS xvi Diffusers 362 Reflectors 363 Snoots and Grids 364 Gobos and Flags 364 Backgrounds 365 Computers and Associated Gear 366 Miscellaneous Equipment 367 What Sort of Space? 368 Appendix: Reliable Suppliers 372 Index 37 Link Download Link Fshare Fshare Link Google Drive Google Drive