Artificial light is often considered the big, bad scary villain in the photography world.
Say the word “flash” or “studio light” and photographers cringe.
We’ve been there and we get it; artificial light is intimidating but that’s just because of the unknown. The extra tools it takes feels daunting but we promise you that it’s much easier than you think. To help ease your mind, we asked a few of the Click Away 2016 speakers who you use artificial light to share a common myth they hear about artificial light and why they are not true.
1. It’s impossible to reproduce soft, natural light using a studio light strobe.
Allison McSorley explains that “It’s a common misconception that artificial light can’t look like natural light. On the contrary, it’s quite simple to shoot natural light-looking portraits with a studio strobe. All it takes is a little knowledge of light and how it behaves. Soft natural-looking artificial light is a function of the size of your modifier and the position of your modifier in relation to your subject. Think of your studio strobe as the sun and your accompanying modifier as the window. The larger the window, or in this instance, the larger the modifier, the softer the light. Place the modifier as close as possible to your subject and your light will become even softer.”
2. You can only use flash when it’s dark.
The light maestro herself, Michelle Turner, told us, “Some of my favorite images were taken during the day with flash! Flash – especially off camera flash – is a wonderful tool for balancing out or even overpowering the ambient light so that you can improve the quality of the light on your subject. Want to get rid of splotchy light on your subject? You can use flash! Want to preserve a beautiful blue sky or background without leaving your subject dark? Use flash. It’s a wonderful tool for letting you create images in any environment at any time of day!”
3. I shoot film so I have to use natural light
Film photographer Sandra Coan chimed in with this great point! “Many film photographers stay away from using strobes and flash. They feel that learning artificial light is confusing and hard. Or they fear that they will not be able to create light and airy images using lights. Nothing could be further from the truth! Learning how to create soft, natural light looking images with artificial light is easier than you think! And film LOVES light… the more the better! With artificial light, you are in control of how much light you have all the time! Strobes or flash in a softbox is like having your very own portable window. How great is that?!!”
4. Kids won’t enjoy the process of flash photography
As Kellie Bieser puts it, “I very much consider myself a natural light photographer, but I also consider flash and artificial light to be one of the most fun elements of what I can do as an artist. Whether it be creating dramatic sidelight with a gridded softbox, illuminating details with an Ice Light, or creating colorful magic with backlit snow and gels, artificial light allows me to turn a scene into something magical. And the best part? My kids are always eager to participate knowing that the end results will be something completely different than what they saw while standing in front of the camera.”
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