Best Natural Light Photography Tips You Should Know !

Natural light has three characteristics. Intensity, direction, and color. Intensity is the strength of the light which varies with the strength of the light source and the distance from the source. The direction of natural light from a single source is clearly defined. When you have more then one source of light or the natural light is diffused like on a cloudy day the direction is less apparent or absent all together. The color of natural light varies depending on the source and the substances it passes through. Natural sunlight, incandescent, and electronic flash all have a different color mix. The color of sunlight will also vary depending on the atmosphere and time of day the photo is shot.

Different effects can be produced in your photo depending on the direction of natural light. There are four basic categories of light direction, front lighting, 45 degree side lighting, 90 degree side lighting, and backlighting. Some say “Shoot with the sun behind you”. But in a photo front lighting gives a shadow less image. It is also sometimes called “flat lighting”. The result with this type of natural lighting is a photo with no interplay of light and shadow. There is no depth or contour. Photos shot midmorning or mid afternoon utilize 45 degree side lighting. Shapes and textures have just enough shadow to emphasis depth in your photo. You are able to bring out the subtle textures of surfaces giving them more dimension. This type of lighting is often called “natural lighting”.

The third type of lighting, 90 degree side lighting, often produces a more dramatic photo. There is more contrast between light and dark. Shadows are more intense. With this type of natural lighting the texture of the surface stands out strongly. It is also called “texture lighting”. When using this lighting in your photos pay attention to the shadows as much as the highlights because they are an important part of your photo’s composition.

When the natural light source is behind your photo’s subject it is called backlighting. You can either create a silhouette or still have some detail in your subject making it stand out against the light background. If the natural light is high it will produce a rim of halo of bright light around the subject in the photo. It is often called “rim lighting” and is a favorite of many photographers. Used properly it can be a very powerful tool to add simplicity in your photo’s composition.

The color of natural light changes with the time of day. Photos shot with dawn sky cast a vibrant red-orange hue. Including the rising sun in your nature and landscape photos can add a very dramatic natural light effect. The minutes immediately after sunrise still give photos a reddish hue, but may offer fog in the valleys or a haziness to also give a dramatic flare to your photo. There will be great composition in your nature and landscape photos with the interweaving of the natural light and the shadows.

Early morning natural light is more yellow and bright, but it can be used to create long dramatic shadows in your photos because the sun is still low in the sky. Shooting photos at this time of day can really add texture and feel to your photograph. Noon and midday natural light can be used to produce different effects. Polarizing filters are great for enhancing colors and making the sky deeper blue at this time of day. Shooting in the shadows with midday sun may give your photos a blue cast because the natural light is reflected from the sky.

Here in Oklahoma we have terrific sunsets. Proper exposure of natural light is key to capturing brilliant colors in a photo. Try shooting three frames, and f-stop under and an f-stop over what the camera’s light meter reads. This is called bracketing and can definitely help in getting the proper exposure. With natural light this time of day the light meter can truly be a moron.

With natural light at twilight you can shoot wonderful photos of city skylines and capture the glow of indoor light shining out through windows while still getting enough details in the photo. You may want to bracket your shots leaning more toward underexposure. Bracketing is always a good idea especially when you Shoot more photos of nature and landscapes under different natural light conditions.

A photograph shot at different times of the day will have different composition due to the natural light intensity, direction, and color of natural light. Shoot more photos and experiment with the many factors that can determine what effects you capture in your nature and landscape photos with natural light.