If you are not a photog, you may not realize that lighting is your single most important creative tool when creating a photograph. It does not take the most expensive camera with an array of expensive lenses (although good quality equipment is a good idea) to make beautiful, professional photos.
With that being said, improper use of light can be disasterous. I have blogged on lighting before, and I am bringing it back up a little more in depth because it is so important.
What choice do you have when it comes to lighting? Below is a listing that will hopefully make you think about lighting and what effects it will have on your photos.
- Ambient light - This is the light that is not provided by you, the photographer. Ambient light is what is naturally (or normally there). This can be sunlight, light fixtures in the house, and lamps, etc. There are certain times of day when inside light and outside light are similar enough that ambient light is enough to create stunning pictures. The time frame for these ideal situations is small, so if you plan on using ambient lighting only, you have to plan your shooting times carefully.
- Pop-Up flash/on camera flash - this is the the flash that came with your camera. Usually, this will create flat, lifeless pictures, depending on the usage and brightness of the ambient lighting. Another limitation of this type of lighting is that it does not have a large effective range (they are not terribly powerful), so on large rooms, it will not provide ample coverage
- External Lights - This is one of two of your best options - and my personal favorite. You have choices within this category. You can use external flashes, or you can use external continuous lights. External flashes will cost a little more, but they do not generate as much heat. This is not as much of an issue with RE photography, because your subject is not a person that is sitting under the extreme heat that continuous lighting can produce. One advantage to continuous lighting is that you can physically see how the light effects the environment. You can look at the shadows that are created and decide how to place your lights.
For an agent that is looking to create beautiful pictures with little or no experience in photography, the best bet may be to go for continuous external lights. The cost will not be as great and the continuous lighting will give you the opportunity to learn as you go a little easier because you can see the setting that you are creating.
One more category worth mentioning is HDR. I have been researching this, but have not yet delved into it physically. It does, however, seem promising. Basically you shoot a series of photos set one stop apart and then combine these pictures in a post processing sofware that runs about $100. HDR seems to be all about tone mapping and exposure blending. I am very interested in what will coem of this.
One important thing to remember...there is no magic formula to creating a beautiful picture. Regardless of how extravagant your lighting set up is, there will be times that ambient lighting is the perfect choice to create a beautiful picture. Other times, when shooting a small room, sucha as a bathroom, the pop up flash will be just right...you would not even be able to get the external lights set up!
If you have an interest in creating beautiful pictures, take the time to practice and read up on some of the more complex topics of photography. I can assure you that if you take time to capture beautiful images, you will be rewarded. Not only the satisfaction of knowing that you are doing the best you can for your client, but, also, you will probably end up with a reputation for going that extra mile!
Jeff Gettings
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