Sky and trees photographed through wax paper
This week I played with
Photographing Light
“What makes photography a strange invention is that its primary raw materials are light and time.” – John Berger
I remember someone once saying that photography was the art of painting with light. It’s true. Paying attention to and understanding light are key components of mastering photography. One of the great gifts of following my passion for photography has been how greatly my appreciation for all of the different types of light has grown and developed.
When I first began as a photographer I was taught that sunrise and sunset were the best kinds of light for landscape photography. Also cloudy days are wonderful for closeup and nature photography because the sky acts a giant softbox creating soft saturated colors that show up beautifully in photographs.
There is no bad light
But the further I’ve grown as a photographer the more I have begun to explore using “bad” light in photographs. Depending upon what your goals are, all kinds of light can be interesting.
This week I decided to play around with how light travels through translucent wax paper and shooting into the sun through a window, and other experiments with light.
Light makes photography. Embrace light. Admire it. Love it. But above all, know light. Know it for all you are worth, and you will know the key to photography. – George Eastman
When I photograph flowers I often choose what is called “high-key” treatment of the image. That means that I tend to overexpose and make the image as light and bright as I can without blowing out the highlights. I usually prefer to focus on light rather than dark though I know that it is only in the contrast between the two that beauty exists.
Playing in the light
As we draw closer to the election I find that I’m working hard to stay in the present moment instead of falling into worries about what will happen. Yesterday afternoon with the sun shining brightly and the temperature somewhere above 40 degrees, I took a chair out on the deck and sat beside the melting snow soaking up the sunlight. The late afternoon sunlight gave me more opportunities to play with light. As I sat in the bright sunshine and fresh air I found myself saying, “In this moment everything is okay. I choose to stay here in the present moment.”
Jon took the sunny afternoon opportunity to work on a project out on the patio just beside and below the deck. I found the golden light combined with the geometric shapes of his outdoor workshop interesting.
The backyard is almost snow-free but our front yard still looks a little like winter but I think in the next week all of the snow will melt. This lovely respite from winter helps me to realize that all of my fears of a long winter beginning in mid-October were just worries, not reality.
With the predicted warm weather next week we will treasure a return to fall for at least a few days.
What creative activities do you want to explore this weekend? My wish for you this weekend is peace, light, love, and a light heart. Stay well my friends and look for the light.
May you walk in beauty.
Snow on the deck glitters in the sunlight
Light and shadow
Late afternoon light
What’s real? Through the window photograph with reflection
Sun reflection on the pond through wax paper
Light
Sky light photographed through crumpled and then smoothed wax paper
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