Light, the Magician of Photography

Light is essential for photography. After all, photography is all about light. Just like camera sensors, we cannot see anything without light. Pictures become beautiful when you use the correct amount of light in the correct way.

Most of the time, I prefer sunlight as a major source of light of my photography. Sun around noon or right before the evening is soft, not on top of your head, and can be used in multiple situations for different types of photos. Before learning about flash in photography class, I did not use flash in my photography. Whether it was from inexperience or preference, that I don’t know, but it was not my choice of light.

After learning about flash photography and the usage of flash, I was able to understand why flash is useful and essential for specific purposes. For example, when the ambient light is not aesthetically pleasing, using flash will help to change the light inside the room. Even for photos with sunlight, a pop of flash on the face will erase the shades on the face and make it better.

Using flash does not necessarily mean a photo with a dark background will have white light pouring onto the subject. It can be subtle or strong depending on how you use it. After all, flash is also just another type of light that you can control and it is handy – it’s a little, controllable sunlight inside your hands.

Jewoo Chang

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