Light in photography
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
Mick Jones of Foreigner is illuminated by stage lights at Key Bank Pavilion during the band’s visit in June. Behind him are streaks of colored lights used to set the scene. The white light over his shoulder is used to illuminate him on the stage. The brightness and direction causes a phenomenon called lens flare, which show up in this image as the specks and dots of light in a line across the front of Jones.
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
Reflection is something too to look for when reading available light. Glass, water, mirrors, etc., can offer a different perspective of the world around you. This reflection was taken in a window along Main Street in Washington during the Whiskey Rebellion Festival.
All it takes is one speck of light for a camera to create an image. A human eye wouldn’t even necessarily even be able to see something that a camera – with the correct time and setting – can detect.
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
Sunsets in our area of Pennsylvania sometimes seem few and far between, with all of the gray skies we seem to see. Sometimes, though, we get lucky with some brilliant reds as the sun sets. The sky on the first night of high school football in 2018 didn’t disappoint when it showed off this display. The colors are short-lived. There wasn’t enough time to capture its beauty during game action, but it worked fine in this portrait of Beth-Center’s JJ Green at a game against California High School.
The earliest known photograph ever made was by a man named Joseph Nicéphore Niépce in the Burgundy region of France, between 1826 and 1827. It was created using a light sensitive chemical mixture on a piece of pewter, and exposed to sunlight for about eight hours. Once processed, the image showed roughly the scene outside his upstairs window.
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
Converting a photo to black and white will sometimes highlight more light in an image. If left as a normal color digital image, you wouldn’t notice as much of the beer and champagne being tossed about after the Washington Wild Things won the semifinals in the Frontier League playoffs.
Because the process wasn’t permanent, vague shapes can be seen on the piece of metal, which is on display at the Harry Ransom Center at the University of Texas at Austin.
A lot has changed in more than 190 years of photography, and digital cameras can read light in ways that photographers in the past could only dream about.
Creating an image that showcases “light” can be as easy as pressing a button on your cell phone camera or as complicated as waiting hours or days for the perfect moment, and adjusting a bunch of settings to get a DSLR camera to capture it just right. Whatever the moment, keep an eye on the lighting scenes around, and if you see something interesting, snap a photo.
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
Sun and light placement can play a large role in any image. The lower the light, the longer the shadow, as shown in this photo of fans at Charleroi High School’s Myron Pottios Stadium. Work around the light source to better gain the image you are trying to create.