Focus On Lighting Photos Focus on the Fundamentals.pdf

Modern digital cameras can do
everything for us, right? They
focus accurately. They get a
good exposure almost every
time. We’ve got the sun, and
our built-in flash, and maybe an
additional more powerful flash,
as well as all their manuals, so
why do we need to learn about
light?
If we need more light, we can
just use that built-in or popup
camera flash, what we’ll refer
to as built-in flash, and we get
Introduction: <strong>Lighting</strong>? Why Bother?
as much light as most people
need. Still not enough light?
Don’t have a built-in flash? Just
put one of those smart dedicated
flashes on the hot shoe, the ones
that intelligently measure their
own reflected light and know
when the light is enough and turn
themselves off. We can even set
them to communicate with the
camera so that the camera sees
both the flash and the ambient
light and adjusts intelligently
between the two.
Any terms you do not
understand here? Check
in the glossary at the
end of this book. In
fact, if controlling light
is new to you, you may
want to at least
skim the glossary
right now.
It’s easy these days. The smart
camera and the smart flash do
the hard thinking for us; all we
need to do is to concentrate on
our art.
But you’re not buying any of
this misinformation are you?
Or at least not all of it. That’s
why you bought (or borrowed
or stole) this book in the first
place. There has to be more,
but what is it? More equipment?
Sometimes, but not usually.
Better pictures mostly require
simply understanding how to use
whatever light we have.
There is more. It’s not difficult
to learn, and you have the
guidebook in your hands right
now. The key is learning how
light works and how to get it
where you want it and with
the quality of light you need,
and that means turning off all
smart settings for now. If you
There IS more!
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