Available Light

Available Light

by William Lulow

These days, more and more photographers are using available light for their image making. Because sensors are much more sensitive to light than film used to be, it is easier to get decent exposures by pumping up your camera’s ISO rating. You have to be careful though with the type of light you get from available light sources. You need to be aware of what kinds of light you are shooting, the direction it comes from and how it affects your image.

I think it is more important than ever before for photographers to study artificial lighting and all its ramifications, so that they are more aware of the kinds of available light with which they work.

This image was made using available light (modified in Photoshop to produce the color/BW effect), with an ISO of 1600 and an exposure of f/2.8 at 1/60th of a second. In the days of film, a magenta filter would have been necessary to produce the correct color balance for daylight film. Today, digital cameras do all the color conversion for us. But, the direction of this available light is from the top. It is created by the room’s fluorescent light banks. The effect of the lighting is soft, but not very intense.

This concert shot of Karla Bonoff was made in a night club with just the stage light . These situations present difficult lighting problems which can usually be compensated for by using a higher ISO. Remember, though, the higher the ISO you set, the more difficult it will be to make acceptable prints.

Here is an outdoor shot with available light which was supplemented by the on-camera flash used as a fill-in light. Sometimes, even if you are shooting outdoors, you need to use your camera’s flash to fill-in shadows caused by sunlight.

Here’s another example:

I often make portraits outdoors, but I usually have my subjects facing away from the sun. I use the sun as a highlight or accent light. (Here, to light up the hair and shoulders). I then use a flash to fill-in the shadows. If you had your subjects facing the sun, you would most likely, wind up with a lot of squints and therefore, unusable portraits.

These are merely two things that photographers need to be aware of when shooting with available light. Sometimes, the sun or other ambient source needs some help if the viewer of the image is to be able to discern all the details.

So remember, available light is great and it sure is natural, but it often needs some help if you want a well-lit portrait. Knowledge of how light works and how your fill-in flash can help is certainly necessary.