Sometimes I see photos with a particular type of lighting I just don’t like, and it took me awhile to figure out why, especially when some are technically sound, by very accomplished photographers.
I think my issue is, I like the light to have, or at least feel like it has, a logical, or organic source.
So I kept this in mind while flipping through some websites, and came up with a few examples:
Here, the interior location combined with the angle of the light implies a widow stage left. Whether or not there’s actually a window there, it LOOKS like the light’s coming from one. (photo from Fashion Gone Rogue)
Now here, the brightest part of the natural scene is at the subject's back, yet the strongest light is coming from somewhere in front of him. This is from Zack Arias’s site, and he knows his lighting, but for my taste, the confusion about what is actually generating the light takes me out of the photo. It just doesn’t make enough sense to me. (photo from Zack Arias’s site)
And finally, I think the chandeliers (the “practicals”) here imply a light source that in reality wouldn’t be able to light the model nearly as much as she is, but it’s enough to satisfy my needs for a logical source of light. (photo from Fashion Gone Rogue
So that’s my personal, quirky preference. I know it’s neither right nor wrong, but it’s nice to at least have gotten to something of a theory about the kind of lighting I like—for now.
