Human Vision is Very Sensitive, So Don’t be Fooled
Our eyes are sensitive to a wider range of light intensity than most camera image chips, so we might not notice that our subject is poorly lit. Too much contrast will leave your picture with dense shadows or washed-out highlights with no detail. This can lead to disappointing results.
You may not immediately understand why your picture lacks the impact you wanted, but with practice you can train your eye to judge the available light, so that you can make the necessary adjustments before taking the picture. Correct exposure is part of the solution, but we’ll cover that and the use of light meters in a later article.
Check the Lighting
When setting up your shot, study the direction of the available light and how it models or reveals the shape of the subject for a pleasing effect. Look especially at the highlights and shadows. Notice whether or not you can immediately see some details in either. If you find you have to wait to see details, that indicates your eyes are adjusting to the light, and it probably means that there is too much contrast between the highlights and shadow of your subject. Your camera will not be able to make this adjustment, and so you will lose detail in the highlight, the shadow, or maybe both.
How to Correct the Lighting
Once you notice any problems, you have the choice of moving your subject to a better location or, if this is not possible, adjusting the amount light in shadow or highlight areas. Shadows can receive more light from a reflector carefully placed or held by an assistant. Likewise, highlights can receive less light by using a translucent screen placed so as not to cast a harsh shadow (not too near the subject).
I prefer natural lighting, and I find it works well for most subjects. With practice, you can achieve good results with available light, but in extreme cases, you may need to use fill-flash. In bright sunlight, fill-flash can light the shadows just enough to bring out pleasing detail, but all too often, fill-flash needs to be filtered or bounced off a nearby surface to avoid casting harsh shadows around your subject.
Artificial lighting is handled in a similar manner, but remember to set your camera for your choice of indoor lighting so that it will adjust the white balance and not give your picture an overall yellow or blue color cast.
In Summary
Be sure to allow for the sensitivity of your vision when judging lighting conditions. Don’t let the highlights become too bright or the shadows become too dark; these extremes rob your image of interesting detail. For best results take note of the light direction on your subject, and add extra light sources or shading when necessary. It doesn’t require expensive equipment to achive correct lighting, and I can recommend several books on the subject.