Quality of Light

Daylight can have many qualities or levels of intensity, depending largely on what time of day (and what time of year) you’re shooting and what the weather is like. If you’ve ever wandered around Miami Beach or Tucson on a bright summer day, you know exactly how harsh and penetrating daylight can be. But put a thin layer of clouds in front of the sun, and what was a bold, unforgiving blast of sunlight becomes a cozy, soft light that caresses the landscape gently and reveals textures and colors that were once hidden in deep shadow.

Light quality can loosely be grouped into one of four categories: normal, hard, diffuse, and heavy overcast.

Fill flash is an excellent way to combat overly contrasting backlighting, especially in portraits. I discuss the technique of using fill flash in Chapter 11.