How to Recognize the Right Light as a Photographer

I just got a shot list for a session that’s happening next week, and something stood out to me that was half amusingand half absolutely annoying. A significant number of things on the shot list had notes from the client saying they wanted natural light under certain sections.

It was things like, “Close up natural light portraits by bar top, natural light portraits by altar.” I’m not going to pretendthis is the client’s fault, because it’s our job as professionals to understand what light is and how to use it. It’s absolutely not their job to have any idea what they’re 1talking about.

And let’s be real, they don’t have any idea what they’re talking about. But it’s always interesting to me when people come to me saying things like, “Oh yeah, absolutely love how you use natural light to get such vivid colors,” when the reality is that 60 percent of the images you see in our portfolio have some kind of additional lighting or are completely lit with very little natural light involved.

I have a perhaps controversial take. Images that are lit don’t have to look artificially lit, and how you light them doesn’t have to become the focus of your portraits.

Oftentimes, it feels like there are two camps in photography, at least in wedding and portrait photography. We have the “all I can think about is lighting and what gear I’m using, and I’d love to tell you about it” camp. And the camp that is alittle bit scared of that other camp, so they cling to saying “I love natural light” with all their might.

Obviously, who doesn’t love a golden hour? But as wedding photographers, there is actually very little under ourcontrol on a wedding day. One of the differences you’ll see in our portfolio is that while we use extra light very often, we try not to make that obvious.

Years ago, when I was trying to improve my photography skills, I realized I was getting to a point where I could walk into a scene and see something with my own eye that I couldn’t convey with a camera. This started sending me into a panic. How do I get the incredible images in my head to actually show up on a camera? That frustration pushed me to try to understand light in a completely different way, which helped me grow leaps and bounds from where I was at thetime.

I’m old-school from the start, learning photography on film with a notepad and paper in hand, scribbling my settings so I could remember why a photo was terrible once developed a month later. So, in honor of that notebook and with endless amounts of frustration, I went to my local library and got a pile of books. I took a whole summer, reading everything I could find on understanding lighting and how to light for wedding photography. 

I was so confused, Ithought I was going to cry, but I read those books backwards and forwards until I understood just a little bit more. During that time, one of my favorites was a book by Roberto Valenzuela, and I read something that has always stuck with me, “Light is light.” Sunlight can be terrible or wonderful depending on how it’s used. Same with all types of light. It doesn’t matter where it’s coming from, it’s how it’s used that makes the difference.

My team is probably so sick of me repeating that because it comes up a lot. In wedding photography, you have to get scrappy, and you have to do things very quickly. But in the photography world, we can get really snooty about what we’re using. When the reality is, you can light with a cellphone. You can light with a speedlight. You can light with a strobe. You can light with the sun. The point is understanding what the light is doing, what you want it to do, and how it’s affecting your subject.

An umbrella costs under ten dollars, and if you understand what it does, you can use it to its absolute capacity. Thatwill give you far more reach than buying the most expensive equipment possible and having no clue what it does or how to use it. It will also be far more effective than just hoping that you never get stuck in a situation where you don’tneed some help with lighting.

I think we have to be careful in the photography industry because I notice how often (both online and in person) people approach me with the “What kind of gear are you using?” comments.

While obviously gear matters, especially at certain levels, we often forget that it ultimately comes down to light andshadows. We can take a picture in a cardboard box with a hole in it, lined with contact paper.

“I just want natural light portraits.” – Client who’s getting ready in a church basement “Oh, I only use fancy unmentioned brand.” – Random uncle while photographing “Oh, you’re just using an umbrella.” – Another photographer interrupts to announce

Sound familiar? When I’m photographing, I’m thinking about how the light is going to hit their face, how it’s going to be most flattering, and how I can complement that light. I’m also thinking “light is light.” Because while I absolutely want tocreate an amazing portrait, I can’t do that if I’m so worried about my gear that I’m not focusing on the people that are in front of me. Or worse, I’m distracting those people in front of the camera from enjoying the moment, the celebration, or the people they’re with.

That’s the priority when it comes to photographing humans. At least for us.

So my encouragement to you is this. Do what you have to do to learn what you’re looking at. Find the light, figure out how it works, and understand what modifiers do. Please, by all means, make a ton of mistakes, whether you’ve been at this for 5 minutes or 15 years like I have. But for me, being the least obnoxious person in the room becomes the firstgoal. The second goal is creating an image that will last for 30 years as something significant to them.

And when Uncle Bob or the photographer from down the road walks up and shows you his far superior camera, and one thousand dollar a piece speedlights, just smile and think to yourself, “I’m pretty sure, light is light.”