There is no bad light

“Remember to look up at the stars and not down at your feet. Try to make sense of what you see and wonder about what makes the universe exist. Be curious.” –Stephen Hawking

In years past, I dreaded photographing during the summer with the high sun and strong light. With my strong interest in landscape photography, I struggled to make images that have any drama with the vibrant sunlight. Most of the time I find myself getting into creative slumps during those summer months, and I couldn’t wait to have winter come around, as odd as that may sound to most people who enjoy the beautiful weather in the summer.

After I started taking advice from Laura Valenti by attending her online workshops, I started going out to photograph on sunny days lately, even for garden photography where harsh sunlight is generally regarded as a disadvantage. As I started coming away with some good images, now I find myself enjoying photographing with the full sunlight, even during middays. I learn to adapt to the different conditions of the harsh light. I look for subjects that are backlit and they have this translucent quality which make them look more visually appealing. I also find side lighting to be highly beneficial in revealing the shapes and forms of subjects. This is all a new way of seeing for me. I am excited about the prospect of taking advantage of all kinds of natural lighting during the coming summer months.

I notice plants can be a lot more interesting in black and white, and high contrast light is favorable when thinking in black and white. With one of my recent outings at the Blithewold Mansion garden, there is this sea of green foliage with plenty of raindrops on them after a passing shower. They have beautiful shapes and patterns, but they don’t look particularly exciting in terms of traditional plant photography. Yet, I found great potential with the plant’s unique shapes and patterns, as well with the strong light, the rain drops and shadow made the foliage look more dramatic than they usually were. They became perfect candidates for black and white photography.

When I work in the late afternoon or early evening, especially in the hours leading up to the sunsets, I start getting some interesting cross lighting and deep shadows that emphasize the patterns and textures of subjects I photograph. I used to view shadows as unfavorable with landscape photography. Now I see that as one of the elements I can utilize to create mystique and drama with my photography, especially with black and white photography, I embrace pushing those deep black tones when during post processing. I learn to create more intrigue with my images by revealing less details in areas of deep blacks.

There is this saying, “there is no bad light in photography”. Good light, bad light is just a myth. Of course, there will always be more ideal situations where you can achieve exceptional photos, but it is not always possible to have the conditions working in your favor. The key is to keep showing up, take advantage of every condition, try to think how you can leverage and play every lighting condition to your advantage. In the end, photography is all about experimentation and great images can be obtained under any conditions.