Seeing Light
SEEING LIGHT
Light. Every image has it.
But how do you see it? For me, the first step is to keep my eyes open. Then close them and remember.
Quality of light and the mood, atmosphere, and sense of place it can create are driving elements of my work. I’m often looking for light, controlling light, creating light. And while that is, in essence, what every photographer (or image maker) does, we all have our own way of seeing the light. My memory of the light and the mood of the scene influences the decisions made in developing an image.
When working on location I get a feel for the mood, light, and color of the place and then when I’m working on images in post I’ll often find myself fine tuning everything to produce an image that feels like my memory of that place or time. This applies not just to natural settings outdoors but also to indoor locations and in studio portraits. Even with studio portraits, there is still a sense of place and time and mood. When laying out images for my body of work I love seeing how different visuals can live together and enhance the mood of the image it’s paired with.
We all see light a little differently. A large part of working successfully with a client is showing them how I see light and how that can contribute to their project.
