Reading the light
Before the settings, the light. How to judge its hardness, direction and range — and why that decides most of the photograph.
Cameras are described in terms of settings, but settings are a response to light. Learning to look at the light first is what makes the settings obvious rather than arbitrary.
Three things are worth judging before anything else.
Hardness
The quality of light is how abruptly it falls off into shadow.
Hard light comes from a small source: the midday sun, a bare bulb, a direct flash. Shadow edges are crisp and contrast is high.
Soft light comes from a large source: an overcast sky, a north-facing window, light bounced off a wall. Shadows fade gradually.
What decides it is the apparent size of the source. The sun is vast and gives hard light, because it is so distant that it is small in the sky. Put a cloud in front of it and the whole cloud becomes the source — which is why overcast light is soft.
Direction
Where the light is coming from decides what is revealed and what is hidden. That is enough of a subject on its own — see the direction of light.
Range
dynamic range is the span between the darkest and brightest parts of the scene, and whether your sensor can hold all of it.
Stand indoors looking out of a window and your eyes read both the room and the view. A camera must choose. When a scene holds more range than the sensor can record, something clippings.
The responses, in order of usefulness:
- Change the light — fill the shadows, wait for cloud, come back later.
- Change the framing to exclude the extreme.
- Decide which end matters and let the other go.
The question that shortcuts all of this
“Where is the light coming from, and how hard is it?”
Ask it before you raise the camera. Most exposure decisions answer themselves once you have.
Key takeaways
- Judge hardness by shadow edges; it depends on the apparent size of the source.
- The sun is hard because it is distant; cloud makes it soft by becoming the source.
- Scenes often hold more range than a sensor can record, and clipping is permanent.
- Ask where the light comes from and how hard it is before touching a dial.
Common questions
What makes light hard or soft?
The apparent size of the source. A large source relative to the subject gives soft, gradual shadows; a small one gives sharp-edged shadows. Distance matters because it changes apparent size.
Why do photographs of high-contrast scenes disappoint?
Because the scene holds more range than the sensor can record. Something has to clip. Choose which end matters, or change the light.
Next steps
The direction of light
Front, side and back light produce three different photographs of the same subject. Choosing between them is mostly about where you stand.
Daylight through the day
The same sun gives completely different light at dawn, noon and dusk. Knowing the pattern lets you plan rather than hope.