The Good Stuff.

3.19.2014

Lighting trumps cameras.


Too often I let myself get suckered into arguments..............................................................................................................................

...........................................hired to come in and design light. Beautiful, thoughtful light that moved the objects in front of the camera from mere subjects into visual stories.

And it dawned on me that the next big thing is the revival of beautiful light. And beautiful lighting.
That's why I love portraits. It's never about the cameras. It's always about the beautiful person in front of your face and the emotional intelligence to light them in a way that reveals the beauty and at the same time gets the "idea" of lighting out of the way.

I think lighting should be like a good samaritan. It should do good works and then disappear into anonymity....

.................that's what I learned by not focusing on the camera for the last two days. Or in the video shooting we've done. The camera is becoming transparent. A commodity. The lighting and the vision are the real stars.


5 comments:

  1. So true.. Same applies for Landscape photography.

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  2. Maybe we'll have the return of a dramatic George Hurrell type of style with large hot lights and deep shadows

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  3. Why we spend so much energy on the transparent when the subject and the light are the main players in the photograph is really something to ponder.Clearly we should spend no time on the number of lifeless pixels and on the brand that created them and focus on the art.

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  4. Absolutely right Kirk! I know when I take time and slow down to do the lighting right my photos always look great, but when I just rush through and try to get finished as quickly as possible it inevitably looks rubbish no matter which camera I am using.

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  5. Yes it does. I know that now. I recently got rid of a lot of gear I no longer use and will be getting rid of more soon. The money will go towards lighting my small studio...haven't decide if I should go continuous or flash. Elinchrom makes the very nice d-lite studio kit at an attractive price and it's a quality product from the reading I've done. For bodies and lenses I'm keeping what I'm going to use and won't be "upgrading" for some time. I've got your book on LED lighting, it was a good read, very helpful, just need to make a decision now.

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