Chuck Gardner's Photography Class
Part Two A - Lighting
by Chuck Gardner
Lighting Angles

The position of the key light relative to the camera position defines the lighting angle. Lighting angles are typically characterized one of the following five ways: flat, short, broad, back light, and butterfly.

Flat light: The best example of flat lighting is an on-camera flash. The single light source is near the camera lens and there are few if any shadows to reveal the 3D nature of the subject. This is the only one of the lighting angles in which there is usually one light source. However a single light source, if raised some distance from the lens, will cast some shadows and create the illusion of depth. For this reason professional photographers often use flash brackets which place the flash 12 or more inches above the lens. A single flash raised above the lens and diffused produces the best results with a single flash.

Short lighting: Short lighting occurs when the key light strikes the side of a subject furthest from the camera, and the side nearest the camera is in shadow. This type of lighting is the most commonly used for portraits because it puts the highlights on the front of the face, hopefully making it the brightest part of the photograph. The side of the face towards the camera is in shadow, hiding the ear which otherwise would be distracting. The height of the key light will determine how the shadow from the nose falls. If the light is too high the subject's brow may cast a shadow over the eyes eliminating the highlight (i.e., "catchlight") in the iris. Take care to avoid this because eyes without catchlights look dull and lifeless.

Broad lighting: Broad lighting occurs when the key light strikes the side of a subject's face nearest the the camera. This type of lighting is sometimes used for portraits but since it makes the person's ear the brightest thing in the picture and places the front of the face in shadow there are only rare situations in which it is preferable to short lighting. The caveats about the height of the key light in short lighting also apply to broad lighting.

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