Natural Light

Natural light is pretty easy to work with when it comes to most any kind of photography. It offers you bright, beautiful light that often lights your subject pretty evenly. Cloudy days emit a more defused light, while clear, sunny days have a bit harsher light.

I'm sure you've heard of what I'm about to mention next. Yup, you guessed it: the golden hour. I've mentioned this subject before on this blog so I won't take much time on it, but basically the golden hour is the hour before the sun sets and after it rises. (when the sun is lowest in the sky) This time of day offers the most flattering light for photography as it gives soft, warm lighting.

There is also something called 'the blue hour' which is the short period of time before the sun rises and after it sets. The light you get during this time is cooler, as can be expected.

Now natural light is uncontrollable, right? I mean, how can you change how the sun is shining on you? Or if there are clouds in the sky? Well, you can't change those things, but you can control the light to create the image you desire. A few examples of how you can use natural light with some more control are using a window to direct the light, reflectors to bounce it, changing your position according to the sun to move it, and using thin white curtains over a window to diffuse it.