![]() Pay attention to the direction of your bounce surface and position your subject accordingly.įorty-five degrees is a popular angle for bounced light. Sometimes, you’re limited in terms of what you’re going to bounce your light off, but it’s important to understand how the direction will impact your photos so that you can control it when possible.īouncing a flash off the ceiling will diffuse the light and create a softer look, but the light will still come from above, so the shadows will be below. NCS Pearson, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commonsīounce light is often chosen for the soft and broad lighting impact, but direction is important, too. Keeping that in mind may impact clothing choices or simply make you more aware of any reflective objects nearby. Note that light may also bounce off things you don’t intend it to, such as clothing or other objects. You can also use tools such as a bounce card or reflector to bounce the light. Simply put, it might mean something around you, such as the walls, ceilings, floors, water, or other reflective surfaces. If you’re going to bounce light, you will need a surface to bounce light off of. In other situations, you’ll need more power to add a light source with your lighting equipment and create your bounced light. Maybe you simply use a reflector to soften and broaden the light or to fill certain shadows.Īs you can imagine, sometimes light is bouncing even when you didn’t plan it such as if you have a subject near a white wall that the light source is bouncing off of. Simply put, your light source could be the naturally available light. Light Sourceįor bounce lighting, you’ll need a light source. That exercise of seeing bounce light will help us as we move towards creating bounce light. Where would you place your subject to utilize that light flatteringly? The main gear that you need for bounce lighting is a light source and a bounce surface.īut first, imagine utilizing bounce lighting with no additional gear for a second.Ĭan you find light that is naturally bouncing off a light-colored or reflective surface? Credit: Brocken Inaglory, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons Versatility of Bounce Lightingįirst of all, you can often use bounce flash without that much investment in gear by simply bouncing your flash off a surface that’s already available to you.Ī portable folding reflector positioned to “bounce” sunlight onto a model. ![]() You might use other techniques to create a broad or diffused light, but bounce light is fairly versatile and can be easy to implement even in smaller spaces. In this way, you can use bounce flash to compliment the natural light or to overpower it, depending on your settings and flash power. ![]() To continue on this concept, the soft, broad light created by bouncing your light off of a bounce board or wall is distributed across your scene.īounce light is a great way to add light in a natural-looking way because it’s not so intense that it will look like an artificial light source. Try setting up your light to bounce and diffuse on your subject in a soft, flattering way that reduces harsh shadows. ![]() ![]() The light is diffused and broadened as the flash bounces off a bigger surface, creating a softer look than direct lighting would. This works because instead of the light coming directly from your flash or light source, it first bounces off a bigger surface. Softer light is desirable because it reduces harsh shadows that can be unflattering on human subjects or simply too contrasty for certain goals. Creating Soft Light with Bounced LightĪs discussed in the pros and cons above, bounce light is a great choice if you’re looking for soft, diffused light. You’ll quickly see why bouncing light is a great technique to add to your skill set. We’ll discuss soft light, broad light, and the versatility of bounce lighting. Let’s walk through some of the main reasons to utilize bounce light in your photography and videography. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |