Flowers And Photography: Controlling And Diffusing Light

Ok, I see that. The professional diffuser material eliminates the defined shadows inside the flower.

I'm confused... painters are supposed to create contrast... everything else equal a painting with more contrast is usually considered a better painting - or so I've been told.

But if you're doing photography, a photograph with less contrast from shadows is considered a better photograph?

To be honest, I like the top photo best, because the reds are more red. The flower stands out more against the background.

Cheryl - it depends on the photo. For the types of images that Rich has shown in his examples, little to no strong contrast on the flowers makes for a softer image that is more in line with the quality of the flowers. In other types of images, strong contrast is very desirable and can really contribute to a dramatic image.

Cheryl,

Contrast when you WANT it is good, but when it blows out the highlights or loses detail in the shadow, not so good. My examples here are just a guide to know when and how to soften the contrast, when you need to.

Example: NO ONE would take portraits in broad daylight because it increases the contrast and isn't comlimentary to the subjects. If you use a diffuser, in the same light, you can get good images!

Adele,

Exactly!

Rich

off to bed and some reading...............

Ok. Thank you for the explanation... it makes sense.

Cheryl,

You're welcome. This is just trying to show people a technique that will allow photographers to photograph flowers in harsh light and not end up with harsh images.

Next time anybody is watching a movie and Westerns are good for this, you'll see the cowboy riding into town and it's glaring sun and heavy shadows on him and the horse and then somebody stops him out in the middle of the street and the close-up doesn't have the same quality of light, it's softer. The film maker is using a "wall of diffusion" to shoot that scene,called a "silk or scrim".

You can do the same if photographing inside the house and using window light, just cover the window with some diffusion and you'll have nice soft light falling on your tabletop set-up!

Rich

Rich,
I always learn a lot from you. Next time I watch a western, I'll have to look for what the photographer was doing.

I could try the diffuser paper photographing my pottery... could save me some aggravation RE: setting up a light box & moving around clip lights on the backs of chairs. Right now I have a portable collapsible light box, and a large piece of drawing paper -- I spray painted the top half of the drawing paper black, the spray paint creates a nice smooth transition from white to black for the background. I drive myself crazy trying to get rid of the shadows on the white area & the highlights on the shiny glaze, though... total pain in the tail. I've slowed way down on pottery, though, so haven't done that recently.

For drawing with pencil, the object of the game is to intensify the shadows so I can see them more easily. Especially for pencil drawing, I tend to put clip lights on chairs, to create very sharply defined sideways shadows.

My dining room, where I paint still lifes, has a window where the light comes in intensely in the morning & changes the whole arrangement of shadows, & even affects color. If I have a still life going, I can't work there in the morning. Afternoon & evening there isn't enough light from the window to be an issue.

Thanks, Rich for these examples! I have not used diffusers, so this may seem like a silly question. How do you physically accomplish this? Does someone hold up the white garbage bag or do you have it propped somehow?

Cheryl,

You can work with the paint or with light for your background. The larger the background and the further you can keep the subject from it, will make it easier to control the light falling on the background. A simple paper "sweep" with some background stands holding up the paper is the easiest way to go, if you're doing a few at a time. On my site, in the photoshop section, I show you how to make cheap "stands".

And as far as the windows in your dining room, the easiest thing is to get an old white sheet and tape it to the window, to diffuse the harsh light. When I shot buildings, we had rolls of this diffusion and the assistants would tape the windows,which would help with the dynamic range of the shot, inside vs. outside light.

Patricia, I held this my self and I looked like a one armed wallpaper hanger, trying to hold the stuff over the plant AND try and take a photo. The bestest thing, is to take, say the white garbage bag material, single layer and make some sort of frame, for a coat hanger, if using this for small shots. But just for some knowledge visit B&H's web site and see the different diffusers that you can just buy and I would probably buy stuff from amazon and not pay the high prices of B&H, which is all geared for professionals,

Rich