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Photo Tips & Techniques

Family Photo Tips - Light (Part 1) by John Beebe A key component to any picture is the lighting.  John Beebe shows how to get great family photos  with window light. Article rating: 8.11

"Light makes photography. Embrace light. Admire it. Love it. But above all, know light. Know it for all you are worth, and you will know the key to photography."
~ George Eastman

Whether you are taking pictures of the mountains in Tibet, stars in Hollywood, or great family photos, George Eastman’s classic advice remains the key to great photography. 

Fortunately, we are surrounded by light and as we learn to see it, light will teach us its qualities.

In this first column on Taking Great Family Photos we will start by looking at one of the most beautiful and easiest to use sources of light, windows.  Window light is readily available, free, and beautiful.  Professional portrait photographers often go to great lengths and expense to recreate window light.

Window light creates a soft light that washes over subjects and thus reduces harsh shadows.  It also is directional (unlike say the light outside on a heavily overcast day).  This creates soft shadows and highlights, thus giving the photo the sense of depth.

In the first photo of Lizzie, you see these characteristics beautifully played out.  Lizzie is sitting four feet from an eight foot high plate glass window.  It is an overcast day so there is not direct sunlight and additional light is reflecting off a lake outside the window.  Notice how the light gently falls off from the left to right side of her faces, creating soft shadows that give the face depth and warmth.  Notice also how the background is darker than the subject.  This reinforces the focus on Lizzie.

In the second photo of father and son, we again see the classic soft lighting from a large picture window providing gentle highlights and shadows on the faces, arms and legs.  In this case, I was fortunate to have a smaller, north facing window behind providing gentle fill lighting.

I did not pose either of these photos.  Instead, I saw the beautiful light, grabbed my camera that was sitting close by and starting shooting. 

So grab your camera, find some windows and start shooting.  Notice how the size of the window impacts the light.  Move your subject closer and farther from the window.  See what happens.  Some of the most beautiful images ever creating have been lit with nothing more complicated than a window.  See the light and enjoy!

Be sure to check back soon for my next column on Taking Great Family Photos: Light Outside

Technical Details:

“Lizzie”
Camera:  Nikon D70
Lens:  
Aperture: f5.6
Speed:  1/50 (braced with elbows on the table)
ISO:  640 (boosted to allow a higher f-stop and little more depth of field)
Focal length: 70mm (105 35mm equivalent)

Father and Son

Camera:  Nikon D70
Lens:  50mm 1.4 (my favorite portrait lens for most DSLRs)
Aperture: f3.2
Speed:  1/80
ISO:  320
Focal length: 50mm (75 35mm equivalent)

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	I also use light avail if possible. Nice to read what someone else has to say. L Posted by: Linda Covey Feb 25, 2008 @ 4:43 PM EST
	interesting Posted by: pavan Feb 27, 2008 @ 11:28 AM EST
	good pic Posted by: jitu Feb 29, 2008 @ 4:27 PM EST

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