Part 4 - Exercise 10

Softening the light

This exercise is about using the diffuser I've created to see the effects it has.

In the first photo there is no diffuser. The light is about 1m directly above the boots. It's interesting how much shadow is created, even on the side of the boot where the ligtht can't see it. Also the background isn't receiving much light. Overall the photo is very contrasty, and as the light is harsh it looks both unnatural and unflattering. The high contrast means that there is little detail (I think this is because the detail is typically provided by the subtle variances in the mid greys).

The diffuser makes a number of significant differences. It actually makes the light source a lot larger,so light is now getting into the boot and down the sides. The background is also receiving more light. Overall the scene is less contrasty and there is more visible detail. This means that the photo looks more natural and balanced. Interestingly there is actually less detail in the surface that the boots sit on because the detail was provided by the shadows and these shadows are now absent.