The Importance Of Diffused, Subtle Lighting When Taking Photos

Harsh lighting conditions, such as during the middle of a sunny day or when using direct flash, can result in overblown photos without details. Diffused lighting conditions make for much more pleasing images.

1. Sometimes you simply have no choice in the conditions nature provides when taking photos. You could be on a once-in-a-lifetime photo tour to the Arctic and a polar bear is right in front of your ship. It’s ready to be photographed but it’s midday and the sky is blue and light harsh. What do you do? You take shots, of course! By using exposure compensation (when using aperture priority) or increasing the camera’s shutter speed (when using manual mode), the light on the subject will be reduced.
2. Rainforests are wonderful subjects to photograph. Sometimes you have no choice, but if you have an option, choose a cloudy day to take your images. Photos of rainforests look so much more pleasing to the eye on a cloudy day, when the lighting is subtle and diffused.
3. Photographing with flash is something I generally avoid due to the harshness that can be created to an image. There are rare occasions, however, where flash can help bring detail to a subject and create a catchlight in the eyes of wildlife. In this case, I recommend using a portable diffuser on the flash, to help create balanced, even lighting.
4. For macro subjects including fungi or flowers, a portable hand-held diffuser, held over the subject on a bright, sunny day, will create beautiful diffused lighting in your photo.
5. The best time of the day to take photos, in many situations, is around sunrise and sunset. This is because of the beautiful light that often appears at those times of the day. This is the same for landscape, wildlife or macro subjects.

If you have a passion for wildlife, nature or travel photography and would love to go on a small-number, professional photography adventure, please get in touch with Michael Snedic at WildNature Photo Expeditions. You can call him on 0408 941 965 or fill in this Contact Form and he will get back to you ASAP.