The direction of the lighting in a picture can change the tone of the picture. There are three different kinds of lighting:
Backlit – It can create a glow around the subject. It has a mysterious and emotional tone.
Side lit – It is dramatic, textured, and dimensional.
Front lit – It is clear and even and has an open feeling.
Shadows also have different tones. Hard shadows create tension and intensity. Soft shadows have a calm or romantic tone.
These two pictures are backlit. They both give a silhouette around the subject. The picture on the left has a more calm tone and the picture on the right has more of a mysterious tone. The picture on the right also has a soft shadow.
These pictures are both front lit. The light is evenly distributed across the subject. I chose the picture on the left as the featured image, mostly because I think the puppy is really cute.
These pictures are both side lit. The picture on the left was taken right after it rained, so everything is kind of sparkly and glowing. The picture on the right is a lot darker, but the light is on both sides of the puppies.
Ending Reflection
I think the picture of the sunset has the most emotion because it is bright and colorful and it kind of tells a story. The lighting direction affects the subject’s tone by adding emotion to the picture. Backlit pictures tend to have more emotion, side lit have more dimension, and front lit has a more open feeling. The thing that surprised me most about shooting shadows is how hard they are to find.