Evening star., 1948-04-11

of photography. 1t is as essential
to the picture taker as paints to
the painter. Considering the i'm
portance of the subject, it will be
we'll to study the means and meth
ods of lighting which are available
to the man with the camera.
The art of photography was Gre
ated in 1889 through the use OF
natural light. That was long time
ago. Since then. photographers
have discovered the necessity OF
having auxiliary means of exposing
negatives under conditions where
natural light is absent or in
adequate. Artificial lighting is the
answer.
Photographers at first were con-
tent with the incandescent lamp,
which eventually evolved into the
modern floodlight. commonly used
by both professional and amateur
cameramen for indoor photography
The floodlight goes under variety
of trade names and is used for
portraiture, interiors and still-life
Photography. The bulky nature
of the equipment imposes certain
restrictions on its use. News pho
tographers who cannot be hamper
ed by such impedimenta, leanheavi-
ly on the flash type of lighting.
Flash Guns for Action.
Modern synchronized flash guns
are light, small in size and are ac-
cepted by many in preference to
other types of lighting. The equip
.ment is of special value to the
photographer interested in making
action pictures, or who, on occasion
must have facilities for making shots
under difficult lighting conditions,
such as absence OF electricity.
For the average amateur, one No.
2 photofiood lamp and two or three
No. / lamps will be ample for or
dinary portrait and interior work.
These should be used in conjunction
with reflector units designed for the
Job. An exception obtains when a
reflector Lined bulb Is used. The
No. bulb can be used for the
main light source and the smaller
lamps for fill-in, top lighting, etc.
Reflectors that are fitted to the
lamp, are used to direct the light
and conflne it within certain areas.
Another type Of reflector which can
be utilized as q supplemental light
source Is one which reflects light
back from the source to the subject.
A piece Of white cloth, a window
shade or some substance with a
polished rejecting surface will act
as a suitable reflector. They are
most effectively used in portraiture.
Natural Light Is Tricky.
In planning interior shots, it is
suggested that artificial light be
used exclusively. The use Of natural
light coming in through windows
or doorss in conjunction with artifi-
cial light is an extremely tricky
problem, even for the professional.
Natural light from these sources,
when used alone, presents a problem.
Intensity of the light Is much
greater near q window opening,
especially when brilliant sunlight
is streaming into a room. When
ever a patch of sunlight covers the
floor. the walls or piece of furni-
ture, there is a knotty problem of
exposure to solve. Proper exposure
for the remainder of the room would
leave the sunlit areas greatly over
exposed. Conversely. the proper
treatment of the lighted spots would
result in underexposure of the rest.
The job can be accomplished
through careful calculation, raising
and lowering shades, multiple expo
sures, ETC., but 1t is not worth the
trouble. The best way to shoot
interiors is with artificial light.
Since 1t is rather difficult for the
beginner to estimate the results of
single and multiple flash exposures,
it will be wiser to stick to the flood
lamp type Of lighting. The lights
should be set up with great care to
avoid reflections In mirrors or from
shiny wood or metal surfaces of
furniture.
This may be checked on the
ground glass or finder before max
ing the exposure. The lights should
be placed in such way as to get
some light under tables, chairs and
furniture pieces which cast deep
shadows. With small number of
lamps insufficient to reach all the
corners of the room, stop down the
aperture for long exposure and
use one of the lamps to paint" the
dark areas. In doing this, take care
that none of the light rays reach
the camera 1ens-keep back of the
camera.
Still another method is to place
lights in positions where they are
hidden from the camera by pieces,
vat "a c,,o1,