Light Painting

Light painting is the act of photographing in a darkened space and using a non-fixed light source to provide the illumination.

There are two basic methods of light painting and, if you combine them, a total of three.

Method One is to photograph a subject and illuminate it with a directional light source, such as a flashlight or multiple fires from a photographic flash. You pass the light source over the subject like a paintbrush.

Method Two is to make the light, itself, the primary subject of the shot, such as pointing a flashlight towards the lens and writing backwards, so that the photo shows the correctly oriented “text”.

Method three, as mentioned, is a hybrid of the other two, where the light and that which it illuminates share the attention.

*Most advanced digital cameras have a custom setting called “automatic noise reduction” that really makes a second exposure without the sensor active and combines this “black” shot with your original shot to reduce stray pixels. Light painting is one of the few photo situations where it actually makes sense to turn this custom setting on.

*Start with the highest ISO, smallest aperture (biggest f number), and a single source of light. Digital cameras allow light painters to immediately see their results and, so, have more success with their technique faster.

*Light is cumulative. To minimize the amount of light in an area, pass the “paintbrush” over it only once.

*If light appears in places you weren’t expecting, try modifying your light source to narrow the beam or a shorter exposure with quicker strokes.

*It is not physically possible to create a space where there is “no light”. Light is still present in a windowless room or on a moonless night.

*Even if you do not intend to work with light painting in depth, experimenting with it can only increase your understanding of how light works in any photograph.