When it comes to lighting, you likely think about it in terms of how it's shaping your subject or whatever object you're illuminating. Now, it's time to think about not only that, but how the light looks as it moves through the space.
Coming to you from Aputure, this great video talks about volumetric lighting. If you've not heard of the term, volumetric lighting is concerned with how the light looks as it moves through a given volume — in other words, how the light looks in three-dimensional space. You've probably already seen an example of volumetric lighting before: crepuscular rays. Crepuscular rays are those narrow beams of sunlight you see poking through clouds sometimes. To make it visible, you generally need to add some sort of particulate to the air to catch the light rays and use a relatively narrow beam to make it clearly defined; a source that quickly throws the light in every direction won't work well for this. Volumetric lighting is a great way to add some character to a space or to evoke a certain mood in your viewer and is effective in both video work and stills. Check out the video above for the full rundown.
