8 Common Lighting Mistakes New Photographers Make

Learning artificial lighting can be a bit daunting for a lot of photographers, but you should not let it scare you! If you are starting to dabble in artificial lighting and looking to improve, check out this fantastic video tutorial that will show you eight common mistakes beginners make and what you can do to fix them or avoid them entirely in the first place. 

Coming to you from John Gress, this excellent video tutorial will show you eight common mistakes that photographers make when they are new to working with artificial lighting and how to fix them. By far, the most common mistake I see is simply trying to tackle setups that are too complex right off the bat. When you are learning artificial light, the most important thing is to develop an intuitive understanding of how it behaves, including things like how the relative size of the source affects the hardness of the light, the inverse square law, and a lot more. Working with a single light creates a readily apparent relationship between your actions and the quality of the light that gets a bit obscured if you are instead trying to wrangle multiple sources. Once you are comfortable with all of those properties, you'll feel more prepared for those complex setups. Check out the video above for the full rundown from Gress.

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Alex Cooke is a Cleveland-based portrait, events, and landscape photographer. He holds an M.S. in Applied Mathematics and a doctorate in Music Composition. He is also an avid equestrian.

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Great share Alex. These are all great tips to try and pay attention to during your photoshoots!