Out In The Midday Sun

It may not always be your biggest ally, but sometimes the sun can present photographers with unique opportunities

- Michael Freeman

Director David Lynch says that not only is full-on cinematic lighting not essential for filmmaking but that having to make do and improvise leads you in new and potentially creative directions. Yes, it’s a riff on that old idea ‘turn a problem into an opportunity’, but don’t be lulled into thinking that, just because it sounds like a cliché from a self-help manual, it isn’t worth listening to. The quality of lighting plays such a crucial part in photography for most (with the exception of the contemporary art aesthetic of deadpan-and-proud-of-it) that it often takes centre stage. Quite a few of my previous Creative Paths have featured lighting as the main event, such as Life in the Shadows (N-Photo 82), Create a Look (N-Photo 79), and even The Why of Processing (N-Photo 65).