Note: For some reason WordPress messed with exposure and saturation at some point during the upload process, which means all the photos in this post are either flushed or overexposed (or at least more exposed than they should be). I’ve set up a Google Drive folder [click here] with the photos in their original condition (plus a few extras that I thought looked good but left out to keep this post concise).

One of the things I find the most fascinating about light in photography is how influential it is in the design of a scene. Even simple changes in lighting can have a tremendous impact on the tone of the piece, enough to make the same location or even subject seem entirely recontextualized.

Camera: Canon EOS REBEL T5i

f/5.6, 1/1250s, ISO-100, 18mm

1. Omnidirectional natural light

This photo was taken in my backyard on an overcast day, pointed directly towards where the sun is behind the clouds. With the sky appearing to be almost entirely white, the trees and house appear much darker in contrast.

2. Directional natural key light

f/5.6, 1/80s, ISO-100, 18mm

This is the sliding door in my living room, with the curtains partially drawn and light pouring into the room through the windows. The resulting photo shows shadowy corners, particularly on the left- where the darkness and light almost seem to cut evenly.

3. Natural light augmented by an artificial light source

f/4, 1/30s, ISO-800, 18mm

This solar light outside of my room mixes with the dim natural light of late dusk, and personally reminds me of a lighthouse on a gloomy night.

4. Single artificial light source

f/4, 1/30s, ISO-400, 18mm

This scene, otherwise engulfed in darkness (save for the increasingly dark early nighttime sky), features a bright porch lamp as its sole subject.

5. Multiple artificial light sources with the same color profile

f/4, 1/30s, ISO-800, 18mm (contrast slightly enhanced to improve clarity)

The lights along this fence are all the same color and align evenly at each post, portraying a sense of uniformity.

6. Multiple artificial light sources with divergent color profiles

f/4, 1/30s, ISO-800, 18mm

For this photo, I put a different color on each screen in my room, which creates a mesmerizing mix of primary colors.

7. Experimental lighting

f/4, 8s, ISO-100, 32mm

One particular type of photography I find to be very interesting is long exposure, because it enables me to essentially draw with light. In this photo, I attempted to sign my name with a laser pointer… I think I did okay?

Click here for the main presentation.

Andy Warhol’s TV – Warhol, Andy, 1983

Andy Warhol was a prominent art figure in the 1960s onward, achieving his notoriety through exploiting contemporary ideas, controversies, figures, and trends of American society.

Marilyn Monroe – Warhol, Andy, 1967

He was constantly experimenting with new and different mediums as they became available. As technology evolved, so did Warhol’s creative processes. Throughout his extremely dynamic career, he would be known as an artist, filmmaker, magazine publisher, TV producer, and even as a band manager for The Velvet Underground from 1966 to ’67. He was one of the leading figures of the Pop Art movement, and was instrumental in shaping mainstream art into what we know it to be today.

POP Art – 4 – Grayson, Gary, 2013

The core concepts of Pop Art derive from practices of mass marketing and consumerism that became popular post-WWII, which was a time of massive economic growth and technological innovation. The result was a consumer culture unlike anything previously seen in American history. The average household had more disposable income and leisure time than ever before.

Campbell’s Soup Cans – Warhol, Andy, 1962

Following developments in print advertising and television, a new emphasis on graphic images and iconic brand logos emerged- and to this day, our society still takes this for granted (in fact, more so in this digital era than in Warhol’s time). This new fascination with consumerism promoted new standards of art that embraced repetition and abstraction, as well as universal truths and individual expression.

Vote McGovern 84 – Warhol, Andy, 1972