06/11/2025
I have been a photographer for 10 years and this is the ONLY advice I wish I had followed sooner, “Learn how to use artificial lighting from the very beginning”.
Rather, I spent the first two years telling myself that I preferred natural light whereas the truth was, learning about artificial lighting seemed like a big scary thing. It felt unknown and overwhelming.
My photography evolved drastically and kept improving from the moment I started learning how to recreate any lighting setup. So, if you’re at the beginning of your joinery, here are my top 5 tips for you to practice mastering artificial lighting:
1. Start with one light at a time. Don’t invest in multiple lights all at once before you actually know how to use them.
2. Speedlites work just fine if you’re just starting out. You don’t neee strobes right away.
3. Artificial light only looks “Harsh” or “Fake” when it’s not used properly.
4. Study every photo that you like and try to find the light source. Look at the shadows and highlights.
5. Learn the rules of lighting but be sure to break them too every now and then. That’s where the magic happens.
Now tell me, what do you struggle with the most when it comes to lighting?
[photography, commercial photography, product photography, artificial light, flash photography]
