Using Light: Ambient Light

This course applies the principles of using light to ambient light in particular.  Ambient light is available light, whether that be the sun, sky, moon, or streetlights outdoors, or the halogen or fluorescent or window lighting indoors.  This course spends one full day on using outdoor ambient lighting, including positioning subjects for specific ‘studio style’ portrait lighting, and how to manipulate ambient lighting to be hard or soft lighting, as well as identifying the types of reflection these light sources produce.  The next day is spent exclusively on using indoor lighting to achieve your desired result of hard or soft lighting, flat or ratioed lighting, and using the nature of the light sources to manipulate the types of reflection they produce.  The third and last day is a review of homework assignments from the first two weeks, in which students practice and demonstrate both outdoor and indoor ambient lighting in guided assignments.

The emphasis in this course is on practical exercises where the students problem solve the taught theoretical principles in hands-on exercises that demonstrate and make concrete the book-knowledge required for using light, instead of merely understanding light.

When you have finished this course, you will be knowledgeable and experienced in the nature of ambient light sources, how they can harm your photos and what to do about it, and how they can help your photos and what to do about it, as well as manipulating the position of your scene to use these to the best purpose for your photography.

What Students Have Said

“Mind expanding–my brain worked hard in this course. I liked going over each person’s homework. I felt better about my shots after showing them. I actually understand the outdoor ambient light more after seeing and talking about everyone’s locations.” — Alicia

“Loved the photo examples provided by the instructor in class. Another great course from CPLC. The homework and the review in class helped to solidify the concepts.” — Andrea Brown

“The Ambient Light course has shown me exactly why my photographs (indoor & outdoor) have turned out the way they have (good and bad), which gives me confidence to take fantastic photographs in the future.” — Darek

“I thought taking this course supported my Principles & Practice course. It made me think & utilize the information I had been taught. Great follow up to Principles & Practice.” — Rob Swyrd