For me, there's no better way to observe light than in my own home. I can track the movement of the sun over the course of hours, days, seasons... After moving into a new apartment a few weeks ago, I've found myself delighting in how the sun shines through a particular window or how it perfectly hits a patch of floor or wall.
Didn't quite nail the focus on this one... This flat, frontal lighting with a 1:1 ratio is such a stark difference from the more dramatic and contrasty light of the other photos
The other morning, after days of nonstop unpacking, painting, and organizing, I went to put something in the bathroom and noticed a glow through the semi-transparent shower curtain. I pulled it back to reveal light flooding through the geometric patterns of the privacy glass window. The expression "find your light" came to mind as I immediately felt the light hitting my face. Stepping back away from the window, I peered into the mirror and marveled at the way the light illuminated me among the freshly painted dark grey walls. Turning my head at different angles, the light shifted from a contrasty side light illuminating half my face, to a 3/4 key- molding over the bridge of my nose and catching both eyes.
I'm fascinated with capturing light (as I've mentioned before...), but being able to experiment with a human subject enables me to see how the light interacts with a person and- usually- makes for a more interesting photo. With no one else in the house, I stepped away from unpacking and initiated an impromptu self portrait photoshoot. It took me a minute to dig out my camera from the pile of stuff still to be unpacked, but finding it, I threw it up on a tripod and positioned it in various corners of the bathroom, using my best judgement on the angle of the camera and the focus (none of the lenses I own have autofocus, which makes for an interesting guessing game when there's no one behind the camera) and turning on the camera's self timer.
Not completely front lit...
For lack of a better phrase, it was cool to see how the light changed so dramatically based on the position of the camera and myself in relation to the light. It's basic lighting technique- like of course you're going to get a silhouette when you place the subject against the light or that the subject will have a flat front light when they face the light directly- but being able to play with these drastically different looks from a single, unchanging source (sunlight through a window) was a lot of fun. It was a great reminder for me of how flexible a single source can be and how simple it is to create a totally different mood by simply shifting the camera or the subject.
Playing with shooting through the mirror- really dig the dual reflection
Now for a little self reflection (pun intended)...
Like many people who grew up amidst the growing prevalence of digital cameras, I have been taking photos of myself since my family got a point-and-shoot when I was in elementary school. I've written about self portraiture before; while it's something I've been doing forever, it usually remains a private medium.
I find it natural to step into the light and position myself- to angle my head just so, to tilt my chin this way or that- to be both photographer and subject. The simplicity and immediacy of being able to step into the here and now to create an image is one of the reasons I love taking self portraits. As cliche as it sounds, the process of inhabiting a new space is a chance for me to literally see myself in a new light.
However, the idea of introducing a viewer makes me uneasy and I find the idea of sharing images of myself- created by myself- uncomfortable. But... comfort zones were made to be pushed and so I'm sharing these results of experimentation here. Please forgive me for the abundance of my face....
Staring into space. Love the eye light and the molding of the light around both sides of my face.