Learn how to see light

If youre going to go out and make pictures that impress your friends, youre going to need good light. What is good light, exactly? Good light is the kind of light that gives a scene shape, depth and makes things look interesting. Generally, shooting indoors with artificial light or outdoors midday or with overcast skies is bad, flat and boring light. Youll know flat light when you see it - there are few shadows, if any, and everything looks evenly lit. Look for light with some kind of direction and color. This type of light happens naturally at just before sunrise and at sunset. Alternatively, window light is great because it has direction and its often soft and a little diffuse, so its not harsh on your subjects.Good light is especially important in mobile photography because you cant create much more interest with different focal lengths and varying depth of field. Youre stuck with one focal length, and one aperture setting. Its a very good exercise in shooting light and finding good composition.