The difference between a good photograph and a great photograph
usually comes down to lighting. The way a shadow plays across the
subject's face will completely change the meaning and tone of the
portrait. The same face can look happy, sinister, sad, or almost
unrecognizable depending on what direction the lighting is coming
from, or from a flash directly on the camera, the face will be
washed out, flat, and shadow less. Unless accounted for with
digital filtering, taking pictures under florescent lighting will
impart a green tint, and incandescent lighting will give a yellow
tint to the picture. If at all possible, the best lighting is
natural sunlight, but even still the time of day makes a
difference, cool blues in the morning and warm reds in the evening
and an overcast sky usually cools the color as well as softens
shadows. The effects of lighting on a photograph are wide and
striking, and that is why the majority of items a professional
photographer carries are lighting equipment.
