Hard vs soft light
Hard light · Soft light
Simplified simulation
Softness doesn’t depend on the gear itself but on the apparent size of the source as seen from the subject: bigger or closer = softer shadow edges
Catchlight · A Field Guide to Light
Light is everything in photography.
A lighting guide for beginner photographers — what gear to use, where to put it, and exactly how the light falls on a face. Try it all in the studio simulator.
Start with the basics ↓Move the mouse or drag on the image to move the light · Keyboard: ←→↑↓
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02 — Fundamentals
Light fundamentals
Four things every photographer should understand before touching their first light: hardness vs softness, distance, direction and colour. Every lab is fully adjustable.
Inverse square law
Inverse square law — drag the light in the diagram
Simplified simulation · fixed exposure
−5 EV−20+2
Brightness falls with the square of distance: 2× the distance leaves ¼ of the light = −2 stops The closer the light, the faster the background falls off relative to the subject
Direction of light
Direction — pick a position on the clock ring
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Colour temperature
Colour temperature (Kelvin)
Camera white balance 5500K
03 — Studio Playground
Studio Playground
Drag lights on the top-down floor plan, pick a modifier, power, height and feathering angle, then see the camera view on the right. The app names the lighting pattern on the face automatically.
Top-down plan (Top-down plan)
Grid 0.5 m · drag / ←↑↓→ · [ ] switch lightSubject
Simplified simulation
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Catchlight · eye close-up
Lighting ratio—
Meter at the face—
Histogram
04 — Setup Library
Setup library
12 proven setups. Each one has a diagram, gear list, placement steps, why it works and common beginner mistakes. Press “Load into Playground” to watch the lights move into place.
05 — Natural Light
Natural light
The sun is the one light you can’t move — but you can choose the time and where you stand. Scrub the timeline to see how hardness, shadow length and colour change through the day.
Simplified simulation
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Window light (Window light)
Drag the subject closer to or further from the window
Simplified simulation
06 — Product & Tabletop
Tabletop & product
Glass doesn’t “take” light, it reflects and refracts it. So we don’t light the bottle directly; we light the background or panels beside it so the edges of the glass show up as lines. Matte objects, on the other hand, need light falling on them directly.
07 — Quiz
Guess the lighting
Look at the render and guess which setup made it. Watch the nose shadow, the shadow edge on the cheek, the catchlights in the eyes and the background brightness.
Simplified simulation
Question 1/8Score 0
Which setup lit this photo?
08 — Glossary
Lighting glossary
Every term used in this guide with a short definition. Search by name or by alternative name.
No matching terms