With the ever growing presence of online photo sharing sites like flickr and facebook, amateurs and professionals alike are bombarded with millions of images every day to observe and study. Photographic masters such as Richard Avedon, Irving Penn, Yousuf Karsh, and Steven Meisel have, for years, been creating iconic images that photographers of all levels have used to study and compare lighting techniques. It does make sense for a photographer to study photographs to help heighten their knowledge however, taking a more cinematic approach can prove to be not only beneficial but well, relaxing at the same time.
It’s time to put down the photographs, grab a snack, the remote, and snuggle up in front of the television. What do I mean? The entertainment of keeping your eyes glued to the tube for hours on end can often times keep you distracted from noticing the basic lighting patterns that you’re so quick to notice when you pick up a picture, in fact when you start to notice the the different methods used you just might forget to pay attention to the plot. Make sure you ask for a TiVo for Christmas if you catch my drift.
