Question about lighting

homerun_homer

I have to answer a question based on the 4 main lighting types;
Hard light - Flash
Soft light -Indirect such as sun coming through the curtains, or cloudy day
Natural light - The sun etc
Artificial light - lamps, candles, halogen etc

I have to explain how I would use each type when taking pictures and why. I don't want to come across as lazy by posing the question here but I've formulated some answers but it just doesn't seem enough. I've discussed it with a friend and we have differing opinions on what type of light fits into which source (such as bouncing the camera flash off a wall - is it considered hard or soft).
If you have suggestions on each I would greatly appreciate the advice.

ThOnda

Hard light - direct beams of light producing sharp shadows (direct sunlight)
Soft light - dispersed light producing soft shadows (lamps with soft boxes)

Only my opinion on terminology.

homerun_homer

ThOnda wrote: »

Hard light - direct beams of light producing sharp shadows (direct sunlight)
Soft light - dispersed light producing soft shadows (lamps with soft boxes)

Only my opinion on terminology.

Exactly why this question is causing annoyance to me and a friend of mine. What we have to base the answer on is extremely weak, and I summarised above what it lists as the source of each type. There wasn't much to sum up either, the course is a joke.

5uspect

There's also the issue of colour balance. If you're using candles you'll get nice soft light but lots of reds. Gig photography too is often full on red. A flash with a gel, if allowed, can boost the rest of the spectrum.

homerun_homer

5uspect wrote: »

There's also the issue of colour balance. If you're using candles you'll get nice soft light but lots of reds. Gig photography too is often full on red. A flash with a gel, if allowed, can boost the rest of the spectrum.

The question and piece it was based on are so simple and slight that I don't think I'd need to get too complicated with my answer. But the lack of proper direction with it all is what has me posing the question on this forum.

In what instances would you use each and how would you best use the light source?

PopeBuckfastXVI

The apparent size of a light defines it's hardness or softness. A small apparent light source results in hard light. Think a little undiffused flash far away. Sticking a shoot through umbrella over it or bouncing it off a wall will increase the size as the subject sees it, and so increase the softness. The sun is a massive light source, but it's apparent size to us here on earth is tiny hence it's a hard light.

Actually I'm just paraphrasing strobist, here's the link, you can read up on it yourself:

http://strobist.blogspot.com/2007/07/lighting-102-unit-21-apparent-light.html

Fajitas!

Well, there's a scale between hard and soft light, wheras natural and artifical is moreso a yes/no answer.

Soft = sun through clouds, softboxes, umbrella's, bounced light, etc.

Hard = snoot's, bare bulb, standard heads, direct sunlight, etc

Though there is plenty in between.

Artificial light is pretty much anything apart from the sun or moon. Candles, flashes, torches, whatever. It's much more clean cut.