Light Painting in Photography

Recently I learned how to paint light with indoor photography. Light Painting in photography is a way to achieve ‘Rembrandt Lighting’ or ‘Chiaroscuro Lighting’ but achieving this look in photographs.

When using the Light Painting method in photography, one tries to achieve contrast between the light and dark areas, making subjects seem three-dimensional.

The photos below were taken by using a Long Exposure setting, a flashlight, and a light reflector.

Below is the very first light painting I attempted:

Next, I tried light painting with an LED light wand. It was fun to try different colors while using long exposure.

I learned this Light Painting technique from my Comm316 teacher, Caryn Esplin. Caryn originally learned this technique from the world-famous, Dave Black.

The above photo was one of my favorites. I love how the textures are highlighted.

This light painting was done with a flashlight and an LED light wand (green and red):

My favorite photo ended up being of the boots, below. I love the way the beads pop and the fur looks so soft. The mix of textures is very pleasing to the eye. I loved experimenting with Light Painting in Photography.