Today’s video is another keystone in my Master Tips Series. I’ve shown in Shadow Hackers that contrast is not what we were taught and while shadow photography and pools should be first-year photography, it’s rarely taught anymore.
How to contrast photography pools improves all your photos fast.
In the video, I mentioned the free Portra 160 preset from Filmist, Silver 5 and Pictorialist. Also, make sure you join me for the next Shadow Hackers LIVE class.
Why shadow photography tools stop failed photos.
Taking advanced concepts and making simple methods out of them has been my mission lately because, in this AI world, practical photography technology is rarely taught anymore.
When I saw shadow block and contrast pools I also saw I was racking my brain to explain what I was seeing and how this worked. I realized that contrast is just pools of dark and light. But knowing the way those pools shape your photo changes everything.
Light and dark pools improve contrast.
We focus on shadow because if you start there great photos will naturally emerge. But as we see in the high key black and white you can not only use lighter pools but adjust them to make even windows disappear.
We’re using no cloning to Ai here. Just a practical use of tone value and zones. See the zone primer video here and we also look at them as we study shadow photography in Shadow Hackers.
There is no limit to your pools or to shadow photography
Once you start using shadow and contrast pools, they instantly give you building blocks to see any scene shadow first and build a strong image by moving, placing, and exposing elements to surround them in pools that lead the eyes.
You can have dark and light pools anywhere. But if you have none as we show in the “bad light” situation you will usually have a bland photo.
Contrast pools give you better photos and let you hack shadow hacking by simply framing your subjects with pools of feather-blended light and dark. shadow photography hacking completes the circle. Use pools from the camera to edit and you will be surprised.
Gavin Seim
