Gentle Light
“Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.” (James 1:17, NASB)
Today I have been thinking about the use of light in photos and how it is the light that is what makes an image attractive to us. The more light that is captured and reflected in the image the more the colors stand out and the greater the contrast between the light and the shadows brings a depth and power to the photo even when we don’t know exactly why the photo is beautiful to the eye.
There is a concept of contrast called “foil” that refers to the use of a contrasting darker background to make the subject stand out. The use of shadows in photos is one way to use this in landscape photos. The interesting thing about this is that when editing a photo sometimes making the image “pop” has more to do with darkening the shadow areas more than increasing the light.
Life is much the same way. We as humans find ourselves much more drawn to people who are living in light rather than darkness. The Bible has 58 verses that speak directly about light and many of these directly teach that the Lord Himself is the perfect light. When we walk with Him and invite Him into our life we reflect His light and the amazing thing is that the darker the world becomes the more this light shines and becomes beautiful as it contrasts with the darkness.
In photography it is the gentle use of light that is most attractive. If the photo is overexposed and harsh then it will not be a beautiful photo and if the sensor did not capture enough light it will be dark and dreary. Consider your own life and the light you are casting in your world. Is it harsh and overbearing or is it gentle and drawing to others? So often we forget to be gentle with those around us and instead become overbearing and end up blinding them rather than drawing. When our light is not gentle it also overpowers the details of the beauty of the truth of the Word of God just as overbearing light in a photo will cause the details to be missed.
Take a few moments today and think about your own handling of the light that you have been given. Are you covering this light up or letting it shine? Are you being gentle so the details can be seen clearly? Think about who is the source of light and His gentle touch and do the same.
