Low-key lighting

Photopedia

13 November 2008 14:16

Low-key lighting refers to the use of subdued, directional or lowlight conditions to heighten mood and drama in your images. Low-key lighting is reminiscent of the classic 1940’s and 50’s cinema genre, film noir. These black and white films employed low-key lighting techniques that created hard, dark shadows in a scene – befitting the dark narrative themes. To create a low-key shot, use directional light modified using a snoot or other channelling device. To find out how you can take a low-key portrait for yourself turn to page 43 in Digital Photo’s December 2008 issue.