Practical examples of light temperature for photographers

Even the complete novice in the world of photography

will quickly come to learn that lighting is crucial to the art. And the fact is, there are many, many types of light out there.

In our everyday lives, we see lights of all different shapes and sizes. Some give off a large quantity of light, others are rather dim. Some use traditional round bulbs, others take on a spiral shape. Then there’s the whole thing about the type of light, some of which include the old-school incandescent bulb, florescent tubes often seen in office buildings or highly efficient LED lights just to name a few.

But one of the key factors in lighting for photography is that of light temperature. And no, I don’t mean how much heat the bulb gives off.

While there are any number of charts out there that take a scientific approach to explaining the concept of light temperature, sometimes there’s nothing like real world, practical examples. With that in mind here are a few photos that you might find helpful.

Street lights:

The first example shows a warmer light temperature (orange tint) while the second shows a cooler light temperature closer to that of natural light.

Headlights:

The first car’s lights are a close to the temperature that simulates daylight while the second features warmer light again with that orangeish, yellowish look.

Florescent tubes:

This image shows a variety of light temperatures side by side. On the left the temperatures are cooler (blue) while the middle image is white and closer to that of natural daylight. The two lights on the right are warmer in terms of color.

Hopefully this might help you to understand light temperatures a bit better rather than just relying on some rigid chart.

Abstract photos from cell phone cameras

Even with all the strides in technology we’ve made over the years, probably any true student of the art of photography will tell you that cell phone cameras can never complete with the real thing.

That being said, even those of us who consider ourselves serious shutterbugs enjoy taking a quick and easy snap shot on our phone or other mobile device once in a while.

And all in all, there is one thing that these cameras can do to produce art on some level. They are an excellent tool to works with abstracts.

Below are two recent examples I took with my Android powered Samsung Replenish. I’ve always been a fan of playing with the balance between light and shadow and noticed this scene one day while leaving my home. I had the phone so I figured, what the heck.

Hope you enjoy them.