Syllabus

Syllabus

Instructor: Chris Callis

ccallis@sva.edu

PHG-5413-B (97945) STUDIO

The Laws of Light and How to Break Them

Fall 2016, Wednesday 1:00pm-5:50pm

Location: SVA MFA Photo Studio

Who should take this class: 

Anyone interested in learning photographic lighting.  No prior knowledge of lighting is required.

Class Description:

This course is an opportunity to learn the laws of light and to gain an appreciation of how important an understanding of light is to a photographer’s process. The class will begin with an exploration of the physics of light in order to explain its behavior. The weekly sessions and assignments will teach the student how to approach every lighting experience with confidence.  The purpose is to master these concepts and to ensure effective application of this knowledge. The ability to problem solve is a crucial element when faced with challenging lighting situations and without this understanding it is very difficult to move beyond obvious limitations. The ultimate goal is to be able to apply these concepts and then to see all the possibilities.

 

Assignments:

Each week there will be a demonstration and a class exercise that will end with a weekly assignment. There will be a total of thirteen weekly assignments and one final project.

Each student will post their weekly assignments on their lighting blog along with a sketch and brief explanation of their results.

Grading:

A commitment from the students is expected. Being on time, prepared with homework and ready to learn are requirements.  Active participation during the demonstrations is also required.  The student’s aesthetic approach to lighting along with the blog presentation are factors in grading.

Schedule:

9/7     Lesson  1:   Intros, ID photos, Blog, Lightroom demo, Inverse Square Law

9/14   Lesson  2:   Angle of Incidence, Light Travels in a Straight Line

9/21   Lesson  3:   One Light Source - Direction of Light, Diffusion/Diffraction

9/28   Lesson  4:   Simulated Window Light

10/5   Lesson  5:   Three Light Sources - Ratio, Hollywood lighting

10/12 Lesson  6:   Size Matters

10/18 Lesson  7:   Color of Light - Strobe & Continuous, Gels, Balancing Light

10/26 Lesson  8:   Dedicated Flash

11/2   Lesson  9:   Outdoor Flash

11/9 Lesson 10:  Speedlight System

11/16 Lesson 11:  Specular Reflection - Cross-polarization, Still Life of Shiny Metal and Glass

11/23 Lesson 12:  Night Photography

11/30   Lesson 13:  Light Painting

12/7   Lesson 14:  Bring in a lighting problem to solve

12/14 Lesson 15:  Review final assignment