Often, photographers will learn a new lighting technique or other photographic trick and look for a subject on which to try it out. Generally, this is a misguided approach.
Lighting (or any photographic technique, really) is a specific form of expression. And in an ideal world, form follows function.
In the example above, photojournalist Mathieu Young's lighting is dictated by a need to both add texture to the scene and to protect the anonimity of the worker. Rather than a pre-conception, the lighting style is the last in a conscious series of steps and decisions.
Step one: Gain full access—with your cameras and lighting gear—to an illegal cannabis farm… Read more »
