Guiding light

A grasp of lighting equipment brings enormous benefits to your photography. It means you can lift your subject under any conditions, or achieve all manner of different styles. Good lighting can elevate a photo beyond the ordinary. It speaks of a professionalism and competence that separates the serious photographer from the amateur smartphone snapper, and it's also a great deal of fun.

With supplemental lighting, our choices are huge. When we shoot with natural light alone then there's usually only one exposure that lets us correctly capture the scene in front of us. But if we can start to add in our own light – be it with a speedlight, a studio head, a lamp, or even a torch – then we have freedom to create different looks and bend the exposure to our will. We could, for example, subtly boost our subject by filling in the shadows, or transform the look by overpowering the ambient light.

However, light can be a troublesome beast to master, and even those who have successfully used lighting equipment for years often struggle to fully control or even comprehend it. For the beginner, talk of guide numbers, light meters, modifiers and flash duration can be daunting. ‘I prefer to shoot exclusively with natural light' is a common phrase, and a perfectly fine opinion. But there are plenty who would admit that, in part, the preference is because they are uncomfortable with using lighting equipment.