Chasing Illumination, Not Objects
It’s a trap that nearly every new photographer falls into. You see a stunning landmark, a colourful bird, or a fascinating person, and your immediate instinct is to raise the camera and capture it. But if you’re chasing subjects and not the light that illuminates them, you might be missing the single most important ingredient for a great photograph.
This idea was brilliantly articulated by travel photographer and Sony Ambassador Pat Kay in his insightful YouTube video, “5 Signs You’re No Longer A Beginner Photographer.” While his video covers several key milestones, the very first sign he highlights is a shift in priority: understanding that light is the most important thing in photography.
Why Light Trumps Your Subject
It sounds obvious, doesn’t it? Without light, there is no photograph. But the real magic happens when you stop seeing light as just a technical necessity and start seeing it as your primary creative tool. Beginners often get bogged down in technical settings and the endless pursuit of better gear, or they fixate on finding an inherently ‘interesting’ subject. The intermediate photographer, however, has learned to notice the light.
They see how the soft, golden glow of the late afternoon sun can transform a simple brick wall into a tapestry of texture and warmth. They understand how a misty, diffuse light can turn an ordinary forest path into a scene from a fairy tale. The subject itself becomes almost secondary; it is the vessel through which the light tells its story.
As Pat Kay suggests, the key is to flip your approach on its head: Don’t follow the subject, follow the light. Let the quality, direction, and colour of the light guide you to your composition. An seemingly mundane subject—a park bench, a flight of stairs, a puddle on the pavement—can become utterly captivating when bathed in beautiful light.
Seeing the Potential in the Everyday
This principle is powerfully demonstrated in architectural photography. A building that appears bland under the harsh midday sun can become a dramatic sculpture at dawn or dusk, with long shadows carving out its form and highlights accentuating its lines. It’s a perfect example of how chasing the light, rather than just a famous landmark, can yield far more compelling results.
Light has the power to transform structure into something more than its function. In “The Fire Escape“, I waited for the sun to slip into position, casting long shadows from the top right of the frame. That fleeting angle revealed the peeling surface of the building in sharp relief, turning weathered texture into a study of form and time.
Your New Photography Mantra
So, how can you put this into practice? The next time you go out with your camera, make a conscious effort to ignore the ‘obvious’ subjects for a moment. Instead, ask yourself these questions:
- Where is the most beautiful light right now?
- Is it soft and even, or hard and directional?
- What colour is it? Warm gold, cool blue, or something else?
- How is it interacting with the surfaces it touches?
By training your eye to seek out beautiful light first, you will naturally start to find more unique and emotionally resonant subjects. Your photography will move beyond simple documentation and into the realm of art. It’s the surest sign that you’re leaving the beginner behind and embarking on a much more rewarding photographic journey.
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What’s a moment when you noticed the light transformed an ordinary scene into something extraordinary in your photography?