It’s All About the Light: How Photography uses Lighting Techniques Developed by Old Master Painters

Photography, a relatively modern medium, borrows style and technique from great Renaissance painters. The Old Masters effectively used light in their painting to create spatial depth and provide a mood or temperament for their subjects. Since photography requires light to exist, photographers have taken methods used in painting to also inspire their works. Modern photography not only captures an exact likeness of its subject but through styles of lighting can bring emotion to a page and a print to life. This research compares Renaissance painting techniques to modern photographic techniques that involve painterly lighting styles in artistic and portrait photography