I love the soft, moody feeling of photos taken by window light. The light skipping across your subject will illuminate texture and give you a lot of room to stretch creatively.

You can use direct or indirect light, each will give you a different feeling to your photo.

There are several ways I like to use window light. The first is shown in this photo above, where the light is coming in at 90 degrees (or so) to my subject.

The second, is to have the light coming in the window towards me, but at a bit of an angle so as not include the window in the composition. This angle beautifully brings out shape and texture. 

The third is to put my subject between myself and the window use the light as a “rim light.” 

Lastly, you can use the window itself and implement past Challenge skills like framing and silhouette!

You can also put your back to the window, but I want to encourage you to try these other methods instead for more dramatic effect! Try to stay away from defaults like black background photos.

Some tips for using Window Light:

1. Window light, unless there is direct light coming through the window, is not strong, so you need to use a higher ISO or lower Aperture setting (or both!) to get a good exposure.
2. Do a manual exposure and expose for the highlights. That means you want the light parts of your image to still have color and detail.
3. For best results off ambient lights so that the window light is your only source
4. Try doing a 360 around your window-lit subject. Notice how the light falls from every perspective, then pick the one you like the best!.

While a doorway can give you a similar look, I really want to challenge you to use a window. The light source is smaller and will yield a greater challenge and a different look.

To learn more, visit these links:

How to Use Window Light in Photography (Video)
What is Rembrandt lighting and how to get it with one window

5 Window Lighting Tips

Photography with Window Light

Once you have your image ready to upload, you have 24 hours from now to head over to the Challenge Facebook page and upload ONE IMAGE to the Challenge 6: Window Light Album.

And remember, while you're there, leave an encouraging comment about several other images in the photo album!

ps. If your share your photo on social media, use the tag #riseupphotochallenge!