Assignment- HighKey & LowKey

HIGH-KEY Is a style of lighting for photography that focuses on reducing the lighting ratio present in the scene. High-key images often have white or washed out backgrounds, and often time the images loose detail in the highlights.
One way to achieve this effect is with multiple light sources (mainly from the sides and back of the image). Back-lit images can also be high-key.

Richard Avedon, a hugely influential and successful fashion and portrait photographer, often photographed with white backgrounds. Some of his images could be considered more high-key.

LOW-KEY Is a style of lighting for photography where the overall image is dark and typically the light source is only one key light. Low-key images have dark backgrounds or they are darker overall. Sometimes photographers use a reflector to fill in some of the shadows, if anything is used at all. Please note that you do not need to only use unnatural sources of light to achieve a low-key image. Sally Mann made Low Key images in natural lit situations by finding and using intense areas of shade and by completely controlling the elements of exposure.

images by Sally Mann