Photo Assignment 3: Shooting in low light

Tessa Trivax, a junior majoring in fashion media and journalism at Southern Methodist University, photographs Justin Trivax as he waterskis on Pine Lake in West Bloomfield, Mich., on Sunday, Sept. 21, 2025.

Tessa Trivax, a junior majoring in fashion media and journalism at Southern Methodist University, photographs Isabella Rickel and Lily Krut in Dallas, Texas, on Thursday, Sept. 18, 2025.

Tessa Trivax, a junior majoring in fashion media and journalism at Southern Methodist University, photographs Highland Park Village in Dallas, Texas, on Thursday, Sept. 18, 2025.

I shot this assignment in low light with no flash. The water reflected stray light, and a flash would have flattened the scene and distracted the skier. The result was a moving subject in dim conditions, which presented blur and noise. I had to rethink settings and timing on the spot.

My first photographs were underexposed and soft. I relied on auto settings too long, which dropped the shutter speed and introduced motion blur. Pushing ISO without a plan also created noise that softened detail in the spray and the rope.

In the two Highland Park Village images, the sun slides lower and the light deepens. I worked my position so the glow framed the subject instead of washing it out. I kept the sun just outside the frame to avoid flare and let the rim light define edges. I metered for the highlights to protect color and kept shadows a bit deep to hold mood. I used a faster shutter to keep the subject sharp as the light dropped and raised ISO in small steps.

I watched reflections in glass and stone to guide where I stood and how I angled the camera. The goal was simple, let the light carry the viewer while the subject stays clean and readable.

I learned to treat low light action as a timing problem, not just a settings problem. Next time I will arrive earlier to scout angles and test exposure as the light drops. I will keep shutter speed as my priority, commit to RAW, and use panning more deliberately. The challenge forced me to plan each frame and trust technique over the quick fix of a flash.