Shedding Light on Artwork

The following article discusses the use of lighting in artwork, and how to make the most of it. Often we see original artwork that is stunning, but doesn’t quite deliver a feeling of realism. Of course, the intent is not always for an original piece of art to mimic real life. However, if the goal is to mimic real life, or give the illusion that something is real, then how lighting is used plays a key role.

To better illustrate the concepts in this article I will use photographs of real objects. While I could find examples of poor lighting use in artwork all day long, I’ll leave it to you to find your own examples.


Let’s get started by taking a look at this photo. Can you tell what it is? Of course you can! Look at it for a few moments and you can feel the soft texture of the petals as you rub your fingers over them. You might also get a distinct feeling of the sun high overhead. If you let your imagination go you might even smell the faint aroma of wild flowers in the spring. So what is it about this picture that is so powerful it can elicit these feelings by just looking at it for a few moments?

For starters, the photographer has done a great job of capturing the details. More importantly, the piece has depth and texture. Follow a petal slowly and you will notice minor indentations and the curve of the petal as it flows away from the center of the flower. The areas that face the light source, in this case the sun, are vivid and show little to no shading. In contrast the areas that are facing away from the light source are shaded and subdued.

Now look at the center of the flower. Notice that the very center is sunken, and the overall shape is rounded. See how the shadow is tapered closer to the light source and widens as it rolls over the curve of the pistil? It’s these things that allow us to see the depth and detail of the flower.

So how do we use this in our artwork? Let’s break it down.

First, once you have a concept of what your piece will look like you need to think about it’s surroundings. Start by determining what your light source is and where it is located in relation to your object. Decide if there will be anything between the light source and your object that might cast shadows, or reflect light.

Now consider what other objects are around your focal point and be sure to apply the same light considerations to them. You now have a starting point to work from for lighting. It is often apparent that an artist has not made these considerations, and the final product will have shading or gleam that is not consistent throughout the piece.


Consider this photograph. Make note of the consistency of shadows and reflected light on all of the objects. You should attempt to capture this type of consistency in your artwork by maintaining an understanding of your light source throughout the creation process. Be careful to not lose sight of your light source as you focus on individual components.

The last thing to understand is shadows. There are many articles and tutorials available that provide detail on how to create realistic shadows, so the technique is well covered. The point I want to make on this topic is awareness of shading to illustrate shape. Quite often we see tutorials that depict a shadow on a flat surface, which is much different than the same shadow cast on a round object. When creating your piece, if you are having a hard time making a contoured shadow look correct, just recreate it in real life so you can study it, and then apply the look to your artwork. Use paper cut-outs, or objects of similar shape, to setup a model and see what happens when you position a light source at the correct location.

Don’t be afraid of attempting realism in your artwork. By taking a little time to plan out your lighting, shading, and the relation of objects within your work, you can bring just about anything to life. Capturing a vivid memory, or a whimsical fancy, that convinces the viewer of reality is what sets a stunning piece of art apart from one that is merely good.

Nice article Jim, and very useful for ppl using Photoshop that want to create realistic images! Next to that a pleasure to read

Thanks for adding

As Rick states a pleasure to read, thankyou for adding this Jim.

Great article jhelton, thanks!

Very Good Mariaan

Do you have an example of realism with proper lighting that you've created in Photoshop?