What’s More Important, Lighting Or Composition?

Most of us have seen photos that are just not good. It may be that the photo is too bright, or too dark, or maybe someone’s head is cut off in the photo or their arm is only partially in it. We can recognize how lighting can affect the quality of a photo, if it’s too dark we can’t see what the photo is of and if there is too much light, faces or objects could be washed out and it does not make for a quality image. On the other hand, how the subjects are placed in the frame matter too. An image of someone with a lot of headroom makes us second guess the subject. Like are we focused on the sky or on the person at the bottom of the image? How you place your subject in an image plays a big role in the quality of the image. A widely used guide to composition is the rule of thirds. Keeping this guide in mind will help you create well composed images.

Linked below is an article written by Robert K. Baggs from Fstoppers. In the article, he discusses two fundamental elements of photography, lighting and composition. He explores the question which is more important in photography, lighting or composition.

Which Is More Important In Photography, Lighting Or Composition?

Baggs concluded that composition was more important than lighting, and I would agree. It’s really a tough call to make because if one component is off, then the whole image will look off. I think about giving advice to other photographers, and if there was one thing that I could tell them. It would be to focus on composition and let the lighting skills develop over time. Baggs is justified in saying that both lighting and composition are crucial to capturing a great photo, and gives a great answer after giving us a different way to look at it.

It can definitely be argued that lighting plays a larger role, let me know what you think in a comment!