An Appreciation Post for Yellow Lighting
Let’s be real for a minute: you ruin photos, Yellow Lighting. You ruin all the photos.
And while I’ve bemoaned your existence for thwarting my attempts to capture that deliciously decked out appetizer in the dim restaurant or trying to take a cute selfie in my apartment, I know you mean well, Yellow Lighting.
For one, it would be dark in my south-facing apartment without you. The sun doesn’t reach through my windows at all times of day, like it does for recipe bloggers and lifestyle influencers around the interwebs. And I wouldn’t be able to continue reading late into the night or scaring potential closet monsters and/or imagined spirits without your brightness, Yellow Lighting.
You’re much more comforting than fluorescent light and more sensible than neon. But you’re only acceptable when I’m taking a photo of something adorable or funny, such as a baby doing something responsible and grown-up, like wearing a bow-tie while reading a newspaper with a sippy cup filled with coffee, no sugar. You’re great when a dog is doing something very dog-like in the kitchen, looking fluffy, eating food, putting their wee dog paws in the air like they just don’t care. Basically, any of those instances where I just need to shine light for the viewer, not when I’m providing aspirational, eye candy. That’s where you shine. And that’s fantastic, because I need to use you.
See, you’re a handy light— maybe not the most attractive luminary source but you serve a purpose. You have a duty.
But, I’m sorry. I just need natural light to get all of the details of that bakery’s sprinkled doughnut for my Instastories. I need natural light to spotlight my bright and airy home— to show I’m doing okay in the world. It’s proof that I’ve risen above the dirty, smoky streets and am at least a few stories above it all or, at the very least, on a beach somewhere where my house is mostly un-insulated panes of glass and minimalist furniture, maybe a large waxy plant in the back, soaking up all that tasty natural light.
It just makes my haircut look more expensive, my apartment to look cleaner, makes it easier for me to do my eyebrows, and keeps my two apartment plants alive. Plus, my selfies just look ten times much better.
So while I won’t necessarily shoot any photos or stories in my apartment under your warm radiance, know I still appreciate you, Yellow Light. I see the good work you’re doing when I scramble to turn on a lamp in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom. You’re doing your thing when I open the fridge, and you’re keeping us company while we drink around the kitchen table and reminisce under your glow. But you’re the best when I hear a creak at an odd hour and get spooked because I just watched It and need to leave you on through the night to keep nightmares away. You’re doing you. And that’s all I can ask for.
