Want to play around with light in your photos? Meet your new best friend, the gobo – photography slang for an object that goes between the light and your subject.

It can be something as ethereal as lace curtains or as simple as holes in a tin pie pan. Whatever you use, make sure your gobo is six or so inches away from your light source to keep your patterns nice and sharp.

Watch the video below for a more in-depth explanation about shaping light, hosted by National Geographic Photographer Joel Sartore.

This helpful tip is just one of hundreds of techniques found in the course Fundamentals of Photography II, available now to stream on The Great Courses Plus.