Using Contrast to make a great photo.

Contrast in a photo can make all the difference between an okay photo, and an awesome one. There are two types of contrast in photography. According to the article, Digital photography contrast highlight and shadows, Tonal contrast is the term used to refer to the range of grayscale tones between the darkest black and whitest white in an image. A high contrast scene has mostly black and white with few (sometimes no) shades in between.
Both kinds of contrast can work for a photographer when trying to pose a photo and set a mood.

Take the popular black and white newborn photos that most photographers do now. The bright white of the baby contrasts with the black background, thus creating a tonal contrast.

Posing your object or model in the shade and working with the sunlight coming in to create the contrast will look more natural then using a flash. I don't know about you, but I try not to use flash if all possible and I try to use the shadows that fall on your subjects face and where the light hits naturally is a much better look.

Working with contrasting takes alot of practise, but with time, you'll automatically find the right lighting and exposure and take beautiful photos!