Photographing Children in Natural Light by Bella West

Author:Bella West
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781847977120
Publisher: Crowood

Fig. 4.0

A location is only as good as the light within it.

Chapter 4

Location

A great location is a canvas to build on. It can be a significant factor in determining the overall feel of the final collection of images: a dominant feature in your portrait or a subtle accent to quietly embellish.

We mentioned observation skills earlier with regard to finding inspiration – this applies to watching for potential locations. Look for areas in everyday life which perhaps aren’t the most obvious. For example, a stately home such as a National Trust property offers wonderful opportunities for incorporating great architecture, sculpture and landscape. Sometimes, however, the most wonderful images are taken in the most ordinary places. Working in small areas of a client’s home can be testing, with perhaps not the most aesthetically pleasing of backdrops, so being able to source locations for the best light is important, as is being observant to the possibilities of an area.

Portraits shot in the natural environment are taken around the world, in the form of editorial or documentary photography, fashion shoots or even holiday snaps. Don’t just stick to what is considered a suitably obvious location or deemed as the norm. If you have an understanding of light and how it can lift a location, you will find opportunities for artistry all around you. Sometimes it’s useful to look beyond the immediate area as a wide open space; target perhaps a wall, look at the way grain and texture appears on some sleepers, or choose a plain wall if the way the directional light falls on it is attractive. The location needs to fit the feel of the image you have in mind – or indeed, it can decide this for you.

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