Tuesday Tips & Tricks: Finding the Light

{Charleston, SC Children’s Photographer}

One of the best ways to improve your photography (and the very FIRST thing I teach in my Snap Happy classes!) is to understand light.  Different light possesses different qualities, and not all light is ideal for photographing people.  Finding the light is crucial!  My personally preferred outdoor lighting is the soft glow of the very early morning, and the hour before sunset.  It’s friendly lighting, as it envelops subjects in even light and doesn’t cast harsh shadows the way lighting at midday can do (um, total raccoon eyes at noon on the beach?!).

When shooting indoors, I like to photograph my subjects as close to a large window as possible.  I don’t care for using my flash if I can help it, as the directional light from the window casts soft shadows and gives dimension to my subjects.  Overhead light is as unflattering as midday sun, as the eyebrows block light from reaching the eyes and give the same raccoon look as the overhead sun at midday.

When you are outside and it isn’t the ideal time of day to shoot out in the open, then they key is to find some open shade.  In this image, I placed these siblings in the shade of a big tree with the sun at their backs, resulting in even lighting on their faces.  The term “open shade” means that you are in the shade but can still see the sky.  So next time you are out and about, see if you can identify some: just inside a doorway. just under the overhang of a porch, under a tree, on the side of a building . . . once you start looking you can find it just about anywhere!