I find shooting on location more of a challenge then working in studio.
I don’t have control of so many factors, light, placement of backgrounds. In the studio I can be active, on location I need to be reactive.
When I am on location the first thing I look at is the light/ sun.
Overcast— great!!!! like being in a giant softbox and don’t have to worry about direction… just can’t show the grey sky. Some of my favourite lighting conditions. I am lazy and don’t like to think to hard, or work too hard on an image.
Bright and sunny— deep shadows, very directional. limits my posing and placement… first task is to find ( or create) open shade. Shoot with model between me and the sun ( use it as a back-light or side-light as in this image) use fill flash, or ambient fill to fill in the shadows.
Darkness… not enough ambient to expose properly… great shooting if you use flash, and drag the shutter to let ambient light in.
These images were shot in a 3 to 4 hour period. The boy scout motto of “Be Prepared” is critical.
