REAL NATURAL LIGHT PORTRAITS

I NEVER add light to my outside portraits unless it's past sunset. There's always plenty of light (usually too much light) one or two hours before sunset.  So, my goal is to find natural features, on my locations, to subtract light from one side to create a three dimensional quality to the portrait. Sometimes I use my Gobos--42" Black "flags" to block light when there's no natural alternative.  With the subtractive lighting technique you can create beautiful true natural light portraits; never needing so much as a reflector and most certainly NEVER polluting the scene with flash!

I tell my students, "If you think you need a reflector or flash then you have placed your subjects in the wrong spot!" 

The following set of images, from one of our recent fall family sessions, illustrates the subtractive lighting technique, my use of background light, and my use of relatively wide apertures with the longest focal length I can use given the constraint of the location.

f5.6 @ 1/160 sec. ISO 400, lens at 175mm

That big rock is perfectly placed for this time of the year!  The sun is setting behind it, giving me great back light.  There's a big patch of sky on the right--my key light. But, what makes this spot great is the row of trees on the left blocking the sky light on that side. Without those trees, subtracting that sky light, the lighting here would be flat, directionless and boring, creating, flat, two-dimensional people.

Both Images at f4.5 @ 1/200 sec., ISO 400, Lens at 200mm     

Then we moved to another favorite spot where I could seat my subjects.  This spot, again, has great back light, a patch of sky on the right, and the trees on the left blocking some skylight.  Their shadow side is more subtle here because there is also skylight coming from behind camera position.  For individuals I usually use a wider aperture and zoom to 200mm to create a nice soft background.

Both Images at f4.5 @ 1/200 sec. ISO 400, Lens at 200mm

Changing my camera position, in the same location, I made the backgrounds different for each of the kids.
 

Then we finish-up with a portrait of mom and dad. Backing off as much as I could (there's a large pond behind me) with  my lens at 168mm you can see why I like this spot. That big rock and old tree on the ground could not have been placed better for portraits!  The we moved to another favorite spot where I could seat my subjects.  This spot, again, has great back light, a patch of sky on the right, and the trees on the left blocking some skylight.  Their shadow side is more subtle here because there is also skylight coming from behind camera position.  For individuals I usually use a wider aperture and zoom to 200mm to create a nice soft background.

As usual, should you have questions please don't hesitate to drop me a note or make a comment.

Author:  Jerry W Venz, Master Photographer Certified
Training site:  http://www.LightAtTheEdge.com