Portrait of a stranger.

[DanOstergren]

Can I ask about your lighting here? Since it's an event, I assume it's natural, but it's so soft and directional...are you using a diffuser, or maybe the sun is bouncing off a building?

I was shooting in open shade. We were underneath some trees that created shade and depth on one side, and on the other side it was open, allowing the daylight to illuminate him.

 

[cherylynne1]

Can I ask about your lighting here? Since it's an event, I assume it's natural, but it's so soft and directional...are you using a diffuser, or maybe the sun is bouncing off a building?

I was shooting in open shade. We were underneath some trees that created shade and depth on one side, and on the other side it was open, allowing the daylight to illuminate him.

You make it sound so simple, lol! Whenever I go under trees it's a dappled, green-tinted disaster. I need to go practice, I must be missing something. Maybe I'm under the wrong kind of trees. Or the wrong time of day.

Thank you for your response!

 

[DanOstergren]

Can I ask about your lighting here? Since it's an event, I assume it's natural, but it's so soft and directional...are you using a diffuser, or maybe the sun is bouncing off a building?

I was shooting in open shade. We were underneath some trees that created shade and depth on one side, and on the other side it was open, allowing the daylight to illuminate him.

You make it sound so simple, lol! Whenever I go under trees it's a dappled, green-tinted disaster. I need to go practice, I must be missing something. Maybe I'm under the wrong kind of trees. Or the wrong time of day.

Thank you for your response!

If the sun is out, try positioning it so it's behind your subject even if it's being blocked by trees or anything else, and have the person face an opening in the trees on the opposite side of the sun.

 

[cherylynne1]

Can I ask about your lighting here? Since it's an event, I assume it's natural, but it's so soft and directional...are you using a diffuser, or maybe the sun is bouncing off a building?

I was shooting in open shade. We were underneath some trees that created shade and depth on one side, and on the other side it was open, allowing the daylight to illuminate him.

You make it sound so simple, lol! Whenever I go under trees it's a dappled, green-tinted disaster. I need to go practice, I must be missing something. Maybe I'm under the wrong kind of trees. Or the wrong time of day.

Thank you for your response!

If the sun is out, try positioning it so it's behind your subject even if it's being blocked by trees or anything else, and have the person face an opening in the trees on the opposite side of the sun.

Ohhhh...I feel like a light bulb just went on! I've been thinking of the sun as a key light and the tree as a diffuser, and that's why it's all messed up. The sun is more like a hair light, and the sky is the key light, while the tree is more like a flag than a diffuser. It's so simple that I feel like a moron. Thank you so much!!

 

[DanOstergren]

Can I ask about your lighting here? Since it's an event, I assume it's natural, but it's so soft and directional...are you using a diffuser, or maybe the sun is bouncing off a building?

I was shooting in open shade. We were underneath some trees that created shade and depth on one side, and on the other side it was open, allowing the daylight to illuminate him.

You make it sound so simple, lol! Whenever I go under trees it's a dappled, green-tinted disaster. I need to go practice, I must be missing something. Maybe I'm under the wrong kind of trees. Or the wrong time of day.

Thank you for your response!

If the sun is out, try positioning it so it's behind your subject even if it's being blocked by trees or anything else, and have the person face an opening in the trees on the opposite side of the sun.

Ohhhh...I feel like a light bulb just went on! I've been thinking of the sun as a key light and the tree as a diffuser, and that's why it's all messed up. The sun is more like a hair light, and the sky is the key light, while the tree is more like a flag than a diffuser. It's so simple that I feel like a moron. Thank you so much!!

Natural light is fun!

 

[droaingsong]

Natural Lighting is the best and my favourite ones to work with. Then all you need to think about is the angle and view for the shots.

 

[DanOstergren]

Natural Lighting is the best and my favourite ones to work with. Then all you need to think about is the angle and view for the shots.

Natural light is great, but I don't think any type of light is better than another. Light is simply light, and what matters is how the photographer uses it.

 

[pjaye]

I feel exactly the same as Leonore. This is a gorgeous shot.

 

[DanOstergren]

I feel exactly the same as Leonore. This is a gorgeous shot.

Thank you!

 

[pjaye]

You (and Leonore) just helped me put a finger on something that I had noticed in your photography, but wasn't sure why some of your images made me uncomfortable. And it is that you put us really close to your subject(s), inside their personal space, (the intimacy that Leonore mentions) and by extension inside mine. If you had left some more space above his head, I'd feel less close. Now that I'm aware of it, it's a neat trick of perception. I'm going to have to try it myself to see if I get some aspect of that effect. Learning moment.

That intimacy and closeness is important to me, because I feel that it creates a very strong connection for the viewer. I may sound stubborn when rejecting other's critique when it comes to that, but the closeness is very intentional on shots like this.

This. When you post pictures like this, it's the personal up close connection that draws me in.

 

[DanOstergren]

You (and Leonore) just helped me put a finger on something that I had noticed in your photography, but wasn't sure why some of your images made me uncomfortable. And it is that you put us really close to your subject(s), inside their personal space, (the intimacy that Leonore mentions) and by extension inside mine. If you had left some more space above his head, I'd feel less close. Now that I'm aware of it, it's a neat trick of perception. I'm going to have to try it myself to see if I get some aspect of that effect. Learning moment.

That intimacy and closeness is important to me, because I feel that it creates a very strong connection for the viewer. I may sound stubborn when rejecting other's critique when it comes to that, but the closeness is very intentional on shots like this.

This. When you post pictures like this, it's the personal up close connection that draws me in.

I'm glad you get it. I feel the same way.

 

[birdbonkers84]

This is a lovely portrait, I love how the soft light rolls across his face and the tone is perfect. I do agree that tight crops make portraits feel more intimate, my only gripe, which is probably more personal preference is that few strands of hair cropped off at the top.

 

[DanOstergren]

This is a lovely portrait, I love how the soft light rolls across his face and the tone is perfect. I do agree that tight crops make portraits feel more intimate, my only gripe, which is probably more personal preference is that few strands of hair cropped off at the top.

I think I'm understanding now what you and the others who pointed it out meant. I could keep the tight crop but still fix the hairs.