I was shooting for an upcoming article in Digital Photo Magazine the other day, and realized the obvious is sometimes the easiest. I was working with Kate, a terrific model in town, and we were working on some simple portraits. The day had started gray and overcast, so I packed a lot of lighting gear to make my own lighting reality depending on where the shoot went.
As the day progressed the sun starting breaking through the clouds creating some dramatic backlighting. But I was stuck in my preconceived shot, I wanted to work in the shade and create my own lighting. Have you heard the phrase ‘shooting with the blinders on?’
Luckily it dawned on me how beautiful the sun would be as an accent light to Kate. We found an alley with the sun streaming down the middle, and she leaned up against a wall for this shot. One Elinchrom Ranger was used shooting through a small square rotalux softbox.
Always stay in touch with your available light and how it changes during the day. Come to a shoot with your creative ideas, but always be aware of changing conditions. In this case, my lighting got a lot more simple. I let the sun work for me, not against me, and used one strobe for some fill light.
Tech: Nikon D300s, 70-200mm 2.8 lens, 1/200, F5.6, ISO 100. Elinchrom Ranger used for lighting.