Creating Different Lighting Scenarios in a Space
Lesson 15 from: Strategies for Shooting in Difficult SituationsSusan Stripling
Creating Different Lighting Scenarios in a Space
Lesson 15 from: Strategies for Shooting in Difficult SituationsSusan Stripling
Lesson Info
15. Creating Different Lighting Scenarios in a Space
Lessons
Class Introduction
03:02 2Looking for the Fundamentals in Photography
07:54 3Equipment Selection: Lens Breakdown
25:13 4The Importance of the Moments
12:51 5Macro Wedding Ring Scenario
08:10 6Brides Reflection in the Mirror Scenario
04:25 7Family Moment Scenario
02:37 8Using Light in Interesting Ways Scenario
04:55Setting Up the Scene Scenario
07:57 10How to Combine Lights in Scene Scenario
07:31 11Dark Background & Light Foreground Scenario
11:15 12Working Through a Scene Scenario
11:31 13Shooting Complex Detail Scenario
14:18 14Creating Dramatic Light Scenario
05:30 15Creating Different Lighting Scenarios in a Space
06:14 16Shooting Different Light Angle Scenario
06:30 17Shooting in Parking Lot Scenario
06:59 18How to Shoot Difficult Light Scenario
06:04Lesson Info
Creating Different Lighting Scenarios in a Space
take a look at these two rooms. It's living rooms. It's a living room. It's anybody's living room. It's nothing. Fancy nothing. Plane. It is just a nice, homey, wonderful living room. Two couches over here. Those were the same two couches over there. That Sandra texting on the job. The bride wasn't there yet. It's OK. Now look at that red chair over there. Look at where the red chair is in relation to the window. I took the red chair. I grabbed a silver tray silver tray, see it right over here and took a picture of the flower girls shoes. Why does it look like this? It looks like this because the light is coming in at an angle. And once I've exposed correctly exposure comp minus 1.3. That red chair becomes a black background. There's no light on the chair. The light is on the subject. Take out the tray, take out the shoes, Poppins and flowers. Okay. I did those things. Then the bride arrived. I wanted to give her flower girl a gift. And she said, Hey, I want to get my flower girl a gif...
t. Where should I sit on? I said. I would just sit right there. This is the sofa that has the window at her back. What's happening here? The little girl sits here. The light comes through, illuminates the bride's hair, lights up the little girl F 22 So the focuses mostly on her. But the bride is also still largely and focus because she's still on the same focal plane if exposure compensation only down about a stop. But it was deliberate. Having the little girl sit there was deliberate. Sometimes these things happen and you can't pick where they're gonna be. But if they ask you Hey, where should I sit? Or if they're like, Hey, I want to give my flower girl a gift You could be like, Great. Just have a seat right here because you know what you're looking for. Same house. The room right next to it had these beautiful windows and a nice piano. So I started off with the shoes right there on the panel. You see, right there the curved lit of the piano shoes put the shoes on, the curve lit of the piano. It is not any sort of magic. It's just me crawling around on the furniture. 85 millimeters F 14 exposure compensation minus three because of all of that darkness. Same room, totally different lighting scenario. She wanted me to shoot the invitation. I put them on the exact same silver tray that the little girls shoes were sitting on. Put it close to the window, flat on the ground. Nice, flat light. I'm not looking for anything crazy here. I just want it to be even So I've already showed you that by putting the rate the shoes on the piano, I get directional light. Now. I just put this stuff directly on the floor, and it's flat because of the angle of light. Sort of hard to see the exit data, but the important take away is it's a F 71 so that everything is in focus because again, invitations kind of important. Then I turned around dresses in the window. They're the settings, so you can see I'm working through these rooms with different lighting scenarios and what's making them different. Different lighting scenarios is because I'm coming at them from different angles, so the dresses air in those windows. The bride goes to get ready. I have her directly face into the window like that exposure compensation at negative 1.7 brides faces perfectly exposed. The rest of the room darkens down. In contrast, I go from there to there by just changing a lens and not moving at all. Same lighting pattern. She's in the same spot. There you go. Same lighting pattern. Brides still in the same spot. Remember that room with the red chair that we shot the little girls shoes on? I went in there and shot through the door, going back and forth with the same lenses, seeing the scene in color and seeing the scene in black and white feels different, doesn't it? And for a finale, I went back to the space where the bride is getting ready. You see where she's standing right there. I just had her sit down on the ground instead of shooting with the light at my side, the way I am here, the lights coming directly onto her face. But I'm in a side angle. I stood with the light to my back, so I'm literally standing with my back against those windows up on a little step stool or a chair or a piano bench thing was actually on the piano bench 85 14 at So you see that in a quick, crazy 45 minutes? Max, Um, I was able to use two rooms to make a variety of different images that look like they could have been shot in a variety of different places. It's about learning your gear. It's about being able to assess the light from different angles. Sometimes it's about standing on the hood of your rental car. You got to do what you gotta dio I am in a high school parking lot. The sun kept popping in and out of the clouds and in and out of the clouds and was trying to find somewhere that I could go to take this great image of the bride and groom like I just saw this picture of them walking through this field. I was in Wisconsin, it was amazing, and I fail in the path. I found a field, and the light was coming from the right angle on. It was peeking in and peeking out, but I couldn't get myself at the right angle. And so I climbed up on the roof of the rental car for that for the first time, I've got my 24 to 1 20 millimeter at play. I like that lens. I don't use it a ton. Um, I use it enough that it's sort of paid for itself. It's sort of worth it, but it was a good versatile ends for this situation. But sometimes you get all of those things together. The light, the background, the composition, the subject, the gear. But your angle is just kind of off. So get down or get up or go to the side or move around. You can keep going.
Ratings and Reviews
user 1c7bd6
Wow! Fabulous course! Ditto with the above reviews! Thank you, Susan, for giving us such helpful information for shooting weddings in such challenging situations. You have such a brilliant and quick mind for making the magic happen! The camera settings by each photograph was so very helpful. Since I didn't write anything down I shall be in search of your books. Susan's class is a must for anyone considering a career in Wedding Photography. Thank you Suan and Creative Live!
Kat Penniman
As the description says: MAKE SOMETHING OUT OF NOTHING! Spot on! Thank you Susan for sharing what you know and helping me become a more creative photographer despite less-than-perfect scenarios. As photographers, oftentimes, we find ourselves placed in a position where we are expected to create beautiful photos in the midst of difficult situations like low light scenes or crappy background. Her explanations are very clear and she definitely knows her craft. She cares about her clients and she's determined to give them great pictures despite what's thrown at her. If you are a strobist or use flash in most of your work, this course is not for you. But if you a natural light photographer and sometimes struggles to take photos indoor where light source is very challenging, take this course! You won't regret it!
Jessica Lindsay-Sonkin
Susan is amazing. This class is a pile of case studies, with behind the scenes and camera settings, to help you find the light. There are parts that can be repetitive, but that is because Susan is passionate about helping photographers memorize this message and put it into practice. A worthwhile watch!
Student Work
Related Classes
Wedding Photography