We have always talked about the importance of shaping the soul of the person represented, the need to deepen and highlight a part of their essence, of their being, the connection with the person represented is important, the technical and compositional aspects are also very important. But sometimes an important detail is forgotten. Essential, we usually talk about portraits in broad daylight, however, there are people who are night owls, a daytime portrait would not be exactly the right thing to describe your personality, do you think? His would be a night portrait. Capture her in her surroundings, at her most comfortable moment.
Now the flash may not be your best friend, whether you’re insisting on making portraits during the day because natural light is your thing and the flash effects aren’t great at all, or you don’t know how to use it. Or not, there may be several reasons. It doesn’t matter, what matters is if there is an alternative to please both sides and yes, there is, that’s what I bring you today, an article dedicated to ambient light or artificial light that you can use beyond flash. Are you curious? If you have night owls around you, or if you want to dedicate yourself to portrait photography, should you ?.
- Note that you will not get a clear picture.
- That’s not what you should be looking for either.
- If so it’s better to shoot the flash.
- These ideas are designed for other types of portraits.
- Which more than clarity seek to convey an emotion.
- Tell a story or have a certain aesthetic.
These lights, no longer allow you to take your photo, you can’t control or direct them as a flash or similar, nor do they have the same intensity but offer you other very interesting nuances. worry about noise, can it be part of the photograph?.
Now let’s go with the ideas
Many shops, bars or diverse establishments have in their neon stained glass windows to attract the attention of the public, which can serve as continuous light for your portrait, places your model very close to these lights and the frame for an interesting composition.
You have the option to include the letters as part of the portrait, if you consider that they contribute something to the story or composition and if not, let them have only one lighting function and keep them out of the frame. an example of the first option that works very well.
Okay, smoking is no longer good, it’s not healthy, in many environments it doesn’t look good and a thousand other things, however, there are still a lot of smokers. We started the article talking about capturing the essence and personality of the person represented, remember, if he smokes, and a lot, he doesn’t want to represent him by lighting a cigarette. The lighter, although the dim light will help you turn it on. your face enough for you to take a picture of.
You may also experiment, you don’t always have to light the cigarette, for example, by placing the lighter on the side of your face for more dramatic side lighting.
A very similar option in terms of the type of light and how to work with it is the candle, however, it is very different in terms of meaning and message to transmit, you can see it in the example.
Your next night portrait doesn’t have to be Christmas, but you can use its typical decorative lights to make it happen. Here’s an example, indoors or outdoors, with a more or less illuminated background, with more or less bokeh?As you want. You can get some really interesting effects.
This is another interesting option, either to take advantage of the bright line of cars in the city, or if you’re somewhere lost and you’ve arrived in your car, it doesn’t have to be an old car to appear in the photo, of course, that lights you up enough. Now, if the person you’re going to play is a car enthusiast and has a great one, don’t miss the opportunity!
Don’t have a studio or don’t want to use it, does this mean you can’t create interesting lighting patterns?Not at all, here’s an example. A very successful scheme for this portrait. Yours can be found anywhere, a train station, a shopping center, a restaurant. We are fortunate that there are now many lighting options in different public institutions. An opportunity you have to seize?
At many bus stops, you can find huge, illuminated billboards. Enjoy it like a continuous light window. Its light is diffuse and is not always as hot as that of candles, lighters or others.
It may not be very natural, it really isn’t, but it’s nice, there’s no doubt about that. The light of a rocket adds a glow to the night portrait that you won’t get much with other types of lighting.
There is no city worthy of that name without streetlights or projectors that illuminate important buildings, bring your model closer to one of these lights and you won’t have to shoot the flash, the way you capture the environment is up to you, but will you have it light?
Haven’t you tried light painting or light painting yet?Maybe the time has come. For the most creative portraits, use this technique. You’ll have a lot of fun. However, first do tests and master the technique, to the portrait session go with the duties done ?.
Most of these options can also be used for backlighting and creating a profile or silhouette. Not all portraits have to be close-ups or you have to see the full face, it can be a different and original portrait that counts without being shown.
After these ideas, I say good-bye and ask you two favors. The first is to put into practice at least one of these ideas as soon as possible, tonight, if possible, this week at the latest. If you leave it, this information will dissolve like star powder in your gray mass, it is better to put it into practice.
The second is that you share this article. If you found it interesting, gave you a useful idea for your next night portrait or inspired you in the slightest, you’ll probably do it with one of your contacts. Don’t deprive her of photographic inspiration, you never know when it might fail. !
Thank you and I’ll see you soon!