Things I Wish I Learned Sooner Part 3

I bought my first camera in 2011.

I started my business in 2013.

I went full-time in 2017.

…and there are so many things that I wish I figured out earlier!

This new summer blog series is going to explore a few of the lessons it took me entirely too long to learn. Did you miss part 1 or part 2?

Overcast Lighting

As a natural light photographer who loves beautiful backlit images, I schedule most of my sessions at sunset on sunny days. If the weather will be overcast I give my clients the option to reschedule. Most of my portfolio is sunshine and I want my clients to have perfect weather conditions.

However, sometimes rescheduling isn’t an option and my clients want to move forward with cloudy (or stormy) weather.

I had to learn how to photograph a light, bright and airy style of images in overcast and I wish I would’ve spent more time practicing in cloudy conditions instead of avoiding them!

In the image above, I set up my subjects where I would normally if there was sunshine. However, the lack of sun emphasized how dark the leaves and branches of this tree were. It is dark, gloomy, and distracting.

Through practice, I’ve learned that in overcast situations I essentially need to do the opposite of sunshine. In the image below, the subjects are facing the light source (the sun behind the clouds) with their backs to distant trees. For my style, I prefer the colors, tones, and creamy background.

My only recommendation?

Practice in poor lighting conditions and work on your weakest areas:

Practice in rain.

Practice in harsh, mid-day light.

Practice in overcast.

Practice using direct light.

At model calls and during personal work I have to constantly remind myself to step past my zone of comfort and set myself up to fail. The best way to learn is through making mistakes and fixing them!