- afternoon
- Moody
- Soft Light
- running
- Playful
- negative space
- Natural Light
- Movement
- motion
- full body
- Blur
- Front Lit
- Directional Light
- Dark
- Cloudy
- Center Framed
- calm
- broken rules
- Wide
The story behind the image
Directions
Describe how you spoke to your subject(s)
We were staying on a path where the trees created a natural frame and I wanted to keep Frankie in the middle of it. I asked the bride to simply run. Not only to keep her warm but as well I saw the potential of that dress – it looked like a flame when she moved. I asked her to run a few times there and back while I was standing in one place.
What did you say?
Frankie, I know it’s cold so this is going to warm you up. Can you run with your dress back and forth a few times keeping to the path?
Tone of Directions
Calm
Composition
I wanted to keep Frankie in the middle of the frame created by trees and the path. I kept her in the middle of the frame on my camera as well so I moved the camera with her. But all of these compositional elements were kinda lost due to the blur and so through the editing, I also made it feel balanced by keeping the bride in the center of the image with enough negative space around the frame to “isolate” her.
Compositional Rules
Broken Rules
framing
Center FramedWideFull BodyNegative Space
Focusing
Describe how you spoke to your subject(s)
I focused on the bride and followed her with the autofocus as she ran back and forth.
Focus Mode
Single Shot
Focus POints
Single Focus Point
Focused on
her back
Equipment &
Exif
Camera
Lens
Flash
Filter
1/10 @ f/18 ISO250 WB-Shade
The way the EXIF is written out follows the common photographic method (with the inclusion of White Balance at the end). Here it is broken down:
Shutter Speed @ Aperture ISO White Balance.
Light & Weather
This was taken purely with natural light in the forest and even though the sky was quite cloudy, I did notice that the bride was being lit from a gap in the forest off to the side. The forest was also very dense with huge trees which naturally created a dark background. This all worked well to create a natural contrast between subject and background.
Light Type
Natural Light
Light Quality
Soft,Directional,Front Lit
Time of day
Afternoon
Weather
Overcast
Editing Workflow
How did you edit this image?
I used Jennifer Moher Slate and Ivory preset. I wanted to keep this photo in black and white as the colour was too distracting. My eyes were drawn to the movement of the dress – as it looks like a flame. I used the brush on the dress to make it a bit lighter than the rest of the photo and to help it stand out from the rest of the image.
Editing Software
Adobe Lightroom Classic
Preset Used
Challenges
The only challenge was trying to find the ideal shutter speed.
Solutions
I made sure to shoot a whole bunch of images, with varying shutter speeds which I would then have a deeper look at and find the shot that I loved the most. It’s all part of the learning process.
Location
Location Name
Auchen Castle
Location aDDRESS
Beattock, Moffat DG10 9SH
Loation Type
Castle
Country
United Kingdom
Just play with the shutter speed and don’t be afraid of it – sometimes you will get nothing but often the photos will surprise you.
