- afternoon
- intimate
- Soft Light
- Natural Light
- Natural
- Middle Thirds
- mid shot
- Mid range
- leaning back
- Laughter
- holding each other
- Beach
- Flowers
- cloudy skies
- Cloudy
- Close up
- Center Framed
- calm
- Bright
- bouquet
- Unposed
The story behind the image
It is important for me to depict the history and connection between two people in a single image. And this time out shooting together is important. I always explain to my bridal couples that this is a little “breather” from the hustle and bustle of the day – as it’s a beautiful time for them to just be with each other alone. And this is a big load of pure emotion every time and it is important for me to capture this feeling in the pictures so that the couple can feel it again when they look at the pictures.
For me, this kind of pose is always quite different. When the couple looks at each other and talks, it gives a different feeling than not looking at each other and just feeling the words and the physical contact. Both are incredibly intense but have different outcomes. Every couple is different and for every couple, one variation works better than the other. However, you quickly find out what is more intense for the couple. In this case, feeling and hearing were definitely more intense than seeing and hearing.
Directions
Describe how you spoke to your subject(s)
I asked the couple to stand behind each other and hold each other as close as possible and to move and feel themselves while whispering little anecdotes or memories or feelings that mean something to them.
What did you say?
Stand behind each other, touch each other, hug each other, whisper in her ear what you thought when you first saw her in that outfit.
Tone of Directions
Calm
Composition
For the short time of the couple shoot and with my focus on the couple and their story, the location is secondary to me. For the composition, a calm background behind the couple is more pleasant and draws the eye to what is essentially important – the couple themselves.
For this, I prefer to use a focal length of 85mm to make the background appear even softer and to differentiate between the foreground of the subject and the background. This focal length also allows me not to get too close to the couple, so that they can engage with each other more intensely, and still express intensity and closeness in the picture.
My goal here was the couple themselves and their emotions and thus the maximum impact in its simplicity, I can best achieve this through a calm background and through an appropriate focal length.
framing
Center Framed
Focusing
Describe how you spoke to your subject(s)
I focused on the bride’s eye, even when her eyes were closed, the automatic eye focus of the Sony A7III kicked in. I didn’t want to switch this off or change it in this case, because for me the bride and her reaction should be in the foreground and the part that is in focus
Focus Mode
Continuous Autofocus
Focus POints
Multi Point
Focused on
The Brides Eyes
Equipment &
Exif
Camera
Lens
Flash
Filter
1/640 @ f/1.8 ISO50 WB-Auto
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
The day was mostly cloudy with intermittent rain and sunshine. At the time of the photo, the sky was cloudy and about to have another shower. The clouds act like a diffuser for the sunlight and help make the skin softer and everything starts to have a more natural unadulterated colour palette. Cloudy skies and thus “dimmed” light are terrific to photograph. However, I always make sure to turn the faces towards the light or towards the sun behind the clouds. This way I avoid shadows on the faces when the couple is standing against the direction of the light.
So here too, the faces of the couple were turned towards the sun hidden behind the clouds. Light in a cloudy sky is the “simplest” kind of natural light and always softer than direct light. In this way, I achieved a balanced exposure throughout the picture and thus a clear and balanced image.
Light Type
Natural Light
Time of day
Afternoon
Weather
Cloudy
Editing Workflow
How did you edit this image?
I used my own preset “Lichttrunken”. My style is always a little darker because I want to achieve a certain drama and depth. After applying the preset, I adjusted the orange tones, the white balance, and the exposure. With the texture and clarity, I give the image more detail and sharpness.
Also, by comparing it to the original image, I always make sure not to deviate too much from the original colors and not to distort anything. I usually achieve this by adjusting the white balance and in individual cases by adjusting the individual color tones. In this picture, no skin retouching was necessary. I only use this for visible skin blemishes anyway, but never to make the structure of the skin feel fake or unrealistic. In addition, I always use a gentle radial filter to direct the focus even more towards the couple.
Editing Software
Adobe Lightroom Classic
Preset Used
Lichttrunken
Challenges
The challenge throughout the shoot was the change between clouds and sun. The wind was also quite challenging.
Solutions
For the change of lighting situations, the direction of the light always had to be taken into account. When it was cloudy, the couple should turn their faces towards the sun/light, and when it was bright midday sun, I made sure that there was more backlight or light coming from the side. It is important to try out different angles and not to insist on one direction because it is written in the textbook. Every shoot is different, every color is different, every skin looks different in the light.
Regarding the wind, I tried to integrate it into the image as a stylistic device. The couple was a bit wilder and more alternative, so the wind making the bride’s hair messier came in handy. The flying of the hair into the face was also super beautiful in my eyes.
Location
Location Name
Sankt Peter-Ording
Location aDDRESS
Sankt Peter Ording, Germany
Loation Type
Beach / Coastal
Country
Germany
Use the natural conditions such as light and wind and try and use them creatively. The choice of focal length changes the feeling and the composition of the image. I would shoot exactly like this again any time, a composition of calm and emotion, captured with purely natural conditions and an “intense” focal length.
