The story behind the image
In this particular case, the dance floor was outside on a terrace that was lit entirely by string lights. At one point, for whatever reason, I had to leave the dance floor and move further back out and upon doing so – I saw this scene. This wide scene. The couple danced under the string lights surrounded by their friends and it was then, at that moment, that I knew that there is gold to be found by stepping out of the norm and trying something new.
Composition
Finding the right composition was not exactly straightforward as I didn’t want to be so far away that you couldn’t see what was going on on the dancefloor, but at the same time, I wanted to capture as many elements as I could. I found a sweet spot just by intuition and I only did minor cropping in post. There were no major compositional rules that I followed here – only what I personally feel is balanced.
Compositional Rules
None / Simple
framing
Center FramedMiddle ThirdsWide
Focusing
Describe how you spoke to your subject(s)
Focusing in low light/night can definitely be tricky but fortunately, the abundance of string lights meant that whoever was on the dancefloor was being lit nicely. I had no issues focusing for this image as I simply moved the focus point over the dance floor and whoever it happened to lock on to would be just fine.
Focus Mode
Single Shot
Focus POints
Single Focus Point
Focused on
The Bride
Equipment &
Exif
Camera
Lens
Flash
Filter
1/160 @ f/1.8 ISO2500 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
As this was taken during the night time, the only light we had available was the flashes on our camera and of course the string lights that were lighting the dancefloor. As there were so many of them, there was actually plenty of light to work with. I didn’t have any control over how the light was falling or anything of that nature – and this was purely capturing the scene for how it was.
Light Type
Artificial Light
Light Quality
Soft
Time of day
Sunrise
Weather
Clear
Editing Workflow
How did you edit this image?
I chose to go with a Black & White edit of this image as I found the color version to not hold as much cinema as the monotone version. I deliver both to my clients; but persoanlly preferred the black & white version. I applied my preset, adjusted the exposure sliders until I found a nice balance of contrasts and used a little bit of brushing to darken the edges and distracting elements. It was by far not a complicated edit, but thats thanks to the preset doing a great job off the bat.
Editing Software
Adobe Lightroom CC
Preset Used
Challenges
The biggest challenge was finding a composition that felt balanced without going too far or too close.
Solutions
By using the live view mode on my camera, I was better able to see the entire composition and could make adjustments as necessary.
Location
Location Name
Severins Resort & Spa
Location aDDRESS
Severins Resort & Spa, Am Tipkenhoog 18, 25980 Sylt
Loation Type
Terrace
Country
Germany
Take a step back. If you find yourself running out of ideas when you’re shooting something, try and reposition yourself to see something from a new perspective or angle. You may be pleasantly surprised to find an absolute banger of an image just by moving a few meters away.
