- Bright
- Center Framed
- Dancing
- Energetic
- full body
- Indoor
- Leading lines
- Movement
- natural frames
- Natural Light
- Playful
- Soft Light
- Wide
- Window Light
The story behind the image
However, a portrait in a beautiful frame alone would not be enough, so I asked a couple to start dancing. I used a long exposure time to get the effect of fleeting and passing time. The photo was taken several times to achieve this blur. The only thing I would change about this photo is a different blur of the bride.
Unfortunately, I didn’t have much time. It was the couple’s wedding day. And their wedding was to be held in another city in 1 hour.
Directions
Describe how you spoke to your subject(s)
I asked the bride and groom to climb onto the platform shown in the photo. I spoke to the couple calmly but confidently. Then I asked them to dance, but I didn’t say what my vision was for this photo. They did not expect a blur effect, despite everything they liked the photos very much.
Thanks to the fact that they were moving, it was a little warmer for them. It was December and the temperature that day was around 0 degrees Celsius.
What did you say?
Please come upstairs, I will take a picture of you in this frame. You will look like you’re from the picture. Please take off your coat and show me the dress. I know you can do it. Now dance in the middle of the frame. It will be a beautiful photo.
Tone of Directions
Excited, Energetic
Composition
I believe that the central composition looks best in this place. Then the large frame seems simple.
This composition works because it feels natural to position the pair in the center of the frame. Thanks to this, they create a specific image, which was also my goal. The frame and blur are the most important elements here, but I removed rubbish, old boards and stones, which in my opinion disturbed the purity of the composition. On the other side of the camera, I also climbed the platform to be on the same level.
Compositional Rules
Shoot ThroughSymmetry
framing
Center FramedWideNatural Frames
Focusing
Describe how you spoke to your subject(s)
I used autofocus here, but later used a long exposure. Despite the blurring of the bride and groom, I wanted to keep other details. I wanted to have sharp walls and the frame itself, but only a few blurry ones, so I used autofocus. Additionally, I used a large aperture – f16 to make sure that everything would be sharp.
Focus Mode
Live View Single Shot
Focus POints
Single Point
Focused on
The bride's face
Equipment &
Exif
Camera
Lens
Flash
Filter
2,5 @ f/16 ISO100 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
This photo only had available light. I did not use any lamps or constant or continuous light.
The main light was found from the window on the left side of the frame (you can see it in the photo). The light reflects off the bright walls of the church, illuminating the frame. Such light is quite hard, sharp in the window, but maybe a bit too soft on the most important elements. Nevertheless, I got the desired effect in the photo.
Light Type
Natural Light
Light Quality
Soft
Time of day
Midday
Weather
Indoor
Editing Workflow
How did you edit this image?
I didn’t use any presets here. I used Adobe Camera Raw for editing and then Adobe Photoshop. I adjusted the HSL, removed a lot of yellow, lightened the shadows, and added contrast. Here, I was cloning unnecessary things both on the walls and on the floor. The walls had a lot of metal elements, which in this case spoiled the composition in my opinion. There was a mess on the floor, I removed the planks and stones lying around. Since the bride’s face was blurry, I cloned her from another shot I took then.
Editing Software
Preset Used
Challenges
The only minor problem was that the couple was about to have their wedding that day. That’s why we didn’t have much time. Another problem was the very low temperature and the bride was cold. Despite this, she was very brave and sacrificed herself.
Another thing is that with long exposure times we can’t really predict the exact effect. And so: if the bride’s body was nice in one shot, then it was bad in another. I couldn’t record it so that everything was perfect in one shot.
Solutions
Do sessions only in summer;)
Location
Location Name
Klasztor - Opactwo Cystersów
Location aDDRESS
Lubiąż
Loation Type
Church
Country
Poland
Such shots teach patience. I think if I had more time, I would repeat the same shot over and over again for an even better effect. Unfortunately, my time was limited because it happened 1 hour before the wedding of this bride and groom. Nevertheless, you should not rush and approach everything calmly.
Would I take such a picture again? Yes, I took a few similar shots of this place in the past and in the future.
