- afternoon
- kaleidescope
- white background
- Unposed
- Soft Light
- simple
- Prism
- Natural Light
- Natural Frames Soft Light
- Natural
- Mid range
- Indoor
- Bride
- HD Presets
- gentle
- dark skin
- Dark
- curly hair
- Creative
- Closed Eyes
- Center Framed
- calm
- Bright
- Window Light
The story behind the image
Directions
Describe how you spoke to your subject(s)
I asked Breanna to stand in front of the window and take a moment to breathe. When I realized how beautiful the light was reflecting on her face, I asked her to close her eyes and think about some of her favorite memories with her partner, Chris. The direct sunlight from the window created the most perfect glow along her face and I positioned a glass prism in front of my lens to add a bit more depth to the image.
What did you say?
This light is so nice! Would you mind standing in front of the window and closing your eyes?
Tone of Directions
Calm
Composition
I try not to get too caught up in the rules of composition and instead aim to focus more on capturing the emotion behind a moment. For this shot, I noticed how beautiful the light was shining through the window and knew I had to take advantage of it. I asked Breanna to stand directly in front of the window it so it would create a soft glow across her face. I used my 50mm lens and positioned her in the center of the frame to create a simple portrait. When I noticed how powerful the moment felt, I pulled out my glass prism and placed it directly in front of my lens to create a more artistic effect. I wanted to highlight the depth of her expression by adding additional layers of her face across the image. This draws the viewer in and highlights the emotion behind the photo.
framing
Center Framed
Focusing
Describe how you spoke to your subject(s)
I used single-point focus to lock focus on the bride’s eyes. For still shots with little to no movement, I find single-shot autofocus to be the best as it creates incredibly sharp images.
Focus Mode
Single Shot Autofocus
Focus POints
Single Point
Focused on
the bride's eyes
Equipment &
Exif
Camera
Lens
Flash
Filter
1/1600 @ f/2.0 ISO320 WB-6400K
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
It was an overcast day, so the light shining in through the window wasn’t too harsh. Normally when I shoot with direct window light, I incorporate more negative space and shadows, but this light created a soft glow across Breanna’s face without losing detail in the rest of the image. On cloudy days, light from a window can be your best friend for creating some dreamy + dramatic portraits.
Light Type
Natural Light
Time of day
Afternoon
Editing Workflow
How did you edit this image?
I’m drawn to more neutral and muted colors, which is usually reflected in my editing style. I used the Whidbey preset by Henry Tieu (he is incredible!!) and played a good bit with the tone curve and colors to create more peachy skin tones. I wanted the image to be timeless yet bold and I altered the shadows a bit to achieve this look. I don’t do much retouching to skin and always aim for edits to be a natural and authentic reflection of the beauty people hold.
Editing Software
Lightroom Classic
Preset Used
Challenges
The biggest challenge was making sure the light wasn’t too harsh on the subject’s face.
Solutions
I repositioned her a bit to make sure the highlights didn’t blow out and I didn’t lose any detail in her face. Overall, the light was quite nice and there weren’t too many challenges with creating this image.
Location
Location Name
The William-Oliver Building
Location aDDRESS
Atlanta, Georgia
Loation Type
Private Home / AirBnB / Apartment
Country
United States
You don’t need epic backdrops to create meaningful + beautiful portraits. This was shot in an apartment before heading outside for a couple’s portraits and it was my favorite image of the day.
