I did a senior portrait session back in September for my nephew. For aesthetic preferences and social distancing reasons, most of the photos were done outside. Previously, whenever I’d shoot outdoor portraits, I’d just head for the shade and use that for even lighting that was easy to work with. It’s functional but not terribly exciting.
For this shoot, I decided to bring along some of my strobe kit to give me greater control of lighting. That was a good decision. Take these two shots for instance:
OK, here’s a shot that’s typical of my normal outdoor portrait style. Find an interesting location in the shade and shoot with even, diffuse lighting. It works but it’s kind of dull.
Now, take a look at this shot. It was taken minutes later at the same location with the same subject, same camera and same lens. The only change (apart from the pose) is the addition of my strobe with a medium sized softbox at camera left. That simple addition allowed me to drop my shutter speed a bit which darkened the environment but I was able to add enough light with the strobe to still have the subject properly lit. That gives some contrast between subject and location that highlights what I want the viewer to see. It also adds some soft shadows to give a little sense of depth to the subject.
There were a few shots that I used more lights for but mostly I was able to accomplish what I wanted with a single light. After the shoot, I decided that all I really needed to bring on future senior shoots in similar locations would be a single strobe, a battery, a stand and my delightful Paul C Buff collapsible beauty dish with its attendant diffusers and grid. That package wouldn’t add a lot of bulk and weight but it would give me a lot of creative options for some supplemental lighting.