Natural reflectors and diffusers are a great way to make your senior really look their best. It isn’t always feasible to shoot at the golden hour and it is really important to know how to shoot midday in the summer or in any season.  It can be really challenging BUT that is what makes us all grow as photographers and it allows you to handle any situation you might come across.  Natural light is amazing.  It’s pure in color and you can take it anywhere 🙂  Many photographers do all they can to stay away from direct sunlight which often is harsh, creating deep shadows on the face, but I encourage you to get out and shoot when the sun is high and push yourself.  Don’t frantically search for shade, instead get out where it is bright and see what needs to be done to create a beautiful image.  Shade isn’t always the answer.  If the shade is too far from the light source then it is too dark or becomes lifeless.  It also can give off a very blue color cast.  That is not to say that you shouldn’t look for shade, just look for the quality of light and not so much the quantity.The image posted below was taken under a very open bridge in the city.  I had her sit on a rock and face the open sky.  The bridge ceiling and walls are a light grey concrete and so was the walkway.  This provided the most incredible reflector from all angles.  The sun was up high and was just above the bridge ceiling.  The awesome part is that the sun was hitting the light colored walkway and throwing soft light back up into her face.

By throwing light back into her face and having the bright sky above, the catchlights in her eyes were stunning.  Reflected light looks softer, even and makes color pop.  Skin looks radiant!  Once you learn to find this kind of light, you open yourself up to endless possibilities.  You can shoot most times of the day and without assistants holding reflectors and diffusers.

Another scenario is shown in the next image

 

She has strong light coming from behind and from ahead and above.  This breezeway allowed for the light to be both reflected AND diffused.  Backlighting can cause dark faces, but since she is facing the open sky and has natural reflectors all around, she is beautifully lit.  If you look at the brick at the very right of the image you can see that it is very bright.  This shows the amount of light from that side.This next image shows a mix of light sources which can be a mess if not shot right.

She was in an alley with light gravel for the road, light coming from above and ahead.  BUT notice the really bright light just behind her in the upper portion of the image. For this one, I used the 70-200mm lens to compress the background and to give a little more bokeh.  This took away the strong contrast that would have happened if I used a wider lens.  No reflectors were used, just her surroundings.In this next shot, the colors really pop and there is a little bit of a richer contrast.  The light was not as strong and was already at a bit of an angle.  So I faced her close to the edge of the overhang facing the brightest part of the sky.  Just to the left of the image was a big open parking lot with very light gravel.  It was throwing a lot of great light back into her face and the wall of the building where she is sitting.  Look at how it lights up her hair!  Her eyes look magical too.  While the shadow side of her face was toward a brick wall, it wasn’t close enough to give off a bad color cast.

  

I personally LOVE shooting in bright sun that is at a slight angle.  And this next image shows why…
 

The sun is behind her and up at a high angle.  Since she is facing a wall that is incredibly bright due to the sun hitting it and the light gravel below, I was able to expose her face properly without blowing out the side where the sun was hitting her.  Again, no reflectors other than my environment.  I did expose for her face on this one.

So as you can see, the possibilities are endless even when the sun is high and strong.  You will end up being inspired and motivated by the many options our natural environment provides us.  Best of luck and please, ask questions.

Lisa Carpenter
www.lisacarpenterphoto.com
www.shoot2shoot.com