Perhaps by a show of hands virtual, how many of us have already been in a situation where we went to a location for a photoshoot only to discover that something unexpected as a marathon, a construction or a worse demolition, it prevents you from the use of the space that you wanted? And I am very serious in the example of the Demolition!

One of my local parks favorites has been the subject of a complete renovation a few years ago and, for months, the only thing that I could see, it was the demolition equipment all around. The Paths of earth that I liked a lot were all parties and the paths of bike of tar have taken their place!

The path of land with the coverage of the trees in the background was one of my favorite places in this local park. The light would happen through the trees and the path of land would act as a natural reflector and refer the golden light to my subjects! - Now to this whole area is a parking which leads to the trees!
I am a photographer of natural light in the open air for the most part. Therefore, I account on external sites for 75% of my photoshoots, including weddings that I photograph. The more often, my clients, the bride and groom, look at me for suggestions on outdoor locations natural to their portraits of married and their family formals. Even my customers of photos of family photos love the suggestions on the best places to beautiful photos of family, especially in the fall, when the leaves change color. To this end, I am always on the search for areas outside clean, beautiful and unique for my photo sessions.

Here are a few tips on how to explore and find the ideal location for your next photo session.

1 KNOW YOUR CUSTOMERS

Each customer is different and each photo session is unique. It is incumbent upon us to photographers to really know our customers so that we can adapt the meeting photo to their personality. This ensures not only that they will have a good time, but also that they will be more relaxd and happy during their meeting of photos. This means that you will get the photos that they are obliged to love and therefore you recommend to all their friends and family. It is a win-win for all.

For customers of my marriage, I have an official questionnaire that they fulfill to describe their style and that of their marriage. This allows me to plan places and poses that reflect their style and personality. For my family photos, I have a conversation with the family to see what type of photos they gravitate. Is it that they want to have fun outside in a park? Or do they want to get out at the house with each other? The Meeting of family picture is adapted to their needs.

My customers wanted adorable A Place in Nature among the trees. She said to me its choice of equipment in advance, then I chose this park with a small waterfall. It seemed well suited to their personality and the theme of the filming 'The Calm Before The Storm".

This session, on the other hand, took place in the House of my client. During the course of our consultation, she mentioned that she wanted to use its back-Court of 2.5 acres for photos. I knew the green of the grass and trees would add a lot of colors to My Topics, then I started over the clothing of neutral color. We also expected that the sun be past behind certain clouds ​​pour take some of these shots in order to avoid that too many color does flows on their faces.

2 - Scout at different times of the day

when I look at the potential locations for my photo sessions, I always try to visit the place several times during the day. This gives me an idea of the lighting at different times. The location receives it the direct light from the sun or is it dark and not receiving it that the Directional light? Is this a busy street and with a lot of people likely to walk and to enter in my shots? What are the profiles of traffic to access the location? All these small details are really important to be able to plan my day and my photoshoot so that I can obtain the best images possible in the time that I have among my clients.

Tip: If you can not get to a location in advance, use Google Maps and the Sunset / sunset to determine where the sun will be at the time of the photograph. This will help you to be a little prepared when you arrive at your location.

For a draw bridal editorial to a historical location beautiful, I have travelled to the location a few days in advance and I understood that the area where I wanted to photograph was full of sun at 14h00 (left)). Therefore, I knew that if I spent the photo session in the morning, this area would be in the shade and would be enlightened. Of course, the light was wonderful for my session of editorial photo! If I had not travelled the location, I would have liked to find the right place in the afternoon.

3 made attention to details

one of the greatest problems that most photographers face is linked to the light. All the lights are not equal and the photograph in different lighting conditions will lead to different results.

The light of the morning is generally fresh and subtle. The light of the afternoon is often severe, especially if you place your subject in full sun. The evening light tends to be warmer and golden. The light post-sunset is blue. You can photograph in each of these lighting conditions provided to know how to position and install and turn on your subject in each case.

Quality of the light
when you browse a place, pay attention to the details on the quality of the light at different times of the day. Another thing to keep in mind is the coulees of colors of the surrounding objects. It is very important with respect to the trees, the colored buildings and walls of graffiti. Try and find natural reflectors (p. ex. A white wall) which will bounce the light on your topics or use reflectors that are doing the same thing and balance the melting of the color. You can always the repair in the post-processing if all else fails.

A location in the historic reserve on the prairies is the favorite of a photographer in my city. But I find that the photograph to the inside of the front patio adds a casting of color of yellow ceilings and the Directional light (photo on the right). Yes, in a pinch, I will take the coup and the repair in the post-processing. But I prefer either photograph my customers sitting at the edge of the patio on the steps where they are always in the shadow of the arc of the patio, but have no color casting.

Therefore, instead of dealing with the color of the porch, I took my client outside the path of land by the House and I photographed down there. The concrete and the path of land accounted for of natural reflectors but neutral and a soft white light bouncing on his face, eliminating the coulees of colors.

4 - Go to other resources

I belong to several groups of photographer in-line and off-line and we constantly share of tips / tricks and ideas of location among the groups. These groups exist to hear and each is open and welcoming. If you shoot in a region that you are not familiar, try to find a group of local photographer for this region and ask for. Be friendly and authentic in your applications, and you will find the unique places and out of the path of the localistes in the region.

5 - Make a road trip

I love the trips to the road! It is the best way to explore new areas and to explore sites potential photographic who you will agree and your specific needs. I usually make my family, so it is a fun experience for all. In a pinch, my children will play also models that help me to test the light and the background before the shots of my clients.

A few years ago, I had a meeting of photo of the secondary school and his mother wanted to find a single place where we could see the colors of the fall. I have travelled around my region during a few hours but I did nothing that I really liked. I am stopped by a local farm to pick up fresh fruit and I understood that the farm had everything that I was looking for my photo session. I am therefore directed to the owner and I had the permission to photograph the next day. The mother of the Elder has had the photos that she wanted and I found a unique location for my photos of autumn.