The lights and backgrounds were all set up the night prior to the shoot. The pre shoot nervous knots were kicking and screaming and the beautiful woman scheduled for that afternoon arrived on time. The dye was set. Or so I thought. As the session began, the communication I shared with my model began to taper off. She seemed antsy and uncomfortable under the lights and during the moments I tried to keep a comfortable distance from my subject. She seemed to object, asking that I sit closer. Before long I realized it was the studio setting that made her feel overly self conscious and uncomfortable. Before I could suggest it myself. She asked if we could shoot in natural light. I wholeheartedly agreed and from there on we were cookies and milk.
After a short break we restarted. Finding a balance between window light and that of my external flash. And while I have come to detest using external flashes indoors. I found a nice way to bounce it properly to avoid those ugly shadows created when using it directly. I’m extremely happy with my new surroundings. The loft offers a nice balance and barrier between my work and living space. In the future, I’m going to have to work on defining and ultimately, separating the two. Until then, I have plenty of room to improvise.