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Dec. 27th, 2022
Jessica Goldfarb
Social Media Account Manager
What’s the one thing that can make or break a photoshoot? The one thing you should always work to plan around? It can make the difference between hours of editing and an immediate good photo. Allow us to shed some light on the situation…
That’s right, we’re talking about lighting. A properly illuminated subject makes for a happy photographer, and in the end, a happy client.
Unfortunately, not every photoshoot location is beautifully bright. Instead of fighting against the light you have, learn how to work with and around it. Don’t fight the light! 
(No, not the beverage.) Natural light is always preferred for the best quality photos. When shooting outdoors, this is fairly easy to achieve! Wait for a day with partial clouds, aim to shoot in the mornings, or choose a location slightly in the shade to get the perfect diffused natural lighting.
Indoors, natural light is a bit harder to achieve. Windows are your friends! Move your shoot close by to a window or skylight to get that natty light glow.
Position your subject facing towards the window rather than in front of it to avoid them being back-lit. Pro tip: rooms that are South facing tend to get the most light!
For headshots, filming for UGC, or any shoot where the face is the focus, a ring light will do wonders. There are standing ring lights for professional shoots, or ones perfectly sized to hide behind your laptop or keep on a desk.
They even make ones that are small enough to clip onto your smartphone for the ultimate best-lighting selfie!
Let’s say you’re shooting indoors, in a room with no windows, and awful yellow-colored light fixtures. Since there is little to no workable light, you’ll need to bring your own. It’s time to bring out the big guns!
There are many types of portable external lights you could get. We recommend for ease and for the best price to invest in some LED panels. Usually, these will come in sets of 2 or 3 to avoid having harsh shadows from one directional lighting.
You can use lights in any situation that you feel needs to be just a little brighter, it doesn’t have to be specific low-light conditions. Extra light helps add a bit of extra oomph to almost any photoshoot!
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