Blog post

How to shoot light and airy photos

How to shoot light and airy photos

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Very early on in my photography journey I stumbled upon a wedding photographer in Tampa who’s work I just absolutely fell head over heels for. His photos were so light and airy and I would go back to his website just about every day to look at his stuff and pretty much cry myself to sleep because I couldn’t figure out how to shoot like him and I was a huge wuss and didn’t want to email him because of a bad experience I had with a different photographer earlier that year.

It took a lot of trial and error, and years of practice to finally figure out how to do it (this was circa 2008/2009 so no one was sharing their photo tips online yet. The photo industry was a nasty nasty place)- but had I just emailed him and asked, it would have saved me SO MUCH TROUBLE, because turns out he’s a super super nice guy. I eventually met him at a workshop a few years later and we got to talking & he started referring weddings to me before I moved away!

I get asked a lot by photographers how I get my images to look so bright and airy and film like (dream achieved!) and I figured it was time for a blog post! Because if I can save even one person the agony of trying to figure it out on their own because they’re too scared to ask someone like I was…then cool (-:  Introverts Unite!

These are my own way of shooting and there will definitely be people who don’t agree and that’s fine.

1. Shoot with prime lenses

I shoot with ONLY prime lenses. Jay loves his zoom lenses and he uses them quite a bit at weddings but I never use them. Here is a list of the lenses I bring to every wedding:

Sony 24mm 1.8 (5% of the time on my camera usually for tight tight spaces & big group photos when I cant really back up too much & some portraits)
Sony 55mm 1.8 (95% of the time this is on my camera)
Sony 85mm 1.8

I love prime lenses because they make me work for my image and they make me think. My feet are my zoom so if I want to change the composition, I have to move. Also, prime lenses have the best glass! These lenses have large apertures (the smaller the f/stop number, the larger the aperture) that’s important to bright and airy images because LIGHT is KEY.

Brides details shot on the Sony A7iii & 55mm 1.8  lens with a lots of windows to the right & behind (about 4 windows total)

2. Shoot your lens wide open up to 2.8

Basically the 55mm is glued to my camera and I shoot it almost exclusively at 2.0 or 1.8.  Does this mean my images will be tack sharp all the time? Hell no! And I don’t WANT them to be tack sharp, I like softer focus (note: not OUT of focus) because that’s how I achieve the film like quality when I’m shooting digital.

Shooting at 1.4, 1.8 or 2.0 also lets in a LOT of light. Light = bright and airy. To a degree. Too much light can blow out details which is ok for a few images, but brides like to see the details of their dress too. My clients love that my images are bright and airy but also retain important details & colors.

The only time I lower my aperture is for group photos like bridal party and family. I never go above f/5.6 and honestly I can’t remember the last time I shot at that. I usually do f/2.8 or 4.0 for family photos (because mom will be buying those so I want to make sure everyone is in focus) but for wedding party photos I actually hang out at 2.0 or 2.8! I like giving those ones a little more of a dreamy quality.

I also always keep my IS0 at 400 because after 12 years of shooting weddings, I’ve found that to be my “sweet spot” when it comes to ISO. So in reality, my shutter speed is what I’m changing the most on wedding days!

An elopement shot on Sony 55mm 1.8  in overcast light – the couple is also standing on crushed white shells & light colored dirt, both of which reflect light back up into their faces for more luminance! 

3. The right kind of light

I will walk right by a gorgeous location if the light is awful. We can come back to it later, because no amount of Lightroom or Photoshop is going to fix bad light.

My favorite kinds of light are:
-Golden hour
-Open shade
-Full sun (GASP…I know. But I love it)
-Overcast
-Diffused back light

(I feel like I literally just listed every single type of light but there IS bad light out there)

I also look for natural reflectors like crushed shell & gravel walkways, light colored pavement, neutral or warm colored walls, etc.

I never shoot portraits outdoors with flash. I’m not saying you can’t get light and airy photos that way, but I don’t do it.

An engagement photo shot on Sony 55mm 1.8  in backlight – the light is not only being diffused by the trees but the gray dirt is bouncing it back on them

4. Archetype Profiles

It’s no secret that I barely edit photos (-; We try to nail everything in camera the day of from the exposure to the colors to moving things out of the frame.

However, I DO edit them with The Archetype profiles for Lightroom to give it my signature filmy look! I apply the profile I want to the photos (lately this is Ektar 100 because I fricken LOVE the punchy colors), make any tweaks that it needs and voila! Done.

TAP is awesome because it was created by a film photographer who wanted his digital images to be consistent with his film photos. Using TAP keeps my images bright and airy and lookin’ like film!

Shot on the Sony 55mm 1.8 in open shade & edited with Archetype Profiles

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charleston | new york | Europe

Vibrant, documentary-style wedding photography for fun, fashionable couples hosting an intentional, laid-back wedding with the people that matter most

Est. 2009

Luxury wedding photographer providing vibrant, documentary images for fun, fashionable party people in the U.S & Europe! Charleston based.

 

catherineannphotography@gmail.com