Whether you prefer to work with natural light, or don’t have studio lights yet, this boudoir photography tutorial will give you some great ideas.
Working with light to create mood is a significant component of beautiful boudoir photography. Some photographers prefer to do this by shooting in locations with gorgeous natural light. Others prefer working this way to make the most of available light and minimize their shooting setup. If this sounds like something you want to try, let this video tutorial by Los Angeles-based Michael Sasser be your guide on three ways to shoot with natural light for beautiful boudoir portraits.
Of course, you can also achieve great results with lighting equipment and light modifiers. But if your shooting location has some gorgeous natural light, might as well take advantage of it! In the video below, Sasser demonstrates how to us three different techniques for natural light boudoir photography.
First, a pro tip: install sheer curtains over the windows if your location doesn’t have them. These will filter the light coming from the windows to produce a beautiful diffused light that’s great for skin tones.
Front-lit shots are pretty straightforward. Just shoot with your back to the window and your model facing the light, so their face and body are nicely and evenly illuminated. Next is the backlit shot, which is useful for emphasizing the shape of your model’s body. The key to this is to form a triangle with the light, your subject, and yourself with the camera. As Sasser noted, you can move around to adjust your triangle, so the light accentuates the outline of your model’s body. Lastly, the silhouette shot is another straightforward technique like the front-lit, just done the other way. Simply shoot with your model directly against the light to focus on the shape of the body even more.
Want more boudoir photography tips? We have a bunch here or head to Michael Sasser’s YouTube channel for more of his photography videos.
Screenshot image from the video