FCK AMBIENT - Light Breakdown

[Opening: Diagram]

"So this passage had natural light... but it wasn't doing much for me. It was flat, lacked mood and didn't really separate the bride from the background."

[Cut to you]

"So instead of accepting the light that was there, I looked for another opportunity."

[Diagram]

"I noticed this doorway in front of the bride. Instead of thinking of it as just a doorway, I realised it could become a stencil for the light."

"So I placed a single speedlight as far back inside the room as I could. You never actually see the flash because it's hidden inside the room, firing through the doorway."

"By placing the flash deep inside the room, it fills the doorway evenly. The doorway then cuts the flash into a perfect rectangle of hard light that's projected onto the wall behind the bride."

[Cut to you]

"Before I even turned the flash on, I underexposed the ambient light until the passage felt dark and moody, but still had enough detail to tell the story."

"Then I simply increased the flash power until the bride sat perfectly inside that rectangle of light."

[Finished image]

"One speedlight. No modifiers. Just recognising an opportunity that most people would have walked straight past."

[End card]

"That's this week's FCK AMBIENT Light Breakdown."