How Creating an Outdoor Studio Can Make You a Better Photographer

I, like many photographers out there, don't have a studio, or don't have the money to rent out studio space every time I want to do a shoot. While shooting inside my house or garage is always an option, I found myself wanting to experiment more with ambient and natural light. Although I love shooting in a studio, a completely controlled environment, I learned shooting outside with backdrops was a great experience and taught me a lot about light.

I am always wanting to push my understanding of photography. While there are many areas to constantly push my knowledge, such as composition, how to provoke thought through imagery, camera gear, etc., I want to focus on the harmony of balancing strobes with natural light. I want to understand light better. I want to know how to shape it, control it, and use all types of light to my advantage. While I love natural light, I usually look for an excuse to bust out my strobes. I recently purchased some Savage seamless paper and a backdrop stand. I don't have a studio, and can't afford to rent a studio every time I do a shoot, so I wanted to experiment bringing my backdrops outside. I am a photographer on a tight budget. I also have a rather minimal amount of gear. I am always looking to get the most out of what I have. I believe this to be true for most photographers out there. I am hoping to show people how to get the most out of a minimal amount of gear.  While I know I am not the first to set up a backdrop outside, I want to share my experience and help others out there understand light better.  

It started with this Calvin Klein ad.

I was talking to a model who wanted to re-create a Calvin Klein ad for our shoot we had coming up. As I examined the ad photos we liked, I started to break down how it was lit. While there are many possibilities on how the photographer for Calvin Klein lit them, I came up with an idea. Since I don't have a studio, and didn't want to have to rent one for the day, I decided to drag my Savage seamless white paper out on a bright sunny day. Except for the firery hell we call summer here in Phoenix, I usually don't have to worry about wind, snow, or other weather conditions.

For this shoot, I didn't just want to unroll the seamless paper all the way and have her standing with a seamless background. Since we were outside, I wanted to incorporate a prop, maybe a wall like in the example ad photo. This was hard though because I was looking for a prop that was not in direct sunlight. I wanted something in shade, on a north facing wall (north walls generally provide even shade and lighting), and one that was on property I could actually shoot on. As I was driving I found a low, white dividing wall on the north-facing side of a building I could use.

 

The Setup 

Since we were in complete shade, the lighting on the model was very pretty, but also really flat. The first thing I decided to do was to add some rim lighting on her. I set up two Canon 600ex-rt's, one on each side of the back drop. These 600ex-rt's had no modifiers on them. In retrospect, I wish I would have thrown my Westcott octobox's on them for a little softer of a rim light, but I am still happy with my results of them being bare. I raised the speedlites almost as tall as the light stand would allow them and had them slightly pointed down. I did this so the wall would not block all the light from reaching her lower body when she was standing in front of the wall.

Now that I had my rim lights set up, I was looking to add just a little bit of contrast to her face. I decide to pull out my Impact 7' PLM umbrella, and instead of putting a light in it, I decided to use the silver lining of the inside as a big reflector. It was about 2 p.m. and the sun was at the model's back. I put the big umbrella about six feet from her, and since the umbrella was facing south, it caught the sun perfectly and bounced just the right amount of light back at the model, giving her a touch of contrast. The giant umbrella also gave the model a beautiful catch light in her eyes.

I was able to get these shots with very low-powered speedlights and using an umbrella as a reflector. This is why I love the power of ambient light. I didn't need expensive lighting equipment, a studio, or a lot of modifiers to achieve this. Since we were in the shade, the light was very even and natural looking. I could have achieved this same look in a studio, but it would have been a lot harder to have the same soft, even light. The ambient light is what made this shot: it provided the perfect amount of fill for the look I was going for. Not only did this shoot teach me how using ambient light instead of strobes as a fill can look great, but it also taught me to step outside my comfort zone. I usually would think a shot like this has to be done in a studio, or with a lot of equipment. I would never have captured these shots if it weren't for experimentation.

The Results

Camera Settings

Since we were outside, the camera settings would have some subtle changes, but for the most part these were shot at 1/160th sec, f/4.5, ISO 160, and speedlight power was 1/8th power on both. 

Camera gear used 

Canon 6D
Canon 70-200mm f2.8
(2) Canon 600ex-rt
7' Impact PLM
Backdrop stand
Savage paper

A few weeks later I was setting up another shoot and decided, since the first experiment with the outdoor studio went so well, I would try it again. This time it was a very cloudy day, so I did not have to worry about finding shade. The model had a very light complexion and sliver hair. I thought this would pair nicely with my new Savage seamless coral paper. For this look I wanted a very soft light with just a little direction to it. I decided to use my 7' PLM umbrella as my key light. I chose this light modifier because of the soft light it will give me. Its large size creates very soft window-type light. I placed two Canon 600ex-rt's in the umbrella (I used two at 1/16th power instead of one at 1/8th power for faster recycle times). The umbrella also had the white diffuser on it for softer light.

I decided to set up the paper close to a large white wall of a house. I did this because I wanted the large white wall to act as a fill from my key light. The umbrella is also feathered away from the model and towards the white wall. I did this to have less light on the background. Doing this also gave me more fill since the light is now pointing more at the white wall and bouncing light off the wall and back to the model. 

Just like the last shoot, I was very pleased with how the mixing of strobes and ambient light created a beautiful, soft light on my model. While the giant umbrella is giving some soft directional light, the ambient light and white wall are providing the fill light I need to create this soft look. Again, these can absolutely be achieved in a studio, but I believe it would take a little bit more work. 

The Results

In these last two photos, I feathered the light away from her even more, giving her face a little more contrast. I also brought the model a little bit closer to the light which made the background a bit darker. This is result of the inverse square law.

Camera Settings

Since we were outside, the camera settings would have some subtle changes, but for the most part these were shot at 1/200th sec, f/4, ISO 100, and speedlight power was 1/16th power on both.

Camera gear used 

Canon 6D
Canon 70-200mm f2.8
(2) Canon 600ex-rt
7' Impact PLM
Backdrop stand
​Savage paper

A photographer friend of mine (Matt Martian) who owns a studio recently experimented with setting up an outdoor studio as well. Matt went with a completely different approach, though. Matt only used natural light and went for a harsh look. Although Matt used harsh light, he set up a large scrim to diffuse the sunlight a little. The shots he got would be very difficult to achieve in a indoor studio. I love how he pushed his boundaries with light. The results he got are beautiful.

I moved the scrim around until I thought the lighting was good enough for me. I chose to go with natural light with this shoot because I wanted the lighting to be more on the dramatic side without over-complicating it. So I opted for the sun instead of using multiple strobes.

The Setup 

The Results

Although I loved setting up a backdrop and shooting outside, there are pros and cons to it. 

Pros

• Chance to experiment
• New way to shoot natural light
• Get to mix ambient light and strobes
• You can use ambient light to achieve really soft looks (as in my examples) or really harsh looks (as in Matt's examples)

Cons

• You are at the mercy of mother nature -- we got a little rain on the shoot with the pink paper
• Finding spots outside is more difficult than setting up inside
• May take some time experimenting to get a good shot

In Summary 

This can be a great way to experiment with light. This can also be a cheap alternative to renting out a studio. You can pick up a back drop stand and some paper for under $200. Add either some Alien Bees or speedlights to that for another couple hundred, and you can have a whole studio set up for about $500. Or you can go with the all-natural light look and maybe a reflector or scrim for an even cheaper alternative. The outdoor studio has helped me further my knowledge in photography and lighting, and I hope it inspires you to do the same. 

Fstoppers also has the new Groups feature to check out. One of the groups called, The Assignment, has challenges for you to participate in. The current assignment is to use a backdrop outside:

Description:

Who the heck needs four walls and a roof? Bring your backdrops and studio lights outside (backdrops and studio lights not required). If you’re a studio guy or gal, try to incorporate as much natural light as you can, and vice-versa for natty light shooters.

Goals:

Get out of your element, get into the elements. Learn to love the sun, maybe practice using a diffuser or using HSS on your strobes. Mixed lighting can be a beast. Shoot some fashion, shoot some portraits, shoot a friend, you-do-you. Bonus points for posting a picture of your outdoor setup.

Due:

The next assignment will be released April 17th, 2015, so try to get your images in before then (no sweat for later entries -- you're not actually receiving a grade). 

How it works:

When you've shot your assignment, make a new post labeled, Assignment 1 [Your Name], and tell us how it went! Feel free to like, comment, and provide positive C&C on other entries unless marked otherwise.