Author: scottyalanphotography

I recently did a portrait shoot with this actress and model who’s picture is above. Although we briefly talked before the shoot, it was our first time meeting in person. When doing a shoot with someone I have never met before I generally ask questions about them and tell them a little about myself in order to find something we may have in common and to break the ice. Our discussion led us to talk about various creative outlets and the like. One thing that came up was the fact that when being a creative person and providing a service for others with that creative outlet problems can arise. One of the most important things I do as a photographer is being a problem solver.

There are times when a client might come to me and need a particular photo for something and I have to figure out how to come through with the image that want. That also includes considering any sort of budget they may be on. A good example is the image above and the two images below. These photos were taken in the living rooms of these peoples homes. The image above was used for this gentleman’s album cover. The image below was used for acting headshot. The image below that was used for his business. I offer a mobile studio and I am able to go to my clients homes, set up, and get them the images they need without the cost of renting a studio.

As someone who is running a business and offering a service I am a big advocate of being able to meet clients needs with whatever they may want. One big factor in photography is understanding light and how light works. There are a lot of photographers out there who tag themselves as natural light photographers. A natural light photographer is someone who uses the sun or available light sources in order to light the scene for the photograph. That is fine and there is nothing wrong with that. Natural light can be beautiful light. However, being solely a natural light photographer can also limit oneself and it might mean missing out on certain clientele. Below are a couple more images that I made without the use of a studio. These were both done in a parking garage with flash in order for maximum control of the light from the sun.

In closing, I guess the big take away and point of me writing this is just to express that as someone who is offering a service, part of our job is to problem solve. And problem solving involves a certain amount of creativity in and of itself. There was a time in the past where I had a studio. However, in the times that I did not, I had to get creative on ways to deliver.