Last week’s tip was to scout locations wherever you go. This brought up another point. I can’t tell you how many times I have heard a photographer comment about how they wish they had checked out the location before the shoot. I hope I am not out of line here, but why wouldn’t you?! I mean there will always be times when it isn’t possible to physically check out a location. But if nothing else I get online and look it up, find it on a map, see what the weather is like, etc.
Here is a perfect example. A while back I was asked to do a shoot at a local event location. I was told it was on the main floor and had lots of windows. The event was mid-day, so I should have a lot of natural light. My instinct was to plan for the light and to keep my back to the windows as much as possible.
This is the first test shot I took, jpg straight out of the camera (I shoot both jpg and raw). As you can see, the windows are all covered with curtains with colored lighting coming up from the floor. The ceiling is painted black, and all the chairs, tablecloths etc. are also black. The floor is reflective – in other words a white balance nightmare. Now, 15 minutes later I had the lighting worked out. I knew what to expect, what I would need to bring, and where the best places were to shoot from, and towards.
For a number of years, I would shoot family portraits at the Kinship Family Fair. Often this was the only portrait the family would get, so it was important to me to get it right. One year the venue was changed so I went to check it out. There was nowhere inside to set up. I ended up at a wonderful location outside, but this meant a totally different equipment setup. Instead of softboxes and backgrounds, I needed reflectors and sandbags to weigh down my tripods!
In other words – Always check out your venue before the shoot!