As a photographer you don't always get the final say as to what time of day a shoot is to take place. I typically try to schedule portrait sessions within an hour and a half to two hours till sunset. With the sun closer to the horizon, this allows for more creative potential working with the sun and within the shadows that it casts, as well as shooting during the "golden hour" when the light is almost magical.
With that said, a few weeks ago I found myself at the Boston Common/ Public Garden scouting out the area in anticipation of an engagement session that was to take place within the hour. There was not a cloud in sight, the sun was shining straight overhead, and the temperature was warm enough to comfortably wear short sleeves and shorts. In my head, the line "It's sunny and 75, it feels so good to be alive" from a song by the Silver Jews was playing on repeat as my thoughts were simultaneously dreading having to battle that big beautiful sun and its delightful rays. The area was packed with many Bostonians strolling about contentedly, taking in the gorgeous weather, but all my thoughts were filled with the images of harsh shadows and blown out backgrounds that I would confront through the viewfinders of my cameras. This "perfect" day was going to be a constant and continuous struggle to keep the sun from sabotaging my shoot.
Abysmal conditions aside, Vinayak and Priya, were a wonderful couple to work with, despite claiming having very little experience in front of a camera. When it comes to posing, I tend to place couples in spots that make for nice backgrounds, give a few simple directions, and then allow the scene to unfold in front of me. For some couples this doesn't always work, so more direction is needed, but with Vinayak and Priya, this was rarely the case. I was pleasantly surprised by how they were able to focus on each other at times and produce what seemed to be authentic moments. Their smiles rarely looked forced and during these moments I felt like I was taking candid shots, exactly the way I would want such sessions to go. They even were very patient as I dragged them all around the entire garden, trying out different spots and experimenting with the light that was available. All in all, it was a relaxed shoot and there were a few appearances from their dog Louis. I was able to make peace with the sun and in the end, I was happy with the results. Here is a gallery of some of my favorites from this session:
