This time of year, the days are rapidly getting shorter while the sun gets lower and lower in the sky, playing havoc with architectural lighting. In the summer, an architectural photographer only has to consider sun direction on the facades of a building, but as fall arrives it gets more complicated. Lower angles mean adjacent buildings and trees throw shade in areas that only a month before were in full sun. Even worse is that north facing facades may not get direct sun at any point during the day. Let me show you how to deal with it.
This north-facing home is in shadow much of the day during fall due to an adjacent grove of trees
Last week I was tasked with photographing a newly constructed home in Milton. During the initial walk through my Sunseeker App indicated that the front facade would have full sun from 7:00-9:30 am. Perfect, I thought. Not wanting to disturb the homeowner, I figured I would grab a cup of coffee, wait for traffic to subside and get there at 9:00 am on a beautiful sunny day. When I arrived, I got a rude awakening finding that the tall grove of trees to the east had already shaded the front of the house.
Change of Plans
Foiled by the light, my shoot was a bust. I re-contacted the homeowner to shoot the following day, with a 7:00 am arrival. Again they put all their curtains at a pleasing height, cleaned up the yard, and moved their vehicles out of the driveway. Arriving at 7:00, the sun was so low that it was behind the far-off ridge of trees and not directly hitting the house yet. The pre-sun lighting was pretty soft, but I shot some safety images that would do if needed - see below.
With a little Photoshopping this would work if it had to
From 8:10 - 8:20 the sun rose enough over the far-off tree line to give me some nice dappled sunlight, and I started shooting. Lightening the shadows later on in Photoshop gave me several terrific pictures.
From the previous day, I knew that in just minutes the adjacent grove of trees would cast heavy shadows on the house, and my window would close. Working fast I looked for sunlit areas I could use to add interest to the shot and tell a nice story. Part of the trick in working with shadows is to focus the viewer's eye away from them. As you can see below, your eye falls on the sunlit portions of the shot including the fence and front lawn, helping to compensate for the encroaching shadows on the left side of the house.
Light on the fence and yard compensate for shadows on the house
Same Problem - New Location
I faced a similar problem at a shoot this past week at the Weston Art and Innovation Center. With a north-facing building, I had to wait for late afternoon to capture the meager light available from the west. Like the example above, I had a tight window before large trees and adjacent buildings would cast shadows. Not bad given a north-facing building the last week of September, but as you can see below it is a dark, flat shot.
This is where years of Photoshop expertise come into play. Below you see the same shot on what looks like a summer day with a bright blue sky… and a missing telephone pole. The person who recommended me was thrilled, as was the client.
As you can see, fall plays havoc with a photographer's ability to get clean, well-lit shots. Adjacent buildings and trees you wouldn't have even considered a month ago now become formidable adversaries. Shorter days, a low sun angle, and shade are challenging but by compensating with the right set of tools, we can deliver superb results under difficult circumstances.
Don't Wait - Book Now
Fall foliage will be here in the blink of an eye; as I look out the window, I wonder if it is already here. If you need a head start on marketing efforts for early next spring, including residential structures, commercial buildings, or landscapes – book now as we can provide superb results during the next month. Please give me a call, and let's make it happen.