“Nature gives to every Time and Season some Beauties of its own. ” – Charles Dickens
And we are all so lucky to be experiencing these changes. Sometimes obviously visible or sometimes just felt by us, but experienced by all nonetheless. It sure is a miracle of nature we experience again and again.
Having lived in many different geographical locations, I’ve had my share of loving or hating the different seasons. However, having lived in South Africa for one whole year, and experiencing the complete cycle of changes, I’ve loved how every season has been different and each one has brought so much joy to me and my photographer heart. Spring with everything fresh & beginnings of warmer days, summer with its scorching heat accompanied by occasional showers, then autumn with its own set of flora & fauna, cool evenings & gorgeous sunsets and finally winter with its short, cold & dry days – Oh I’ve loved experiencing it all and capturing it too.
Whether you are a Child Photographer or a Landscape Photographer or any other genre for that matter, these changes are something we all deal with regularly. The changes in our environment bring in a need for us to constantly adapt to them. Our surroundings challenge us with different ecosystems – climates, temperatures, colors, lights, textures etc. And so capturing our subjects with these seasons becomes a bit tricky. It is by understanding these all little changes in our environment, and including then in our images, we can successful create beautiful seasonal photographs.
So here are my 3 tips for capturing the seasons in your photographs.
- Work Around Natural Light:
Light is the one of the most important factors in photography. It not just allows to convey information, but also to express emotion in a photograph .We also know that the position of the Sun, relative to our geographical location changes all year long. So with the change of seasons, our source of natural light and its characteristics -direction, intensity, color etc, change constantly. It is hence very important to observe these changes indoors as well as outdoors. Understanding these changes will help us capture the essence and exact emotion of that moment. As a Child photographer I am constantly studying how light changes not just in my home and in my studio, but outdoors too. It helps me document my seasonal portraits better. - Include the Signs of the Seasons in your Photography : Every season comes with its own gifts. The Ecosystem elements change with the seasons, resulting in different Flora , Fauna, Soil, Climate, Clouds etc. By including one or some these elements in your shot will help you bring about the signs of that particular season in your photographs. For example , autumn comes with the obvious changes in foliage colors and including them in my Child Photography projects is always a
winner. Similarly, the song of Spring is best sung by flowers, so go ahead bring in the floral element in your Spring Photographs.
- Tell your story : Yes tell the world what you are feeling. Capture what inspires you the most and how you want it be a part of your story. Be it those days spent just splashing in a water park on a hot summer day, those moments spent dancing in the rain or those crazy long hours spent berry picking in the orchard, capture it. There will be a different activity every month and some new adventures every season – don’t forget to document them. All these moments are special and an important part of the bigger picture. The photographs you take are surely going to be occupying a lot of space in those yearly photo albums. As a mum+ child photographer, I am always finding ways to capture my kid doing the same activity every year, not just to see how big the change is, but also to keep in mind how some things never change. My story to capture growth …go figure!
I hope you are now inspired enough to start documenting your Life seasonally and enjoy it as much as I do. As photographers we are always looking to challenge ourselves and capturing the different seasons does that in many ways. I feel no matter how many times we capture these changes, one element or the other will differ and the so will our photographs, always for the better.