What To Look For When Location Scouting For Your Next Shoot
So you’ve got a client or model that’s ready to shoot and a date on the books. But the big question’s still lingering… where are you going to shoot?
As a professional interior designer, here are a few tips and tricks for finding the perfect location for your next shoot.
Client ask: I want it to feel like a movie
solution 1
If your client is looking for a more intimate feeling in their photos (akin to a dramatic movie or tear-jerker romance) try shooting in their own home or stick to an indoor setting with cozy natural or warm-toned lighting.
Lenses with shorter depths of focus and shooting primarily in landscape can also easily convey that “cinematic” feeling.
Solution 2
If your client’s after a more expansive cinematic feeling, look for a location that is either outdoors or has high ceilings. Shooting with a wider-angle lens that pulls those tall ceilings or lofty tree branches into frame gives the shot a more grandiose vibe.
client ask: I’m an artist but don’t want to shoot in my studio
solution 1
Let the setting inform the viewer. Selecting a location that’s colorful, has an array of shapes and sizes of furnishings, and leans slightly more maximal is an easy way to subliminally tell the viewer that the subject is artistically inclined.
We naturally perceive creative individuals as more colorful, flamboyant and at times, cluttered. Though this isn’t applicable to every type of creative, typically if a client specifically asks for something “playful” in addition to creative- they want something that feels fun!
solution 2
Movement! Similarly to how we naturally perceive creatives as being colorful and cluttered, we assume the artist’s mind is always moving. Shooting in a location where there is plenty of natural movement (road or foot traffic, fabrics or flowers moving in the breeze, etc.) conveys mental movement.
client ask: i want to look effortlessly cool
solution 1
Street photography is one of the best ways to capture that “effortlessly cool” vibe. If you have an urban area, spend the session wandering around downtown- stopping to get a snack, lounging out on a stoop or curb, etc. and snap photos along the way!
If you don’t have an metropolitan area near you, a parking garage never fails to evoke that same urban vibe!
Solution 2
Play paparazzi. Similar to the idea above, ask your client to recommend a few spots in town that they love to visit. As you stop at each spot, shoot some faux “paparazzi” style photos of them crossing the street, sipping their drink outside of the coffee shop, or adjusting some new sunnies as they’re exiting a boutique.
Bonus points for getting some closer shots with flash!
I hope these ideas have inspired you to get creative with your next shoot!
Local to Savannah and looking for a place to call your creative home? Check out our co-creative community and studio membership!