Expression Through Film Photography with Petra Collins Sessions by MasterClass

A Guide to Working
With Natural Light

Sunlight changes color and temperature over the course of the day, and the
light found at dawn or dusk can provide particularly opportune shooting times.
Blue hour offers the cool, moody illumination of twilight, while golden hour,
which occurs shortly after sunrise or before sunset—and is Petra’s favorite
time of day—offers warm, rich light. Midday sun typically contains brighter,
hotter light, which can create harsh shadows and effects.
While you can’t completely control the color and strength of natural light,
you can use a range of tools to shape and direct it, such as the large, floppy,
metallic-coated screens known as bounces or reflectors. (If you’re looking
for a less expensive alternative to a professional-grade bounce, Petra
recommends reflective craft paper or metallic gift bags.)

A G U I D E T O W O R K I N G W I T H N AT U R A L L I G H T PA G E 1 2
Expression Through Film Photography with Petra Collins Sessions by MasterClass

As you work in natural light, take

inspiration from Petra’s shoot with PETRA’S TIP
her sister, Anna, and try to move Try listening to your shutter
around your subject to achieve speed as you shoot. The higher
different lighting effects, such as the shutter speed, the slower

“It’s not
backlighting or even exposing your the clicking sound.
lens to the light source itself.

necessarily TO WORK WITH NATURAL

4. Manage your focus ring
As you move closer and farther

about getting LIGHT AND GIVEN LIGHT,

FOLLOW THESE STEPS
away from your subject, adjust your
focus accordingly.

the perfectly 1. Set your camera’s ISO

5. Remind your subject to
“find their light”

lit photo. Petra likes to use ISO 400 film

because it works with most expo-
sure types. Set your camera’s ISO
As an alternative to simply telling
your subject where to be, saying
this empowers them to adjust their
It’s about according to that of your film. position on their own terms and
encourages more natural move-

figuring out 2. Set your camera’s f-stop

Select an f-stop setting to achieve
the depth of focus and exposure
ment and a more collaborative
relationship between photographer
and subject. If you want to have
what the you’re looking for, but feel free to
adjust as you shoot. (Remember:
more dramatic lighting, move your
camera position to backlight your

space and Petra likes to start using f/5.6

aperture, but she’ll shift settings
to match a photo’s needs.) When
subject or create a lighting flare
like Petra does.

what the shooting in the given light, you’ll be

limited by the light that naturally
6. Have bounces or reflectors
on hand

light means exists in the space, so your aperture

will need to change over time.
Experiment with how you can re-
direct the natural lighting to affect

to you, and
mood, expose your subject, and tell
3. Set your shutter speed a story. Since you’re at the mercy
In this demo, Petra begins by set- of natural light, using these tools

how you ting her shutter speed to 1/60 to

ensure she has a medium range of
can help shape and define the light
you’re given.

can inter-
both focus and blur, but she later
alters the setting to experiment.
Keep in mind that if you want to

pret that.” capture your subject in motion,

you’ll need a higher shutter speed
(and you’ll need to adjust your
–PETRA aperture setting accordingly), but
it all comes down to how strong the
light is in the space you’re shooting.

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