This is a collection of a few of my favourite natural-light portraits from recent shoots. I love people’s faces, and I love to go in for extremely close, intimate portraits. Whenever possible—whether it’s a wedding, engagement, or family shoot—I’ll try to find a time to grab a few of these super close-ups. My one rule is to never ask for a smile (or have ’em “say cheese”)… instead, I have to illicit a natural reaction. The technical aspects are important, but not nearly as important as an honest expression.
December was a pretty mild offering this year. Ella and James’s wedding didn’t look like it was going to have any snow, that is, until the day before. You couldn’t have asked for better timing—in the summer you hope for a little sun, but in the winter you hope for that magic line between too cold, and just cold enough. The snow clinging to the branches in the above shot had fallen only hours before Ella and James had arrived. Details like that can’t be faked (not without an expensive movie crew on location) so it’s nice when you get lucky sometimes.
