Hi! I am Karlee Hooper (@karleehooperphotography), I am a stay-at-home mother to three girls and a labradoodle. I am a Clickin Moms mentor, member of Click Pro and a Click Photo School instructor (teaching my first 4-week class called Understanding Light in January). I am currently finishing up with my 4th365 project where I take a photo every day. I love creating art on everyday adventures with my girls and in unexpected locations.
Gear
Fuji X-T2 and 18-55 kit lens – since having my 3rd daughter this mirrorless camera is my go-to setup. It is easy to use and super light so I can take it with me everywhere.
Nikon D750 and Nikon 24-70 2.8 lens – I used to use this combo everyday but in the last year it is mostly used only at home as it is just too heavy to carry with me everywhere.
My Favorite Compositional Technique
I am so excited about the theme this month! Negative space is hands down my favorite compositional technique. I love a clean, organized frame and negative space lends itself well to that. Using negative space draws attention to your subject, adds scale and drama, as well as isolates your subject. With three little girls at home my life is quite chaotic, so I love the contrast negative space lends to that. Remember that incorporating negative space into your imagery doesn’t mean you need a big, uncluttered house or wide expanses of open space. Both of those work well for this technique but are by no means the only way to achieve it.
Using Light to Enhance Negative Space
My favorite trick for “creating” negative space in my home is to find a bright pocket of light and expose for the highlights. This allows all the clutter that is almost always in the room to fall into shadow. Even if the background is not completely dark the items in the shadows are de-emphasized.
I also love to use windows as negative space. I expose for my subject in front of the window which makes the window overexposed and a perfect blank backdrop.
I encourage you to experiment with different lighting scenarios in spaces that feel too busy or cluttered to lend themselves well to using negative space. I think you will be surprised!
Change Your Perspective
I urge you to continually change your perspective when you shoot. It will add variety to your images as well as allows you to maximize different compositional options in one space. I often shoot from above (I’m constantly climbing up ladders and hanging out windows) or get down low and shoot my subject against a big sky.
Use Your Widest Lens
I often shoot at 24mm in order to incorporate as much empty space around my subject as possible. Try taking a few steps back this month and shoot even wider than you normally would. You can always crop in later!
Photoshop is Your Friend
I often expand the canvas in images I have taken in Photoshop to add additional negative space. If you background is minimal this is really easy to do. In addition, I often clone out distracting elements that are in the frame to remove anything that might be competing with the main subject in an image.
Negative Space Opportunities are Everywhere
Start training yourself to look for good locations to incorporate negative space. The beach, an open fiend or a blank wall are obvious options. A parking lot, plants, doors or even a small patch of blank wall can make great backdrops for this technique.
Thank you so much for taking the time to learn about negative space with me. I am so excited to see all your negative space images this month.
