About Me:
Hey guys! I’m Michelle Lourenco (@michellelouphoto). I’m a mama to two wild, amazing, and energetic boys (high shutter speeds are a must over here!). We’re a military family so we’re rarely in one city for longer than three years. Currently, we’re living it up on the beaches of San Diego! I started my photography journey about three years ago when my husband bought me a Nikon d3200. I fell in love with finding creative ways to capture my sweet guys! I’m primarily a hobbyist photographer, but will occasionally take sessions for families and couples. My heart with photography is just to document this beautiful ride of motherhood that I’m on. I’m sure a lot of you can relate!
My Gear:
I now shoot with a Nikon d750 which I LOVE! My go to lenses are my Nikon 85 1.8, my Nikon 28 1.8, and most recently my Nikon 105 2.8 for my macro photography. I’ll also occasionally play with my lens baby twist 60.
Negative Space:
Negative space is such a fun technique that I tend to use a lot. From capturing big giant skies, to the sweetest details, and even nature photography, it such a wonderful method of highlighting your subject to the maximum.
My favorite use of negative space is definitely capturing silhouettes on a grand scale. In this case, it’s important to use a very wide lens. For me, I most often use my Nikon 28 1.8. This is an amazing way to capture a gorgeous sky and your littles interacting naturally (bring a ball, frisbee, bike, play some music, let them dance, jump, etc.). Although photoshop is fantastic, silhouette shots can be quite unforgiving when the space behind the subject isn't clutter free. It’s important to find a space where your subject can be at a slightly higher elevation than the photographer (find a slight hill, a bench, monkey bars, at the top of stairs, a tall jungle gym, etc..). Also, your perspective as the photographer is crucial. GET LOW GET LOW! Expose for the sky and let your littles (or husbands ;)) play well into sunset and shoot away!
We were at the top of a hill. I was laying on my belly on the slope of the hill approximately 20 feet away.
From Above:
Shooting from above is also a gorgeous way to compose an image and capture some beautiful negative space. My boys groan when they see me coming with my step ladder and camera.. they know what’s coming. Again, your widest lens in important. Well, depending on the height of your step ladder. :) In this situation, I like to make use of live view. It can be disorienting standing on the top of a ladder (or something more precarious) while trying to hold a camera up to your face, compose, focus, and direct your subject. Please be safe, my friends! And remember, Photoshop can be super beneficial here in extending your background to give your image a larger scale.
I was standing on the edge of the bathtub here. I may have almost slipped and cracked my head open.. no big deal. ;)
The Details:
Negative space is amazing for drawing the viewers attention directly to the subject. When capturing the details of my boys, I want as minimal distractions in the background as possible. Kitchen cabinets, a window flooded with light, the ground, or a gorgeous rug are all options for great negative space use in a detail shot. It’s important to remember that the viewer can’t see the big picture so get creative when searching for locations.
This was in front of a window with gorgeous evening light pouring in.
I was standing directly over him. He didn't give me much time to get this shot thankfully I only needed a few seconds.
Love the Shadows:
And don’t forget, shadows are your friend! I’ve always been drawn more moody conversions (deep blacks, high contrast, and increased shadows) because I love what I can hide in the shadows. This creates some beautiful negative space and draws your sole attention to the subject. However, this can be done with any edit, using deep shadows is a great tool in composing a powerful image.
As striking as shadows can be for creating negative space, so can light! I love flooding my frame with dramatic light.
Thank you so much for taking the time to read through this lesson! I hope you’ve picked up a thing or two that might help your photography journey in making great use of negative space!