What is an offsite photo shoot
An offsite photo session is when the photographer has to leave the usual studio and take pictures in places specified by the model or suggested by the photographer. This kind of photo session is also called “plein air”. This notion is taken from painting, where it means drawing in nature. There is a photo session, which implies not only photographing on the site, but also making photos. Such services are an additional bonus of the on-site photo session and are not a necessary part of the concept, more often they are called “on-site photo studio”.
What does such a photo session give to a professional and an amateur? In general – a job, somewhere paid, somewhere not. It is definitely worth saying that for an amateur such a photo shoot is an opportunity to create wonderful pictures outside the studio, which an amateur usually does not have. For a successful photo shoot you can get by with just a DSLR and a good lens. For a professional, an offsite photo shoot is a test of skills. Treating your photography as a hobby does not allow you to have a status, and the presence of a lot of equipment spurs you on to choose it thoroughly. A professional is used to control all the parameters of the shooting, shooting in studio conditions, so on a subconscious level will want to influence the circumstances. As a result, some aspects of the travel photo session will be an advantage for an amateur and a disadvantage for a professional, and vice versa.
Inventory needed
Inventory in these conditions includes not only photo equipment, but also décor and costumes (clothes). The necessity of one or another item depends on the type of photo session and the stated requirements of the model (and the ideas of the photographer).
Equipment
If you don’t have any equipment, you can use a camera with a good lens and an external flash. The flash will be indispensable both on the street and indoors. It is advisable to bring a reflector to direct the light (maybe even sunlight). Many photographers make do with this minimal set.
Given that the photo shoot is a custom one, don’t forget about a spare camera (at least a spare battery and memory card). All good lenses can’t be universal in focal length, so as a rule you take two lenses with different focal lengths to cover the whole range. It is advisable to estimate the difficulty of the location in advance. You may need an additional light source, then you will need flash racks (or a permanent light source), a synchronizer, a diffuser (an umbrella or a soft box).
Decor
If the location of the shoot was determined by the customer, then most likely the use of decor will not be necessary. It is worth noting that the usual shooting of events, whether weddings, matinees, banquets, also belong to the exit photo shoot. As you can see, in such genres, the entire surrounding space acts as a decor, which there is no time or need to change. Often the client wants to be photographed outside the studio, but he does not define a particular place, relying on the imagination of the photographer. The client wants to get a lot of different natural shots in a couple of hours. This often requires the use of decor. Shooting a family picnic in the park, various lights of unusual incandescent lamps, drains with retro details, arches, curtains, fabrics, posters, fences, tables, books – all these details are popular, but fall on the shoulders of the photographer.
Costumes
The last element of staged photo shoots is costumes. This element is not so obligatory, as many customers do not plan to change clothes. But when staging a shoot in certain styles, such as retro or with a link to the profession, costumes play a big role. If the photographer offers a particular production to choose from, he or she is required to have sets and costumes of a particular style.
Features
Of course, shooting in the studio and outside the studio are different things. If a photographer often shoots in the same place, then a different environment will be unfamiliar to him. A plein air is just the same – it means a constant change of location. What are some specific features that make a photo shoot different from the usual studio shoot?
- The setting. It is unpredictable and changeable. It is not only a change of location, but also a change in weather conditions, lighting conditions, the variability of surrounding objects (speaking of nature);
- As mentioned earlier, it is advisable to know the situation in advance and plan the equipment to be used. When leaving the office (studio) to take all the available accessories is unrealistic, so a limited set of equipment is also a distinctive feature of the plein air;
- Lighting. Since light is the main component of photography, it is extremely important to control it. You can change the light in different ways – with flashes, flashlights, reflectors, diffusers. But even with a certain set of lighting equipment, you may be faced with changing the lighting within the same location. A simple example is shooting under the open sky, where sunlight has different properties at different times of the day and is influenced by changes in cloud cover.
A photo shoot is interesting, productive, and varied. Any trip beyond the boundaries of comfort (let’s call it a studio shoot) will allow you to gain valuable experience and bring more professionalism to your future photos. Landscape photography, although it is also done outdoors, does not offer such perks. In landscape photography there is no model, the very customer who will appreciate the photos and the photographer’s skills. It is the presence of responsibility for the result that distinguishes an on-site photo session and makes it a very reverent and important event for the photographer. A professional differs from a novice in his willingness to shoot under any conditions, which only comes with practice.