Hello, I'm Sanjay Jogia.
I'm a wedding and portrait photographer and a Canon Ambassador based in London.
You may have seen some of my work,
and if you have,
I thank you for taking the time to look.
You'll know that I get to photographs and beautifully lavish weddings all over the world in some dream locations.
This, of course, helps in creating stunning images,
but it's not always the case.
Sometimes I find myself in very plain, simple, underwhelming rooms with limited space,
light and impact.
Yet we must deliver the beautiful images that are expected of us.
However, in the current circumstances,
where there are no weddings nor social events,
it's important that we remain responsible and safe in our own homes.
What's initially this seems restrictive.
It is actually the perfect opportunity to push your creative limits by looking at your
home differently.
Begin by looking at where good light comes from into your rooms. Are there interesting
patterns? Is there an unusual colour or direction to that light?
Is it soft or harsh light?
Can you close the curtains or blinds to control of shape or amount of light?
Think about how you can use this light to pose your loved ones and create images
that they'll cherish.
How about outside in the garden? Is there an interesting surface, texture or feature that
you can use as a backdrop?
Location is usually what most people look for,
but get stuck on and can't think of anything, but the most important element
should always be light.
Is there nice light? If the ultimate yes,
then use it.
If it's no, then look for it.
If it just isn't there, then you can make it.
It's worth knowing how light behaves.
Light is predictable.
It bounces, and it travels in straight lines.
If you get closer to the light,
its effect is brighter.
If you move away,
its effect is darker.
However, it does behave slightly differently here.
You might think that if you double your distance on the light,
that will give you half the effective power. Or if you half the distance,
it will double the effect of power, right?
Not quite.
Don't want to get too technical at this point,
but it's important to understand how light behaves.
Light follows an inverse square law.
That means if you half the distance,
the effective power is the inverse of the square of the half, meaning that
it's four times the power.
If you place a subject twice as far away, then the effective power is not half,
but it's 1/4. If you double that distance again,
so that's four times as far, then the effective power is 1/16 of the original.
This means that in order to create dramatic contrast in your images,
the subject should be closer to the light.
It's also worth knowing that as a subject moves closer to the light,
shadows become softer.
Conversely, as a subject was further away from the light,
shadows become hard.
One final thought,
if we get going,
is that the larger the light source, soft of the light. Something like a torch will give
harder light and shadows, whereas light from a larger floor lamp or daylight through a
net curtain will be very soft.
People often think that a dull cloudy day is boring and sub-optimal,
but in fact this light is more flattering,
especially when using directional light from a window or a door.
Yes, in this shot just using window light,
which actually works to our favor. In this situation,
we want to use the soft window light that comes through. Cloudy days,
provide even more softness and even more diffusion of lights.
We get very beautiful light,
the kind of light that we will try to create in the studio.
This works really well for us.
The closer you bring a camera to a reflective surface, the more of your reflection the camera
Sunlight can produce stunning images and stunning effects and dramatic images if you
look for pockets of lights.
Through trees, for example,
or sunlight reflected from walls and shiny surfaces.
But open sunlight will create harsh and unforgiving and unwanted shadows.
Not to mention,
making your subjects uncomfortable.
Ok, just bring your face closer to the wall.
I'm using the wall as a reflector.
Just wait for the light to come from trees.
It's possible to simply use your household lamps to set the mood.
Remembering what I've said about distance and the size of the light.
Think about creating a silhouette from a window or shining a light
through a door using a lamp.
Turn sideways.
Come up to the door as close as you can and
bring your face to the door as close as you can.
Turn your face to the door, standing back.
Zooming in.
Bring the hand toward you a bit more.
Turn your chin toward me a bit more.
Hold that there.
You can even try taking lamps outside and using a ladder to get the light
high up enough to illuminate your subject.
All this can be done with the household lights without needing special lighting and camera equipment.
So, now we're at the back of the garden again.
We're back by the tree.
I have Roshni just on a little stool,
just like garden furniture.
Nothing, more than that.
Just a normal household ladder and a lamp from our bedroom.
Being a wedding photographer,
I'm very well equipped with lighting,
but I want to demonstrate what you guys can do with just some standard stuff from around your house.
We're going to create some really beautiful romantic photographs here,
so let's see what we could do.
I've got the light on the ladder above her eye-line.
In fact, the bulb itself is about where her eye-line is,
but the actual lamp itself is diffusing the light.
I've got it away from her so that I can balance a light that's hitting her with a light
that's on the tree behind.
But that light is giving me some texture on the tree,
but it's also illuminating Roshni and I want her to be slightly brighter.
Let's see how that looks over there.
My camera settings are 3200 ISO,
because I was gonna allow me to go to a high enough shutter speed that I don't get any
camera shake. I'm set to F 2.8, that's going to give me that lovely,
dreamy look and feel as far as it goes.
Turn, turn, turn and eyes back to me.
Come in closer for a tighter shot.
Turn your chin this way.
And eyes to me.
The only thing you do need, is to rise to the challenge.
There are no right or wrong rules
for creativity and fun,
so let yourself loose and use this time in lockdown to unleash your creativity,
discover your potential and empower your passion.
Stay safe,
stay positive and be creative.