🔥 I Captured 5 STUNNING Natural Light Shots Using Simple Photography Techniques 🔥
Vanessa Joy is a wedding photographer and educator helping photographers grow profitable businesses. She teaches photographers how to create beautiful, intentional images using lighting, posing, and simple techniques that work in any setting.
If you’re a photographer who wants to master natural light and learn how to instantly switch your style from light and airy to dark and moody—while avoiding common lighting mistakes—this post is for you. The problem we’re solving? How to recognize bad light, find great light, and use it creatively to change the mood of your images.
Mastering Natural Light Photography
Lighting can make or break your photos. The way you position your subject and adapt to different conditions is the key to consistently stunning results.
To demonstrate, I took my model, Samantha, and intentionally placed her in bad light to show what not to do—then made a small adjustment to completely transform the shot.
Avoiding Bad Light
One of the most common mistakes photographers make is placing their subject in harsh, direct light. This creates unflattering shadows, uneven exposure, and often makes your model squint.
Another problem? Mixed lighting—when part of your subject is in sun and part in shade. This leads to uneven skin tones that are difficult to fix in post.
Quick Tip: Look for soft, even lighting whenever possible—open shade, window light, or golden-hour glow are your best friends.
Finding the Best Light
Here are my go-to setups for flattering, natural light:
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Backlight: Place the sun behind your subject for a dreamy halo effect and no harsh shadows.
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Side Light: Adds depth and dimension to portraits.
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Open Shade: A shaded spot with plenty of indirect light from the sky.
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Window Light: Ideal indoors for soft, directional light.
Switching from Light & Airy to Dark & Moody
The beauty of photography is that you can completely shift the look of your images by adjusting light and camera settings.
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Light & Airy: Use bright, even light and expose for natural skin tones.
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Dark & Moody: Lower your exposure, increase contrast, and let shadows play a bigger role in the frame.
Switching from Light & Airy to Dark & Moody
The beauty of photography is that you can completely shift the look of your images by adjusting light and camera settings.
-
Light & Airy: Use bright, even light and expose for natural skin tones.
-
Dark & Moody: Lower your exposure, increase contrast, and let shadows play a bigger role in the frame.
Final Thoughts
Natural light is one of the most powerful tools in your photography toolkit—if you know how to use it well. Pay attention to how light is hitting your subject, experiment with angles, and don’t be afraid to adjust until the image feels just right.
🎥 Watch the Full Video: See step-by-step natural light techniques and posing inspiration in action.
