Pascal Baetens. Nude Photography. The Art and The Craft. 2007

68 exploring techniques

creativity with indoor light

the easiest way to be creative with light is to use what’s

available. You don’t have to go far to find wonderful lighting

opportunities—all the images here were taken at my home.

i’m lucky that my building has lovely old windows, but

interesting plays of light can be found everywhere, you

just have to keep your eyes open and your imagination

unfettered. timing and mobility are important factors when

you are working with ephemeral lighting conditions. the

color, intensity, and direction of light shifts throughout the

day, so you have to react quickly to changes. And you must

be able to move around, to find the best angle to catch your

model in the light, to get in close, and move farther away.

Marion in the afternoon

the late afternoon sunlight, just before

sunset, falls into the room almost

horizontally. it would have been

impossible to realize these images

in the summer because the sun would

set farther north and the leaves on the

trees outside would prevent the

sunlight from entering the room

directly. the images above are

in chronological order: the first is

a classic shot with the light falling

directly onto Marion’s body creating

shadows and patterns on her skin; the

second makes use of light reflected

in a mirror behind her, while the third

shows how the sunlight changes color

just before it disappears.