What are some tips and suggestions for taking portraits on rainy days?

The creation of portraits in rainy days is believed to be a topic that relatively few people shoot. In addition to the unpredictable weather, the Model is willing to cooperate, the equipment is easily damaged by moisture, and it is difficult to grasp the three-dimensional effect due to the lack of a main light source. These are all important reasons. But because fewer people take such photos, it is easier to attract attention. Let us study the techniques for taking portraits in rainy days!

Suggestions and teachings on real-life portrait shooting in rainy days

Be fully prepared

Since the Model needs to be exposed to rain and water, it is best to use waterproof cosmetics for makeup to maintain the basic look in the rain. If the Model has long hair, it will inevitably cause damage due to getting wet. Tangled, if you are considering the hair style, it is best to use an umbrella to maintain it, or consider the order of taking photos, so that the story of the process can be expressed in the series. Another important point is that it is best to anticipate the poses or situations you want to shoot in advance and communicate them well. For example, whether you plan to sit or lie on the wet ground, or the color of underwear that will show through the clothes after they are soaked in water, etc., you need to communicate with the Model in advance. Confirmation part. In addition, not only dry changes of clothes and large towels are essential items, but also the camera backpack you carry with you. It is best to use a waterproof backpack camera bag and match it with a raincoat to prevent you from squatting too low. Let water seep into the bag when shooting, or when it rains heavily. Of course, a better way is to give up changing lenses and shoot with one camera and one lens, which can reduce a lot of burdens and make the shooting process more flexible.

▲The accumulation of water on the ground in the background makes the road light up at night.

▲ Communicate well in advance to allow the Model to be mentally prepared, which can help the shooting process go smoothly.

The application of light white clothes

When we interviewed Ayou, who has actually taken portraits on rainy days, we asked why the clothes in his works so far are mainly white, and he answered: "White light clothes after being exposed to the rain can best show off your body curves, but they can also easily expose your shortcomings. You should be especially careful when shooting!" In fact, the focus of portrait photography, in addition to expressions, is the body curves caused by good poses. This has always been an important point that cannot be ignored. If the Model has graceful curves and the wet clothes are close to the skin, this advantage will be emphasized even more. However, the material of white gauze and chiffon can vaguely see through the inner clothing, and it is even more clearly visible when it is wet with water. Therefore, whether the inner clothing is underwear, sportswear, or inner wear, The results of the work need to be taken into consideration. If you want to match bright-colored inner clothes, it is best to shoot in a brighter rainy day environment, and to guide the Model's emotions, it is best to focus on positive emotions such as cuteness, laughter, and fun. If you don’t have many ideas about matching colors, the safest colors are mainly black and white. Whether it is combined with indifference, sadness, or loneliness, it can have good results.

▲Wet white clothes will emphasize the model’s body curves, so you should pay more attention to the modification and angle of the body.

▲The color of inner clothing can easily show through, so you need to consider it carefully in advance. Of course, you can also look for styles with thicker fabric in key areas to avoid this problem.

Useful waterproof spray

Thanks to waterproof technology, the fabrics of many camera bags are inherently waterproof, mainly through pre-soaking with pharmaceuticals, and therefore waterproof The function will gradually weaken. At this time, we can use commercially available waterproof spray to enhance it. When using, it is best to clean and dry the bag first, spray it evenly and let it dry, and then spray the agent again. Spraying several layers in this way can make the waterproofness and durability better.

Bringing the environment into the composition

Since you are considering shooting in the rain, actively adding the rainy environment into your work can add more interesting details to the picture. When many people first come into contact with rainy day photography, they always think that through the rain, the image quality is never sharp and clear enough. However, applying it in reverse can present another soft and beautiful feeling. And as long as the Model is not too far away from the camera, it will be fine. The impact of rain on the subject is greatly reduced, and the background is blurred at different distances due to the rain, which can present a unique image experience. When there are shades of trees, corridors and other dark environments in the background, you can use a slow shutter speed to capture the rain effect. In terms of lens selection, it is better to choose a medium focal length to a telephoto focal length, as it can express raindrops without using a too slow shutter speed.

In addition, the reflection formed by stagnant water on the road is definitely the most useful element on rainy days. If it happens to be clear after the rain, the clarity of the reflection and the reflected color can be close to the mirror effect, and you can take photos that look like The illusion of standing in the sky. The ripples formed when raindrops fall on the water and the childish innocence of splashing on the water are also elements that are well used.

▲The raindrops form circular ripples on the water, adding interesting little details to the picture.

The magic of turning rain into snow - flash technique

Using flash to control the direction of the light source or create special effects can be said to be a very important skill in portrait photography, but if the reader has ever If you use a camera-top flash to fill in light directly, you should be troubled by the appearance of many white dots (raindrops) in the picture. To solve this problem, the best way is to use off-camera flash, so that the raindrops will not be over-reflected, but can still maintain the beautiful scenery of snow. For the lighting direction, it is recommended to fill the subject from the side, or There is an interesting effect light from the rear design. In the example on this page, only a flash with full light output in the background is used. Through the reflection of rain and fog, there is still a little fill light from the flash on the front. Finally, with some adjustments in post-production, a quite dramatic image can be created. Although some people have tried to directly use an external flash to fill the light off-camera in light rain, it is still best to pay attention to the problem of water ingress. A safer way is to choose a high-end flash with a waterproof and dustproof design. Friends who were traveling with me helped bring lights to supplement the light, and used umbrellas to cover them when not in use.

▲Using off-camera flash allows you to take stunning images even in bad weather.

The dance of city lights and rain

Recently, the availability of high-sensitivity cameras has greatly improved, allowing many people to begin to challenge low-light photography issues that were previously unreachable. Compared with ordinary images taken during the day, the colorful city lights present a unique style of work. However, you can also find that photos taken in a background with insufficient lighting will appear to have too many black parts. However, when shooting in the rain, due to ground reflection, various neon lights can be reflected out of thin air, including signboards, traffic lights, etc. As long as you observe carefully when shooting, you can use these naturally reflected colors to match the Model for taking pictures. As for the rain streak effect mentioned earlier, as long as the angle is moved so that the street light is placed behind the Model, the continuous light on site can be used to capture bright rain streaks.

Another shooting method that can be considered is to use the water droplets on transparent glass or umbrellas as the foreground, arrange the trail shadow of the raindrops after they flow, and borrow them on the Model’s face, or use reflections to form Color halos are all great tips for rainy days. Of course, if you have protective glasses, you can also consider spraying a few raindrops on the lenses to interfere with the light, making the work more like our visual experience on rainy days and increasing the viewer's empathy.