Practice Portrait Session with Zeb in Downtown SLC

by dav.d

Sometimes you just want to practice photography and lighting. I have photographed Zeb before in studio and on the west side of SLC he has been a fun model to work with.

Found a water tower for the background of this photo

Found a water tower for the background of this photo

For this shoot I wanted to work with my portable lighting kit and see how well we could work with harsh sunlight. We were going to work with different light modifiers such as snoots.

Using snoots and other creative lighting techniques for portraits

Using snoots and other creative lighting techniques for portraits

Photographers love to find alleyways, especially when there is graffiti in the alleyway. Downtown Salt Lake City has a few places that work for this type of photography.

Zeb's portraits in downtown SLC

Zeb’s portraits in downtown SLC

Downtown has so much texture. You could spend hours just on one square block creating unique portraits. Some areas have parking garages that also provide some unique locations. The weekends often work best because there are fewer people around downtown. Some places might be a bit more upset if you are there during the week because it is hours of business and such. Weekends people aren’t around or don’t seem to care as much. It is a bit like guerrilla photography—always on the move and traveling light.

Zeb's portraits in downtown SLC

Zeb’s portraits in downtown SLC

Often I find these practice shoots the most therapeutic. There is no pressure to actually have a finished product. We are just throwing things against the wall and seeing what sticks. And often we at least get some ideas for future shoots.

Headshot for Zeb

Headshot for Zeb

It's fun to find an alleyway for portraits especially with graffiti

It’s fun to find an alleyway for portraits especially with graffiti

Zeb and some graffiti

Zeb and some graffiti

It's fun to find an alleyway for portraits especially with graffiti

It’s fun to find an alleyway for portraits especially with graffiti

Working with or against the sunlight in these portraits

Working with or against the sunlight in these portraits

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dav.d photo
dav.d is a portrait photographer based in Utah.