Portraits

This photograph derives its sense of depth from techniques often used in classical paintings. The background remains soft and low in contrast, even though it receives a diffuse glow from the open door at the far end. In contrast, the foreground is defined by a strong chiaroscuro, with bright highlights and deep shadows, which give Leontine a three-dimensional appearance. Further back in the photograph, the highlights remain visible, but the shadows diminish in intensity, a visual technique known to painters for centuries and that photographers can also use to their advantage.

What you'll learn

PART 1: Shooting on Location with Damien Lovegrove

Shot as a live, documentary-style session, Part 1 follows Damien through three contrasting environments: a faded Belgian château, atmospheric abandoned factories, and the covered walkways and textured brick streets of Ghent.
Rather than perfectly polished studios, these are the real spaces photographers face in the wild: messy floors, graffiti, difficult light, uneven colour, holes in the ceiling, hazards to navigate, and constantly shifting conditions. Damien demonstrates not just what to shoot, but how to think, adapt, and problem-solve on the fly.

The 5 key themes and techniques covered in this section are:

1. Location scouting and lighting awareness

• How to rapidly evaluate a space and spot workable pockets of light.
• Why the brightest part of the room is rarely where your subject should stand.
• Understanding the natural behaviour of window light (why the bottom of a room is often brighter than the top).
• When to shoot with available light and when to supplement it.

In this course, you'll learn how to recognize great light when it's already available and how to create it yourself if it isn't.

2. Creating natural-looking light with artificial sources

Damien reveals how to blend continuous lighting and flash seamlessly into a location so the final photograph looks natural rather than “lit.”

Techniques include:

• Using small LED sources (Sirui 150 and 300W LEDs) to emulate window light.
• Balancing warm and cool colour temperatures to mimic sun & sky lighting.
• Using backlight for depth, separation, and fashion-style atmospherics.
• ⁠Feathering and shaping light to avoid brightening areas you want to hide.

3. Composition, lens choice and camera settings

Throughout the shoot, Damien explains his decisions in context:

• Why central composition works when tension and gaze direction demand it.
• How classical rules (like lighting at 90 degrees to the camera) can still drive modern portraiture.
• Working wide open at f/1.7 to create softness in busy backgrounds.
• Controlling ambient exposure first, then adding flash or continuous lights for the highlights.
  

4. Directing and working with your model

You get to see how to direct subtle, believable poses: hands, posture, and eye lines, while maintaining a natural connection. Damien shows:

• How to find “ownership” and confidence in a pose.
• Adjusting micro-poses for light and shadow.
• Encouraging energy, warmth, and authenticity.

5. Overcoming real-world obstacles

No editing out reality. This is practical problem-solving at its most honest:

• Dealing with dust, debris, graffiti, and unsafe footing.
• Why Damien sometimes takes a broom to a shoot.
• Working in high-contrast industrial environments.
• Using smoke for atmosphere while maintaining contrast where it matters.
  

From a château’s tall ceilings and the hard directional strip of light from a broken roof panel to the tunnel-like covered passages of Ghent, Damien guides viewers through lighting setups, tests, refinements, and final captures, always explaining why the image works.