ARI
Last Sunday I drove five hours to photograph someone for the first time. We had never worked together before, and I knew almost nothing about her except for a few photos I had seen online on social media.
It was absolutely worth it.
We shot in an apartment with beautiful large windows that receive light for most of the day, from morning until dusk. Fortunately for us, the day was bright but overcast, so the sky — with the sun hidden behind the clouds — acted like a huge softbox. Despite everything, the light was beautifully diffused and very gentle, even during the worst hours of the day, like noon.
It was in this setting that I met Arianna, a young psychology graduate with a passion for singing. She is currently putting together a band and also enjoys modeling. She’s a wonderful person with big plans and dreams for her future — cheerful, smiling, and with a natural talent for posing that I rarely see in someone so young.
Shooting in an apartment rather than in a studio was also very interesting, and something I had never done before. I thought working in a house would limit our possibilities, but instead the obstacles themselves created creative opportunities. Door frames, hallways, furniture, and the various objects in the apartment worked beautifully as natural photographic frames.
I brought two lenses with me, the XCD 38V and the 55V — two lenses I absolutely love — although I ended up using the 55V for most of the photos. I find the 55V to be a fantastic lens and far from boring, as some people describe it.
Soon I will be adding the 90V, which will expand my portrait possibilities (and will also be extremely useful for landscape photography). That said, I still consider the 55V an incredible lens.
I hope that photos taken entirely in natural light, without any flash, do it justice — and I hope you enjoy them.
