Horse & Owner Black Background Portrait Tips

This winter, I’ve been offering holiday photoshoot sessions for horses and their owners. In order to achieve a clean, professional black background (without Photoshop!), I set up the space properly before shooting. Check out the steps below.

1. Set up the session at one side of the barn or indoor arena, and open the barn doors. Pick the side of the barn that has indirect light, so that the sun isn’t right in the eyes of your subject! When taking photos, make sure your subjects are standing close to the edge of the door to avoid shadows and utilize the natural light.

2. Close the second set of barn doors on the opposite side of the barn.

3. Turn off all the lights in the barn, and remove any distracting objects that may be in the background.

4. Shoot from both far away and up close to have a variety of pictures!

5. When editing, bring up the exposure and highlights to brighten up your subject. Next, bring down the shadows and blacks to create an even darker and bolder background.

Give this a try, and check out my examples below!

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