Tyler Mitchell’s 3 Tips for Shooting in Natural Light

Tyler Mitchell is a Brooklyn-based photographer and filmmaker whose work focuses on the concept of luxury, the power of youth, and the Black experience in America. Here is a brief overview of his life:

• Early life: Tyler Mitchell grew up in Marietta, Georgia, and picked up his first camera when he was 14 years old. As a teen, he made skate videos and music videos for rapper Kevin Abstract, which allowed him to develop his filmmaking skills. At age 20, Tyler published his first book after visiting Havana, Cuba to document skateboarding culture and architecture there.
• Move to New York: Tyler eventually moved to New York, where he studied cinematography at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts and set his sights on a filmmaking career. Tyler eventually took a class taught by Deborah Willis, the legendary curator, author, and chair of Tisch’s Department of Photography and Imaging. The course granted him full access to the photo lab and deepened his commitment to photography.
• Big break in Vogue: In 2018, Mitchell got the opportunity to photograph Beyoncé for Vogue’s September issue. Mitchell became the first Black photographer to shoot a cover of American Vogue, and one of the youngest to do so as well. In April 2019, his first solo exhibition, I Can Make You Feel Good, opened at Amsterdam’s Foam Museum (Fotografiemuseum Amsterdam), then traveled to the International Center of Photography in New York. He also published his first monograph with the same title, Tyler Mitchell: I Can Make You Feel Good (2020).
• Current career: Today, Tyler’s expansive portfolio includes blue-chip and high fashion brands (Marc Jacobs, JW Anderson), international print publications (Vanity Fair, The Guardian, GQ), and subjects spanning the breadth of culture (Spike Lee, Zendaya, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Lil Uzi Vert). Tyler has also lectured at Harvard University and landed on Forbes’s “30 Under 30” list. He’s been profiled in The New York Times, and recognized with a fellowship at the Gordon Parks Foundation.

There are many different kinds of lighting that can affect the way your photographs appear. Some different types of lighting include:

1. 1. Key light: Key light illuminates and shapes the subject at the heart of your composition, so it’s important to be aware of the shadows your key light casts. Think of your iPhone when the flashlight is turned on; as you move it up and down, left to right, you’ll cast different shadows and create different moods.
2. 2. Fill light: Fill light is a secondary light source that helps eliminate shadows caused by the key light. This might be a reflector, or even just a wall or ceiling, which can also bounce back the key light source and create a subtler lighting effect.
3. 3. Front lighting: Front lighting is the method of choice for most portraits. It casts shadows behind your subject rather than in front of them or to the side of them.
4. 4. Side lighting: Side lighting involves placing a light source on one or both sides of your subject. This lends a complex visual palette but produces shadows that can be hard to control.
5. 5. Backlighting: Backlighting can be used to great artistic effect, although it comes with a high degree of difficulty. Poor composition can produce a nondescript silhouette of your subject. Proper composition with backlighting can give your subject a glowing, halo-like aura.
6. 6. Hard lighting: Hard lighting shows a powerful contrast between lit and unlit areas. This type of lighting is typically used in newspapers and sports photography, but it also has a place in portraiture when used properly, like in the work of Juergen Teller and Martin Parr.
7. 7. Soft lighting: Soft lighting produces a more gradual transition from the lit areas of a photograph to unlit areas. Soft-light photographs usually feel warmer and are easier to compose, since lines and shadows are less pronounced.
8. 8. Bounce lighting: Bounce lighting is a technique where light is bounced from a strong source toward the subject with a reflector, which softens and spreads the light.
9. 9. Diffused lighting: Diffused lighting creates even, soft light (like a lampshade) on your subjects by reducing harsh shadows and balancing your lighting effects. Photographers generally use a softbox or diffuser kit to diffuse light. Both can be pricey, but you can learn how to make a light diffuser on a budget.

It’s difficult to lay down many hard-and-fast rules about shooting in natural light because of the many variables that come with shooting outdoors. However, familiarizing yourself with a few basic techniques can help you waste less time and resources during your shoots. Here are a few tips inspired by Tyler’s advice for shooting outdoors in natural light.

1. 1. Study the light at different times of the day. Tyler recommends getting outside and simply observing the different quality of sunlight throughout the day. “The main way that I learned to use natural light was really by watching the sun, and by making more and more pictures,” Tyler says. Go sit in a public space in your neighborhood on cloudless days, days when the light is partially obscured, and days when it’s completely overcast. Do it all again at sunrise, midday, golden hour, and twilight. Try this exercise during different seasons of the year, too; you’ll notice the light’s temperature changes depending on the month.
2. 2. Take test shots in different natural lights. Make sure to bring your camera with you on your light-studying field trips. “By watching the sun and making pictures, you’ll figure out what you like most,” Tyler says. In your test photos, you’ll notice how different qualities of light show up in your photographs, so you can decide what time of day is best for the mood you want to create.
3. 3. Avoid shooting outdoors in overhead lighting. Tyler generally avoids shooting outdoors between ten AM and two PM, when the sun is highest in the sky. “Light coming from directly overhead can create pretty unflattering shadows on people’s faces,” he says.

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