Enhancing twilight with light painting is a technique that takes a lot of time and practice. In fact, it can often take as long as one hour to shoot a single of those images and the post production takes at least as long.
So why only charge $50?
You see, I intend to become the very best twilight photographer in the Los Angeles market, and to achieve this, I absolutely need to get as much practice as I can. Given that there is only one time a day I can do twilights, I wanted to entice clients to opt for a twilight upgrade. Here are a few of my favorites of 2017 along with a few thoughts about what I have learned.
The main challenge in this back elevation was that the lot was quite narrow and the adjacent homes were not complimenting the contemporary style of this home, especially the building on the left, which was painted pink. The twilight format is helpful in those situations because the low light allows to hide unsightly elements. The square format helped, and I also decided to de-saturate both building as to have them draw as little attention as possible. I lit every room inside using a consistent light filter. That took a bit of time, but the small yard was painted rapidly, which allowed be to also include a front-elevation in the same photoshoot. Here it is below.
This front elevation is mainly lit by sunlight, as you can tell by the dappled side and the cactus shadow on the garage door. Due to the stark landscaping, I opted to go across the street and incorporate the silhouetted jacaranda leaves, which reminded me of a wall paper pattern. I also incorporated the palm tree on the left even though this meant that we would see the ugly fence next door.
The indented use of the image always informs the way I create an image. This is a vacation home. The architecture of the home was very simple, quite boring, really, but it was set in a secluded location on California's central coast. So I decided to minimize the importance of the house relative to the landscape while exaggerating the comforting warm glow coming from inside the home. The duality is repeated in the contrast between the manicured lawn and the lacy movement of the brushes and trees. I also liked the touch of the yellow flowers echoing the warmth of the home.
This is one of my favorite shots. Another photo rescue of an unsold listing that had terrible original images. The home owner had the idea to light up some candle lights inside which made the whole scene quite enchanting.
Here the challenge was to make an unfurnished house clad in 70's brown paint, more appealing. The answer was to incorporate a large pine tree in the front yard, but I wanted to do this is a way that would not worry prospective buyers about the proximity of such a large tree. So I framed the tree trunk out of the composition, and made the branches cover the sky as if it was a protective blanket. The added glow from the house and the open door really drove the point home that this is a safe and inviting place to live.
Ah! The Med Mansion! A really cool architectural renovation in Altadena. The pool had been a much later addition to the property and didn't really fit with the style of the home so I decided to show only a sliver of it, letting the viewers imagination take over.
This shot was all about leading lines, I took advantage of the wedge-shaped planter to suggest and arrow toward the home. I love the placement of the sculpture of a couple in love in the framed niche in the dining room. It was a subliminal nod to the happiness that might ensue from living there.
To finish on a high note, this home was published in Curbed LA, and one of the commenters said: "That backyard. I’m stunned. When I die, just throw my ashes into that back yard."