Master the art of modern photography

This month: The great indoors Get creative with your camera this winter without leaving the comfort of home

Stay indoors and unleash your photographic potential!

Will Cheung

Will Cheung An imaging journalist and freelance photographer based in London, Cheung has a wealth of experience over several decades. www.williamcheung.co.uk

During the winter months, with the shorter days and inclement weather, the opportunities to enjoy your camera are more limited. Of course, there is the potential of the night, which we featured last month, and the weather itself can present wonderful pictures. However, there’s an obvious alternative: turn your home into a makeshift studio.

As for subjects, you’re only limited by your imagination. Use everyday props such as water, cooking oil and kitchen utensils, while food itself makes an interesting subject – you don’t have to look further than your fruit bowl, vegetable drawer or pasta collection – anything with shape and texture will work. Exploring your house might reveal more, as ornaments, jewellery and bottles of drink will make good subjects. If you’re still uninspired, go for a walk in your local woods or on the beach. Pebbles, shells, leaves and pine cones all suit still-life photography. Or follow in the footsteps of one of photography’s masters, Irving Penn, who photographed used cups and cigarette ends.

Once you have an idea of the subjects that can be covered, next comes the matter of techniques to try. Your options will be governed by what kit you own but, equally, it’s remarkable what can be achieved with daylight, a flashgun and some coloured card. Or you might find that you want to explore home shooting more deeply and decide to invest in lighting or close-up accessories.

Creating photographs at home is a different discipline from capturing pictures outdoors and to start with, it isn’t easy. It takes practice with lighting, props and techniques to see what appeals and works. What you do have, though, is control – the lighting and picture content are your responsibility but with the long winter nights, you have plenty of time to get it right. Let’s enjoy the great indoors…

Get the knowledge

Your indoor images need light, so let’s begin there

Despite the season, daylight remains the best light source to exploit, so check out what sort of light you get at home and when, and work around that. With north-facing windows, you’ll have a soft, diffused light all day long while with south-facing ones, there’s the potential of intense directional light for several hours when the sun’s out. East and west aspect windows will also give a directional light but at different times and for shorter periods.

Indoor daylight shooting means planning and being ready to shoot, and working quickly when the light is right. Remove the element of chance by using LED lights or flash. There is huge potential with both lighting types and such is the variety of options on the market that there’s great value to be had.

The lighting options

How you light your setups is under your control: here are three options

THE JOY OF FLASH