finding the perfect background for photographs

Photographers and clients alike regularly comment on this photograph in my portfolio, and the question invariably asked is whether this is a Photoshop effect.  Far from it – this image is straight out of the camera …

It is an image taken during one of the portrait sessions of Desha and Kyle when I was the photographer for their destination wedding in Aruba.  Their wedding consisted of two parts: The noon-time legal wedding ceremony at the Orangestad courthouse; and afterward later in the evening, the vows ceremony on the beach.   After the wedding ceremony at the courthouse was completed in the early afternoon, I spent some time with Desha and Kyle, photographing them around the colorful city center.  The old colonial buildings offered a beautiful setting for this first set of wedding day portraits.

As we finished up this noon-time session, Desha and Kyle and I agreed to meet again on the beach much later in the evening and we said our goodbyes.  We were walking through a shopping center on the way to the main street to grab taxis to take us to our respective lunchtime destinations … and then I called them back excitedly, and told them to stand in a certain spot in the middle of the shopping center and just snuggle in a bit.

They both looked a bit bemused at my request – after all, it was just a shopping center – but they indulged me.  I lay down on the ground and shot upwards against the neon-lit ceiling.  By throwing the multi-colored neon lights out of focus, I was able to isolate the couple against this background. With a 70-200mm f2.8 zoom, I was able to zoom in close and use a wide aperture, to do exactly that – isolate them against an out of focus background.

It’s a photo that I am quite proud of, since it is so striking looking … but also because it is difficult for anyone who wasn’t there to figure out the context.

recommended lenses for portrait photography

Again, the lens that is essential here, is a fast 70-200mm zoom.  It is my go-to lens to work at a wider aperture (f3.5 in this example at the top), and a long focal length to help separate your subject(s) from the background.  Both the Nikon and Canon lenses here are stellar.

Nikon 70-200mm f2.8 AF-S VR II (B&H)

Canon 70-200mm f2.8L IS II (B&H)

photography books by Neil vN

Amazon USA

Amazon UK

newsletter / forum / workshops & seminars

Stay informed of new articles via the monthly newsletter.
Also join us on the Tangents forum for further discussions.

If you need more direct help or instruction on flash photography,
I do present workshops & seminars and also offer individual tutoring sessions.

If you find these articles interesting and of value, then you can help by
using these affiliate links to order equipment & other goodies. Thank you!