Bali Shoot – Natural light photography

Taking on a test shoot whilst on holiday.

I have recently been on holiday to bali –

I won’t bore you with the details of how amazing it was… but needless to say – it was great.

This post, however, isn’t a humble brag about my fab jollies; It is a post to advocate the benefits of doing Test Shoots.

I haven’t taken part in a ‘TF’ for about 6 years, for all the normal excuses: I work too hard, i’m tired, i don’t have time, i don’t want to work for free etc. etc. etc.

But something felt different about this for me. I was going to be halfway across the world , in a gorgeous country with great light and some of the most beautiful sunsets i have ever seen. It felt like a waste not to at least try to organise a shoot. So i bit the bullet and put out an ad on a modelling community on Facebook. I figured i’d put it out there, and if i get something back then great, if not then i haven’t lost anything.

Cut to a few weeks later and i’m laying on a sun lounger , languishing in the balinese heat, with a good book in one hand and a cocktail in the other and my phone is going batty. It transpires that i have a model, HMUA, Jewellery Designer and a swimwear retailer involved in the ‘TF’ shoot i have in couple of days time.

Now here is the interesting thing; i am used to doing large scale shoots, high pressure shoots, celebrity shoot, 20 minute shoots, 3 day shoots… i have done it all. You know what i have never done before in my entire career? An accidental full scale shoot in 3 hours, with not a penny in the budget, and only my 7 year old cheap holiday camera…. no equipment, not even a sodding reflector to my name. This shoot very quickly went from a small TF, to a brand shoot. It felt more like i was a Instagram influencer photographer

In my day job as a brand marketing photographer, i am used to working under pressure, but i am also pretty used to having assistant brand photographers, Crew, Catering etc.