LIGHTING IS KEY

Probably the most important thing you can do to improve your photos is to PAY ATTENTION TO THE LIGHT. Keep this basic rule in mind; hard light is bad, soft light is good. To find soft light, try shooting early morning or late in the evening. Or, try an overcast day.

Hard light is the type of light you find mid-day, when the sun is high in the sky. It creates very hard shadows, which are not flattering. If you have to shoot when the sun is still high, make sure you move your subject into the shade.  

Shade provided by a building or structure works well.  Be careful when using trees for shade as the light may be dappled.  Dappled light is when tiny specks of sunlight filter through the leaves therefore causing specks of light on your subjects face.  

If you have had a session with me, or if you do, you'll notice I shoot most of my sessions at the end of the day, preferably in the last hour of sunlight. This is called the Golden Hour and is when the light is soft and the most flattering to your subjects.