Tucson natural light family photos can be absolutely beautiful if the light is just right. Sunset and sunrise are the best times! But even at those times of day, it’s nice to have some supplemental light with me. So when I am shooting Tucson natural light family photos I always have my Profoto lights with me for backup – just in case.
You may notice there are only two photos in this post that look like they are not photographed using natural light, maybe three. But the rest mostly are. However some of them look like they are, but I still used just a little kiss of light to fill and to help stop action. That’s the thing about light. It’s great to be a natural light photographer only, but it’s even better to know how to use natural light when you can but be able to use other light sources and still make the session look like it was all shot with natural light. And so that is mostly how I photograph every session. Yes, bringing along off-camera lighting can be laborious (it’s why I bring an assistant) but even when I shoot Tucson natural light family photos I make sure to bring them along.
This family was a spring family photo session in the Tucson desert and they absolutely dressed the part. I loved the pale greens and blues they mixed – the perfect palette against the green and brown of the Tucson desert. But even better, I loved the hats and boots and belts they mixed in – so stylish! And the toddler stole the show – and my heart!
When I shoot Tucson natural light family photos I mostly use my Nikon Z camera. I currently use the Z7-II but this was shot with the first gen Z5. I love using it with my 35mm f1.8 lens – it has the most beautiful bokeh and really shines in natural light settings. But when I want to get a little more dramatic, I break out the Nikon SLR camera and create some moody photos where you can really see the sky and everything else goes a little darker. The last photo in this series was taken that way for his “high school senior” shot. I kinda loved the drama.
