About this time of
year I start to realise that I am not designed to be a nocturnal animal and the
shortage of natural daylight starts to be a nuisance. Never more so than now
when I am trying to grow my fledgling pattern design business. Photography is an
area that I am keen to improve upon and everything I read emphasises the importance of natural light.
All well and good
until you consider that my day job has me leaving the house at 8:20 (school run
before driving to work) and arriving home after 5pm. The hours of available
daylight for photography purposes at home are condensed into a 20 minute slot
between 8:00 and 8:20 and not surprisingly lost trousers and missed homework is
often higher on my to-do list at that time in the morning.
I have tried
carefully assembling my subject matter the night before so that all I have to
do is grab my camera and take a few shots (whilst telling a small child to
brush their teeth - again) but the general morning chaos isn't really conducive
to calm, unhurried work.
My latest cunning
plan is to take the photographic subject with me in the car. Arranged on a tea
tray - passengers in my car must think I am very odd - and with the car parked
in a suitable spot at work I can take advantage of the last hour or two of
daylight and do my best to get some good shots.
And there are some great "what not to do" tips by A Beautiful Mess here.
It is a constant
struggle though and I would welcome suggestions on how you do it. What tips and
tricks can you share to help us make the most of those precious daylight hours?
