On-location photoshoots can be more stressful than those set up in a controlled, indoor environment. Outdoors, there’s no way to control the lighting or the weather, leaving those involved relying on research and luck to nail the shots.

Talk to the Team

Do not show up the day of and expect a perfect shoot if no one knows what they want from the project. Reach out to those you’ll be working with long before the photoshoot and talk through all of the goals as well as what will be needed to achieve these goals. Remember, too, that weather can be fickle and light does not last, so be ready to bend if, for instance, it rains. Again, talk with the team about contingency plans. What can be skipped? What can’t be skipped? Are there alternative shoot locations at that site?

Dry Run

If you’re close enough to the decided location, take a day beforehand and spend some time in the area. Get to know the ground you’ll be standing on. Is it uneven? Is it soft? How will that affect the poses you plan on capturing with the camera? If the location is not nearby, gather up photographs of the place and plan out what you want to be doing at each one. Having an idea of how you want to model around will save time and provided professional focus during the shoot.

Have Fun

Though stressful, don’t forget to have fun with the photoshoot. Tell jokes during the downtime. Smile if something doesn’t work out. Bend easily to new ideas when there’s time to get experimental. The more polite and fun to work with you are in a stressful situation, the better you’ll be remembered and the higher the chance you’ll be hired again for future on location shoots.