Make a Portrait Using Only Window Light
It'll purify your photographic soul, baby.
I help photographers and creative entrepreneurs over 40 reclaim their confidence, cut through the noise, and build bold, independent lives through no-BS insight, experience, and action. Welcome to my Substack. I am glad you are here.
I had a long career in photography, and one of the only things that remained constant was my love for simple window light.
Small windows, large windows, two-story windows… Oh my.
Make An Image Using Only Window Light
A one-frame challenge to sharpen your eye and reconnect with the essentials.
We spend so much time fawning over the newest and coolest modifiers, backdrops, light kits, and gear… We forget how damn powerful a window can be.
So here’s your assignment: one image, one window, and nothing else.
The Rules:
No flash, no reflectors, no LEDs.
No fancy surfaces or wild props.
No 300-shot gallery.
Just one image, carefully crafted, using natural window light as your only source. (OK, you can take a few to get it right.
Just remember, some of the great photographers of the past had 12, maybe 24 shots to get it. We can get it in two-dozen shots… IF we are deliberate.
Why these constraints?
Because limitations are often the fastest way to unlock your creativity.
When you stop reaching for gear or changing up the shot every five minutes, you start paying attention to shape, shadow, angle, tone, timing.
We ain’t lookin’ to create your magnum opus.
This is about seeing on purpose.
The Creative Prompt:
Shoot one object. One setup. Using only available window light.
Take your time. Plan it. Compose it. Wait for the light to shift if you need to.
This is a study in simplicity and intention.
What This Exercise Builds:
Control. Window light isn’t purely constant: it forces you to adapt and work with subtle shifts.
Focus. One object, one scene: you’re not bouncing between 10 ideas. You’re solving one visual problem.
Patience. This slows you down: and slowing down is a gift in a world of 1,000-image dumps.
Real-world application. You’ll be surprised how often client shoots happen in natural-light scenarios. This builds the muscle to make it happen.
Set Yourself Up for Success:
Choose the right window. North-facing if you want soft consistency. West-facing for drama late in the day.
Turn off overhead lights. Let the natural light sculpt the scene.
Use foam core or a wall for bounce. If needed. No need to get fancy.
Shoot tethered or slow. You want to build the image, not just snap and go.
Bonus Challenge:
Write a single-sentence caption describing the mood you were looking for.
This will help you train your conceptual thinking and give the image direction and context.
Example:
“A quiet reflection in the last light of the day.”
Why This Matters:
Far from busy work or mindless ‘exercises’. this is the foundational skill every photographer needs:
To make something meaningful with very little.
It’s not about fancy gear.
It’s not about fads or trends.
It’s not even about creating a masterpiece.
It’s about pushing your vision.
And I believe vision thrives under constraint.
Here are a few of my window light portraits from the vault.
Window light filled the little room, and I shot through the doorway.
Mamiya RB67, 80MM lens on TriX.
The lighting was a full moon and streetlights. After a long day of shooting, and a rap party at the brand new “Hard Rock Cafe” that had just opened in Chicago, we found our way back to the studio for more fun shooting. This image was shot on Polaroid 3200 instant slide film.
Nikon F3, 105MM 2.5 lens.
I had the young lady simply stand next to a large bank of windows in this Houston studio. Fill was provided by a 4x8 fomecore panel, and shot on a Canon DSLR with a 100MM lens. Super simple, and northern light.
Canon DSLR 100MM 2.8 lens.
This is a more direct approach to using window light. Shot in Virginia, this little studio had some wonderful big windows to the west. This produced lovely, large shadows that were fun to work with. Placing the subject directly into the light produces a dramatic portrait.
Canon DSLR 35MM 2.0 lens.
Floor to cieling windows to camera right provided a wonderfully soft light after the sun had passed over the building. The windows faced east, so we spent the morning blocking the sun and using strobes, but when the sun got overhead, the light became so beautifully soft. Fill on the right side from 4x8 fomecore panels (2).
Canon DSLR 85MM 1.8 lens.
Find a window and make something fun.
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If you’re over 40 and still hungry to make, build, and create, stick around. This space is for people who aren’t done yet (and never will be). I’ve got five decades of wins, failures, comebacks, and creative battles under my belt, and I’m sharing everything that still works—and burning the rest.
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On my phone, long titles are cut off, so I saw only "Make a Portrait Using Only Wind..." well, that got my attention! Good post and nice work.
Love this entire post!
I love window light so much, but it's not as easy as one might think.
The hardest part for me slowing down. This is a great exericise!