This Photographer Challenges Herself To Take Pretty Photos In Ugly Places

This Photographer Challenges Herself To Take Pretty Photos In Ugly Places

When it comes to portraits and styled shoots, photographers focus a lot of their time and energy on planning every minute detail — from the location to the attire to the mood, no stone is left unturned. And with the help of special equipment, like lighting and props, they're able to enhance or manipulate those details in order to achieve the best shots possible.

Even though planning and utilizing specialized equipment is something Jenna Martin, a photographer from Billings, Montana, does on a regular basis, she recently decided to challenge herself with a task that goes against all photography standards.

With the help of her friend Rachelle Kathleen, Martin set out to find a location that most photographers would avoid for pretty much any type of shoot — especially glamorous ones. 

"I wanted to go somewhere 'ugly' by all conventional photography standards, and then see what we could do with it, and Lowe’s seemed like the perfect option," she wrote on her blog.

So, off to the big box hardware store Jenna and Rachelle went, with nothing more than a few pretty outfits and a camera in tow.

"As soon as we walked in an employee asked if they could help us and I asked, 'We were just going to take a few photos, is that okay?' He replied, 'Of course! I was just wondering why she was so overdressed for a trip to the hardware store!'" 

On top of not using any fancy equipment, Martin gave herself a few other rules to follow, including not making major changes to the displays and holding off on shooting if other people were shopping in the same area they were using.

"Since they were about an hour from closing the store was almost completely empty, though anyone we did come in contact with was super friendly, if not slightly curious." 

Areas of the store Jenna and Rachelle utilized included the paint and lighting sections, a couple of random aisles, and the garden center. She even took pictures with her phone of each spot to show what they had to work with.

In the end, Martin was pleased with the images she was able to produce, and she is encouraging others to challenge themselves in the same manner.

"Overall, this was a really fun challenge! Not that I’d invite an actual client to ever do a Lowe’s Photoshoot (I mean, never say never), but I was pretty happy with the result! Horrible location for the win! Next time you see an awful spot, maybe give it a chance, you never know what you might end up with." 

To see more from this shoot and other work by Jenna, check out her Instagram and Facebook pages, as well as her blog. 

You can also see more from Rachelle Kathleen on Instagram.  

Let us know what you think about this challenge in the COMMENTS and then SHARE these gorgeous images with others!