Microclimates on display


Shooting outdoor portraits on the Central Coast is a little like playing roulette. Pick a number (date) and cross your fingers.


When Kenzie asked about a solo, sunset shoot with her Camaro, it seemed like a no-brainer. We wanted a backdrop with lots of hills or fields to light up during golden hour. But- it's summer in SLO, which means you never know if you're going to get a beautiful sunset or a gray foggy evening. Sometimes, it can be sunny all day and then the marine layer and fog just rolls in and really changes the aesthetic you're aiming for.


I scouted a great location off Los Osos Valley Road, LORV for the locals. I drove around during the time when our session would be to find a remote spot with little traffic, and make sure the sunset would line up correctly.

deserted road along a field at golden hour
deserted road along a field at golden hour

the day of


As we drove out of SLO along LOVR, I could see in the distance a wall of fog. The longer we drove, the closer that wall of fog got. I looked at my Google map and kept hoping we'd be in front of that wall. And we were. Barely. We parked and looked at the site. While we still had some sunlight, gone were the hills and golden light on the fields around us. In another 10 minutes or so, we'd probably lose our sunlight as well. Definitely not the vibe we wanted for these photos.


Kenzie suggested we try Perfumo Canyon and we set off to find a perfect spot. And we did. Unfortunately, we weren't the only ones who found the spot, so in order to avoid shooting other cars, our angles for the shoot were a little limited, but wow. What a backdrop did it make.

a young woman in a red top and blue jeans poses inside of her white camaro on a hill at sunset
a young woman in a red top and blue jeans poses inside of her white camaro on a hill at sunset

The session


While we may have been limited in the angles we could shoot and we had a few people watching us, Kenzie was a real professional and knocked it out of the park. She showed me some ideas for shots she wanted to get and we ran through as many angles and setups as we could while we still had some sun. It was super fun and challenging, especially any shot involving a mirror.

a young woman in a red top and blue jeans poses in front of her white camaro on a hill at sunset
a young woman in a red top and blue jeans poses inside of her white camaro on a hill at sunset

In the end


While the shoot may have started out a little scattered and frantic as we searched for a Plan B location, after it was all said and done we ended up with some amazing photos of a girl and her love (the Camaro). Staying flexible and adjusting on the fly is part of a photographer's life living on the Central Coast, as you really don't know what kind of weather you're going to get when you block a date for a session. We were fortunate to find a spot above the fog, but had it been a cloudy evening without any sunset, we would have had to adjust our expectations and create something a little moodier but still fun.


And since we had to go up, up, up to get the pictures, after we were done, we were treated to an amazing view to look down on and watch the sun set behind the mountains and fog.

the sun sets behind a mountain while a layer of fog sits in the valley below