When I met Nadia last week for a photo shoot, she surprised me with a new hair color. She had apparently just been to the beauty salon, so I wanted to emphasize her hair. We met a little before five P.M. so, being June, it was still quite sunny. I decided to get some back-lit, head shots first, so I over exposed by about a stop to give a high key look that would emphasize her hair color.

On Nadia's recommendation, we went to Tonarino in Meijo Koen. Tonarino is a two story plaza area with a Starbucks on the first floor, and a Dean and Deluca cafe on the second floor. It is new and spacious, and made a nice backdrop for Nadia's fashionable outfit. We started out on the second floor wooden deck area. I took the photos from a low angle so I could use the blue sky as an uncluttered backdrop.

After that, we moved onto the stairs between the upper and lower decks for some more full-body shots. I switched to my long lens for these, so I could get more candid poses.

As the sun began to set, we moved into Meijo Koen park, with Tonarino in the background. I decided to use a flash for these so that I could illuminate Nadia, but still keep the ambient light dark enough to give the feeling of evening. The flash also provides more directional light, which can add a feeling of drama.

We've been lucky to have relatively cool and dry days so far in June, the kind of weather that makes you feel good to be alive.