I was sent on a job in Worthing last week, about a couple who felt that their electricity company had not been serving their best interests. That’s a controversy-free way of saying that they felt ripped off to the tune of £500 after a cock-up involving the meter.
The figures that the meter had been reading were faulty, but it was entirely the fault of the company, who had installed this meter despite protests from the couple (who didn’t want it changed in the first place) and were now claiming compensation for THEM having installed a faulty product.
This was due to be the lead story in The Times’ Money section, so I was asked to be “Nice and creative with this one. Feel free to experiment.” Very specifically, the paper did not want just a straight shot of the couple.
Sounds great, doesn’t it? However, on arrival, there were a few difficulties….it was 7pm and there was therefore no natural light at all…..the meter in question had been taken away…..the flat was, er, cosy and busy…..my mind went blank.
The only uncluttered location was the stairs, but how could I illustrate this dissatisfaction the couple felt with their electricity supplier?
Suddenly, before I could even think about it properly, I blurted out “Have you got any candles?” “Hundreds,” they said. “A-ha,” I said, as an idea formed.
I broached the subject of lighting a whole load and putting them and the couple on the stairs, lighting the whole picture by candlelight. They said okay, so I headed back to the car to get my tripod. ISO 800, and a half-second exposure at f5,6 did the trick.
The paper ran with one picture in the print edition and a slightly different one for online, as you can see below. For the technically-curious among you, the one that ran in the paper (the top one) used a bit of torchlight too, bounced off the wall behind me.
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