Places I can put you in, and what makes each one work

A destination is more than a backdrop. A composite only holds together when the person in it is lit by that place and no other: the right angle of the sun, the right colour of shadow, the right amount of haze between you and the horizon. These are the settings people request most often, what makes each one work, and where to check real conditions if you ever decide to visit.

Iceland

64.15° N, 21.94° W

At this latitude the day is unusually flexible. Around the June solstice the sun sets for only a couple of hours, so a scene can be lit from a very low angle for a long time. In midwinter daylight lasts only a few hours and the sun stays close to the horizon, which gives long, soft shadows and warm side light almost all day. Black sand and basalt add strong contrast, so skin tones need careful balancing against dark surroundings. For real daylight and weather information, see the Icelandic Met Office.

Banff, Alberta

51.18° N, 115.57° W

Banff was established in 1885 and is often described as Canada's first national park. Its lakes look turquoise because glacial meltwater carries fine rock flour that scatters blue-green light, and that colour has to be echoed in the shadows and reflected light on your clothes. Mountain shade is cool and blue while sunlit rock is warm, and matching that split is most of the work. Current conditions and visitor information are on the Parks Canada page for Banff National Park.

Kyoto

35.01° N, 135.77° E

Kyoto rewards patience with detail: wooden gates, wet stone lanes, paper lanterns. Humid air often diffuses the light, and evening scenes mix warm lantern glow with a cool blue sky, two colour temperatures that must land on your face at once. Autumn colour typically arrives in the second half of November. The Kyoto City Official Travel Guide lists seasonal highlights and events.

The Sahara

31.10° N, 4.01° W

The Sahara is the largest hot desert in the world, and dune scenes are all about long shadows and warm sand bounce. Sand reflects orange light back up onto the person, so skin and fabric pick up a glow that a careless composite misses. Midday sun is flat and harsh; the convincing hours are shortly after sunrise and shortly before sunset. General travel information for the Moroccan Sahara is available from the Moroccan National Tourist Office.

Lofoten, Norway

67.93° N, 13.09° E

The islands lie north of the Arctic Circle. From late May to mid-July the sun does not set, and from roughly autumn to early spring the aurora can appear on clear, dark nights. Aurora scenes are the hardest to fake: the green light is faint, so it must fall softly on the snow, the huts and your jacket without turning the whole image green. NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center publishes a short-term aurora forecast, and Visit Norway covers travel planning.

Low Earth orbit

About 400 km above sea level

According to NASA, the International Space Station orbits at roughly 250 miles (about 400 km), circles the planet in about 90 minutes and gives its crew 16 sunrises and sunsets a day. That means orbital light changes quickly: hard, unfiltered sun, deep black shadows and a soft blue fill reflected from Earth. Orbital scenes are pure artwork, and I present them that way. Background on the station is on NASA's International Space Station page.

A place that is not on the list

Describe it. If I can find enough reference for how light behaves there at the hour you have in mind, I can build it. Please note that these images are artworks, not evidence of travel. I do not create images meant to mislead others about where someone was, for example for official, legal or insurance purposes.