Lighting is critical to getting a good shot, and your lighting setup is going to depend a lot on the location(s) you choose to shoot (see the Locations section above). Ideally, you have a location with plenty of natural light, but even if that's the case, you may need to supplement with artificial lighting. For example, if you are shooting outside and the subject is backlit, lighting will help illuminate their face and remove harsh shadows. Or if you are indoors and the ambient light is not sufficient to provide good lighting, a key light and fill light will help your subject pop from the background (see our video below in the Shoot section for an example and explanation of lighting techniques).

If you are on a super-lean budget, and have window light to work with, your setup can be as simple as buying big piece of foamcore and placing it on the side of the subject's face away from the window. If you have a little more money, buying a few task lights with daylight-balanced bulbs will help greatly or you can rent an on camwera led-lite panel here
(note that the on-camera light isn't going to be super-flattering for your subjects, but it may be better than nothing in a pinch).