Shooting into the light
- This topic has 65 replies, 18 voices, and was last updated Apr 11, 2014 at 3:19 pm by
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This is what I mean by using the shadow of the subject to shield the lens and avoid flaring.
This shot (with a little tweaking) was used a book cover.
Morsie
Really love all the shots in this thread!
John: Nice example with the Grad NDs and Rev NDs.
Chad: Nice shot .. I am going to have to keep your post in mind over the next while and really try to embrace the blown sky!
Thought I’d post a couple of mine ..
Corey, i really like that first shot. A bit too contrasty with the crushed blacks for me, but still looks great. Have you tried seeing how that one would print? I’m just curious as to how it would come out with the blacks being so heavy.
Will that mayfly shot looks great!
http://society6.com/grainfarmer Fly Fishing and Landscape open edition Photography prints.
http://grainfarmer.vsco.co/ iPhone photos
http://instagram.com/chad_simcox InstagramHere is another non-fishing related photo using that effect. I did a portfolio shoot 2 weeks ago, this is one of the selects. I wanted to show how this technique still works with a cluttered background. Again, shooting into the sun with the sun low on the horizon, exposing for the foreground, and intentionally blowing out the sky.
I don’t know about you, but photos like this transport me to the time of day and help me feel the warmth of the sun, the slight breeze and the oncoming coolness of night. Perfect way to convey summer afternoon.
*by the way, I removed 10 people from the background of this photo!
http://society6.com/grainfarmer Fly Fishing and Landscape open edition Photography prints.
http://grainfarmer.vsco.co/ iPhone photos
http://instagram.com/chad_simcox InstagramChad: That last shot is is just inspiring! Cant wait to start putting this thread into practice. In response to your comment… No, I have not tried to print it. I agree it would be interesting to see how it prints.
Will: That is a really nice shot! The bug really pops.
Thanks Corey, what a wonderful compliment!
I think what makes this technique so successful is the fact that it provides atmosphere to the image giving it more feeling. It’s that sense of “there’s something in the air”. By leaving the blacks a bit washed out and the contrast somewhat low you’re able to give volume and presence to the air.http://society6.com/grainfarmer Fly Fishing and Landscape open edition Photography prints.
http://grainfarmer.vsco.co/ iPhone photos
http://instagram.com/chad_simcox InstagramChad,
They say imitation is a pure form of flattery. I had your basketball picture in mind this morning when I took this picture of Chloe on our Sunday walk. Shot with my iPhone . . . early morning sun directly behind the subject. It’s not really the same setup with the low angle of the sun but still got me thinking.
Wow thanks Neal, very cool! I’m thinking the warmth of the afternoon light is a key to this look as well. Then again it’s all about the subject. Out on the open water or salt flats I think morning light would work best.
With the blacks crushed, high saturation and high contrast it really has the feel of Corey’s shot. Crazy, cool colors come through on the dogs coat! I dig it. Now I can’t wait to see what you do with a full size camera.By the way, talk about inspiring, everyone make sure you check out the may slideshow over at http://www.flyartstudio.com
http://society6.com/grainfarmer Fly Fishing and Landscape open edition Photography prints.
http://grainfarmer.vsco.co/ iPhone photos
http://instagram.com/chad_simcox InstagramThats a very cool shot Neal!
Really liking this thread and making a conscious effort to play around with it. I know, I know .. its a kid pic.. Sorry. 🙂 Hopefully, I’ll put it into practice on the river this weekend.
A little bit of a tip on the technique
http://www.nickonkenconnection.com/shoptalk/2008/03/preserving-imag.html
http://society6.com/grainfarmer Fly Fishing and Landscape open edition Photography prints.
http://grainfarmer.vsco.co/ iPhone photos
http://instagram.com/chad_simcox InstagramO.k. I’ve been thinking about this for a while, and it’s probably a stupid question, but….
A lot of the into the sun shots I’ve seen posted or done, actually have the sun itself behind some object (tree, cloud, structure, out of frame). But how are you guys shooting when you actualy keep the sun itself in the frame?
The reason I bring this up is because in the manuals for the camera and lenses, it says to not look directly at the sun through the lens OR viewfinder. The only shot I have done like this, was with a dark red filter shooting B&W film (my avatar pic), and therefore it was not hard on the eyes to look through the viewfinder and compose the shot. The sun was also very low on the horizon just before sunset, so it’s strength was not too harsh I suspect.
So, what about the shots I see where it is midday and the full on harsh blazing sun is in the image? Do you guys just hold the camera and not look through the viewfinder and “wing it”, or do you still look through the viewfinder? If looking through the viewfinder, couldn’t this harm your eyes?
One thing I thought of was maybe using a ND filter (or two) with a polarizer to essentialy darken the light coming to the camera enough that it is not a problem to look at, kind of like sunglasses for the camera).
I shoot directly into the sun all the time and it doesn’t bother me, though I wouldn’t stare at it for a long time through a 200.
With a wide lens it shouldn’t be a problem as you’re loosing a fair amount of light through the viewfinder.This is a recent shot of a guy who installs solar stuff – though it’s facing the wrong way, the sun is an important part of the picture.
Shooting directly into it requires a powerful light source to balance the exposure.
From memory, the ambient light is exposed a bit down on the camera reading and I had to wiggle around a lot to find the angle with the least flare.You can do this sort of shot with on camera flash, though you might have to crank the flash exposure to get a proper level.
www.dsaphoto.com
A picture is thousand words that takes less than a second while a thousand words is a picture that takes a month.
David – that horizon is crooked…….. ::)
I wing it a lot when using a wide lens because I shoot from low angles or high angles and don’t use the viewfinder.
Morsie
David – that horizon is crooked…….. ::)
It’s errr, ‘advanced’ photography, one day you might understand… 😉 😀
www.dsaphoto.com
A picture is thousand words that takes less than a second while a thousand words is a picture that takes a month.
Hey, there are some great shots in this thread and even an amusing critique ;).
I love high speed sync but love to mix strobe with hot lights as well, sure is a different beast but what amazing additional control that is does offer. I know this isn’t shooting into the sun but Morsie titled this “Shooting into the light”. 🙂 This is an outtake from and assignment at the National Theater. I am not a concert photographer but when asked and my scheduled allowed, I was a bit excited about shooting in the discipline that our man David Anderson has mastered. Can’t use flash so it was all about trying to get in sync with the lighting engineer and forecasting the sequence that he/she may execute next.
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