2010-10-24

Projects 20 to 22 - shooting into the sun

These projects are concerned with shooting into the sun. Specifically how to create sun stars, how to position the sun in the frame to reveal more detail in the image, and how to use reflective surfaces to create more interest into compositions when shooting into the sun.

I tried on several occasions to capture sun stars and discovered pretty quickly that the sun needs to be set in a blue sky. Any degree of diffusion by clouds makes creating sun stars impossible. Having practiced the technique I decided to carry out the three projects concerned with shooting into the sun in sequence in the same location so that I might see how using the techniques in the course notes lead to a better final image. The location for the shoot was Burnham Beeches - it is starting to show the yellow/orange colours of Autumn.

The first step was to shoot two images into the sun aiming to achieve a silhouette with a sun star. The first image was at f/2.8 and the second was at f/16. The images are below with a detail crop showing the sun star.


















Clearly stopping down has resulted in a much better star.....lesson here is stop down!

The next step was to investigate how placement of the sun  in the frame impacts on the exposure of the image. The idea is that if the sun is placed towards the edge of the frame then more detail will be revealed in the remainder of the image. Here are two images which test this...


















Placing the sun to the side has indeed had the desired result. The contrast in the image with the sun placed near the edge is less which in the case of this subject and compositon has definitely improved the image.

The final step is to introduce a reflective surface into the bottom of the frame, again with a view to reducing the contrast and revealing more detail to add interest to the image.

Middle Pond, Burnham Beeches Buckinghamshire UK

























I am pleased with this final image which was a recomposition of the earlier ones. I moved forward to make the pond a more visible feature of the photograph. I feel that I have some important lessons about shooting into the sun. The key learning points have been: stop down, move the sun towards the edge of the frame if I want to reduce contrast and reveal more detail and finally to consider ways to add reflective surfaces into the composition to further reduce contrast and add interest.
Posted by Keith Greenough LRPS at 10/24/2010 06:33:00 pm
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About Me

I have been taking photographs since I was young boy some 45 years ago, but only seriously since 2005 when I enrolled to study at the Open College of the Arts. I am working towards a BA in Photography. I am a Licentiate of the Royal Photographic Society. This log record details of my projects and assignments during my studies. It also records ideas, work by other artists/photographers, notes on books/websites/exhibitions, influences, discoveries, thoughts, research findings and observations as I work through my courses. You can contact me at keith.greenough@btinternet.com or simply leave a comment on one of my posts.

Landscape Photography Bibliography

  • Andrea G Stillman (2007), Ansel Adams 400 Photographs, Little Brown New York USA
  • Andy Grundberg (1999), Crisis of the Real, Aperture Foundation New York
  • Ansel Adams (2007), Examples The Making of 40 Photographs, Little Brown New York USA
  • Ben Maddow(1989), Edward Weston, His Life, Aperture Foundation New York USA
  • Charlie Waite (1989), Scottish Islands, Constable London
  • Charlie Waite (1992), The Making of Landscape Photographs, Collins and Brown London
  • Charlie Waite (1999), Seeing Landscapes, Collins and Brown London
  • Charlie Waite (2002), In My Minds Eye, Photographers Institute Press East Sussex UK
  • Charlie Waite (2005), Landscape, Collins and Brown London
  • Clive Minnitt and Phil Malpas(2009), Finding the Picture, Envisage Books London
  • David Noton (2008), PHOTOGRAPY ESSENTIALS: WAITING FOR THE LIGHT, David & Charles PLC, London
  • Fay Godwin(1985), Land, William Heinemann London
  • Fay Godwin(1990), Our Forbidden Land, Jonathan Cape London
  • Fay Godwin(1998), Glassworks & Secret Lives, Stella Press East Sussex UK
  • Fay Godwin(2001), Landmarks, Dewi Lewis Publishing Stockport UK
  • Galen Rowell (1995), Mountain Light, Sierra Club Books San Francisco USA
  • Galen Rowell (2001), Inner Game of Outdoor Photography, Norton & co New York USA
  • Galen Rowell (2002),Galen Rowell's Vision: The Art of Adventure Photography, University of California Press USA
  • Harry Callaghan (1993), Ansell Adams in Color, Little Brown New York USA
  • Hunter, Biver & Fuqua(2007), Light Science & Magic, Elsevier Oxford UK
  • James Bentley & Charlie Waite (1987), Languedoc, George Philip London
  • James Bentley & Charlie Waite (1987), Languedoc, George Philip London
  • Joe Cornish, Charlie Waite, David Ward, Eddie Ephraums (2006), Working the Light, Argentum London
  • Joe Cornish, Charlie Waite, David Ward, Eddie Ephraums (2007), Developing Style and Vision, Argentum London
  • Joel Meyerowitz (2002), Cape Light, Little Brown and Company New York USA
  • John Berger, Ways of Seeing, Penguin Modern Classics
  • John P Schaefer (2007),The Ansel Adams Guide Book 2 Basic Techniques of Photography, Little Brown New York USA
  • John P Schaefer (2007),The Ansel Adams Guide Book I Basic Techniques of Photography, Little Brown New York USA
  • John Szarkowski (1981), American Landscapes, The Museum of Modern Art New York USA
  • Landscape Photographer of the Year Collection 01 (2007), AA Publishing
  • Landscape Photographer of the Year Collection 02 (2008), AA Publishing
  • Landscape Photographer of the Year Collection 03 (2009), AA Publishing
  • Liz Wells (1996), Photography:A Critical Introduction, Routledge Oxon
  • Liz Wells (2003), The Photography Reader, Routledge Oxon
  • Marc Garanger (1989), Louisiane, Kodak
  • Robert Adams (1996), Beauty in Photography, Aperture Foundation New York USA
  • Robert Adams et al (2009), New Topographics, Steidl Germany
  • Stephen Shaw (2004), Uncommon Places The Complete Works, Thames and Hudson, London
  • Susan Sontag, On Photography, Penguin Books London
  • Terence Pitts (2008), Edward Weston (Icons Series), Taschen
  • TPOTY Awards (2010), TRAVEL PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR Journey Three, Travel Photographer of the Year Suffolk UK

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