The Daily Photo #34- February 3rd, 2016
Reflection
and Shadow
Most photographers know how beautiful the sunrise/sunset time of day can be. The light is golden and colors are beautiful. I love that light. Everyone loves that light.
Then there is the middle of the day. Hard overhead shadows, dynamic range issues, harsh highlights on reflective surfaces, etc. I have read many articles that talk about the middle of the day as your chance to rest up and take a break. Move along, nothing to shoot here.
Although, if you shoot street photography, then you might know that the harsh mid-day sun can also be a compositional advantage. When all you have is direct overhead sun, what you get is a lot of reflections and shadows. I like to use the deep shadows as a part of the composition, almost as a character in the scene. I look into windows for those serendipitous moments when the outside and inside worlds collide. I look where the light is bouncing and throwing highlights and ripples of reflected sunlight. There is no bad light.
So, if you want good color, or beautiful black and white tones, it is best to go shoot when the light will be exactly perfect. Truth is, most of us have to shoot whenever we can and use the light available. Because I don’t know when I will make it out to shoot somedays, I almost always go into the street without any preconceived notions of what I want the pictures to look like. I let the quality of the light dictate the direction and mood of the pictures. If you work with the light you have, rather than against it, you will find it much easier to get successful pictures.
Some days the light is soft and pretty, and some days it is direct and harsh. And some days, if you wait too long to leave, you get the best light of the day while driving in traffic, the golden rays blinding you through your dirty windshield. That is the worst.
Gear used:
- Sony A7II body
- Voigtlander 40mm f/1.4 Nokton Classic
- Lexar 32GB Professional 633x UHS-I SDHC Memory Card
See you tomorrow.
