Lesson 12ª

 

 

 

 

 

   

 

Shadows, midday

 

A good way to avoid the high contrast produced at noon is moving the subject/object under a shade (whenever possible, of course). If we are shooting a landscape, we won't be able to do this. Light is softer and diffused under a shadow and it doesn't generate so much contrast. Therefore, we will have a softer photograph and not so strong as a picture taken at noon.

 

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Photograph 17 was taken in a sunny day in spring. Since the light had a high contrast and was quite intense, I decide to move my model under a shadow. This way, I was able to achieve a softer and more diffused illumination, with less contrast. It also allowed me to even the illumination reaching her face without casting any shadows under her eyes, nose and chin.

To take this photograph, I used an ISO 200 and the exposition was f/4.5 at 1/200. Even under a shade, there was enough light to use a good shutter speed and for the photograph not to be moved. I used an open diaphragm to achieve little depth of field since I didn't want the background details visible.

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Photograph 18 is another example of a photograph taken under a shade in a sunny day. As you can see, there is more contrast between the subject and the background. The subject is illuminated by a soft light which casts very few shadows. This makes the subject stand out from the background, making him the first thing the viewer sees in the image.