18 15 June 2019I http://www.amateurphotographer.co.ukI subscribe 0330 333 1113
SubjectS that work well backlitFrost
I’malwayswatchingtheweatherforecasts,
andfrostis somethingI lookoutfor.Clear
skies,calmwindsandcooltemperatures
increasethechancesof frost,whichturns
scenesintoa winterwonderland.Whenthe
frostis severe,shootingintothelightcan
lookgreat,withthelightpassingthrough the
frozen moisture that lines surfaces.
Owls
Owlsmakegreatsubjectstoshootwith
backlightingbecausethelightcanpenetrate
thetipsof theirwings,asseenin thisimage.
Asthebirdflewin frontof thesettingsun
withitsprey,I hada briefwindowin whichto
captureimageswiththelighthowI wantedit.
Fortunately,oneof theseimagesshowed the
wings in a nice upright position.Deer
Duringtherut– theannualautumnevent
whenstagscompetetomatewithfemales–
deerarea greatsubjecttophotographinto
thelight.Theywilloftenbellowaspartof their
impressivedisplay,andif theconditionsare
right,theirbreathwillcondenseasit hitsthe
cold,outsideair.Shootingintothe light
illuminates this wonderfully.Technique LIGHTING FOR WILDLIFEsky,it canresultinharsh
shadowsandhighlights,
andit is easytolosedetailin
theseareas.Whereasinwinter
thesunis lowthroughoutthe
day,insummerthehighsunin
themiddleofthedaylargely
restrictsphotographytoearly
morningsandlateafternoons
andevenings.Fortunately,this
coincideswiththeperiodwhen
wildlifeis mostactive– orin
thecaseofmanyinvertebrates
suchasbutterflies,most
photographable– soit paysto
concentrateyourshooting
aroundtheseperiods.
Thethreemaindirectionsof
light are front lighting, side
lightingandbacklighting.
Thegreatthingwithdigital
photographyis thatyoucan
experiment,prettymuchfor
free,andyougetinstant
feedbackviayourLCDscreen.
Eachformoflightingwon’t
workineveryscenarioand
foreverysubject,buttryout
varioustechniqueson
differentsubjectsandin
differentsituationsandyou’ll
getanideaforwhatworks
bestandwhat kind of look
youprefer.Usinglightcreatively
Traditionally,themost
common advice is to shootwiththesunoveryour
shoulder.Whenthesunis low
intheskyit shouldbatheyour
subjectevenlyinlightand
showoffthecoloursbest.It
shouldalsogivea catchlightin
theeyeofyoursubject,which
addslifetoa photograph.
Shootingwiththesunbehind
youanda backgroundin
shadowcanalsocreate
dramaticimagesasexposing
foryourilluminatedsubject
shouldrendertheshaded
backgroundblack,whichcan
reallyemphasisecolour.
Whilefrontlightingcan
resultinlovelyimagesthat
showoffyoursubject’sbeauty,
theycanalsosometimeslook
likerecordshots,andit canbe
difficulttocaptureimagesthat
standoutinthislighting.Using
differentlightanglessuchas
fromthesideorbehindallows
youtocreateimagesthatcan
appearmuchmoreimaginative
andartistic,andyoucan be
muchmorecreative.Sidelighting
Sidelightingis,asthename
suggests,whenyouphotograph
withthelightcominginfrom
oneside.Thisresultsinimages
whereonesideofyoursubject
is illuminated,andtheother
is inshadow.It canbeusedto
greateffect– althoughit works
betterwithlargersubjects.
Whenusingsidelight,I expose
fortheilluminatedsideofthe
animal,whichplaces the other
side in shadow.Backlighting
Iloveshootingintothelight,
knownasbacklighting.This
canbeanextremelyeffective
technique,andI preferit to
sidelightingasI findit tobe
moreappropriatefora wider
rangeofsubjects.Thereare,
ofcourse,scenariosinwhich
it won’tworkandthereare
difficultiestoconsider,but
whenit comesoff,backlighting
canresultinsomespectacular
images.Whenshootinginto
thelight,therearea range
ofdifferentappearancesthat
youcangofor.Oneextremeis
silhouettes,whereyouexpose
forthebackground,usuallya
colouredskyorwater,atdawn
ordusk.Thisrendersyour
subjectverydarkorevenblack,
andsotendstoworkbest
withsubjectsthathavea
recognisableoutline.Rimlighting
Youcanalsogofora rim-lit
effect,wheretheedgesofthe
subjectarelitup.Forthis,
thesunneedstobenearthe
horizon.Rimlightingcanwork
especiallywellwitha subject
onwhomsomelightcan
penetratepartsofit,suchas
animalswithfur.It alsoworks
wellwithbirds,particularly
thosesuchasternsandowls
whichhavesemi-translucent
wings.Anyflyinginsectsinthe
airwillbecomeilluminated,
givingimagesa mystical
appearance.Whenit is cold,
condensation from the breathShootingthrough
dew-ladengrasscan
producesome
interestingbokeh
NikonD800,400mm
with2xteleconverter,
1/2500sec at f/5.6, ISO 500