20 3 August 2019I http://www.amateurphotographer.co.ukI subscribe 0330 333 1113
Shootingthecathedralduringthemiddle of the
day didn’t do justice to its grandeur‘Thesunshonethrougha gapinthecloudsand
illuminated the cathedral with golden light’
- itssoftness,colouranddirection
- applythroughoutthealbeitshorter
daylighthours,andbecomeevenmore
dramaticduringthe golden hours.
Overcastlight
Thelightunderwhichyoushootdoesn’t
havetobedominatedbythesun.When
theskyis overcastorevenslightlyraining,
thelightis lesscontrastythansunlight.It
is stilldirectional,butmuchmoresubtly
soanddiffusedina waythatilluminates
everythingevenly.Shootinginthiskindof
lightcanbeanassetwithcertainsubjects.
Takea metalsculpture,forexample.Shoot
it instrongsunlightandyoucouldendup
witha hotch-potchoflightandshadeand
shadows.Butshootthesamesubjectin
overcastweatherandeverynuanceofthe
sculpture’ssurface will be evenly revealed.
Stormlight
Thereis a veryspeciallightthatis specific
tothetimejustbeforeoraftera storm,
whenlight-colouredsubjectsseemtotake
ona brillianceoftoneagainsttheirmore
sombresurroundings,evenwhenthereis
nosuninthesky.If thesundoesbriefly
appear,andit’sbehindyouwithdarkskies
infront,thescenebeforeyouwillbe
brilliantlylitagainsta dramaticallydark
sky. If it begins to rain, water droplets in
LuckyshotSTALBANSCathedralis animpressive
building.Butshotaroundmidday,withthe
sunobliquelybehindit (seebelow)didn’tdo
justicetoitsgrandeur.Myestimationwas
thatearlyevening,aboutanhourbefore
sunset,wouldbebetter.
BythetimeI returned,theskywasheavily
overcastin everydirection.Butthencamea
breakin thecloudsbehindandat anangle
towhereI wasstanding.Thesun,notyetlow
enoughtoberedbutjustpassingthrough
theorange/yellowstageof thespectrum,
shonethroughthegapandilluminatedthe
cathedralwithgoldenlightagainstthedark
sky.Theeffectonlylasteda fewminutes.
Sometimesit’snotjustaboutbeingableto
anticipatethelight,it’salsoaboutbeing in
the right place at the right time.theairrefractwhitelightandbreakit
backdownintoitscomponentcoloursof
thespectrum– which is where rainbows
comefrom.Sunsetandbeyond
Sunsetsareirresistibleformost
photographers,butshootingtheactual
sunasit sinkstowardsthehorizonis not
youronlyoption.Atsuchtimes,turn
aroundtoseehowthelow,redsunis
illuminatingthescenebehindyou.
Theeffectis particularlyattractiveon
stonebuildings.
Ona clearnight,whenthereareno
cloudsalongthehorizon,inthefew
minutesafterthesunhasvanishedyou
mightseeanafterglowastheskytakeson
red,thenorangehuesalongthehorizon,
fadingtopurpleandbluehigherinthesky.
It’ssomethingthatis worthshootingfor
itsownsake,butwithinminutesit’sgone
andyouareintothebluehours.Thislight
workswelloverwater,reflectingthe
darkeningsky,especiallyif thereare
light-colouredboatsdottedonthewater
topickupandreflectbackwhat’sleftof
thefadinglight.
Andthennightfalls.It’stimefor
somenightphotographyanda whole
newwayoflookingatthe light. But
that’s another story.Technique