Nowadays, people do not need to rely much on photography studio or professional photographers for taking snaps, whether it is for family occasion or casual imaging needs. The great inroads made in imaging technology and reduction in prices of imaging devices has given the mass more options and flexibility to shoot pictures. The present generation digital cameras make taking photos simpler. If you want to dabble with special effects and techniques, there are plenty of D-SLRS as well. However, you still require basic knowledge of photography and sense of lighting to make your images stand out. This is applicable to both digital camera and other device users.
Taking Great Looking Outdoors Images can be Challenging
It does not matter whether your camera has a resolution of 8 or 14 megapixels or if it comes with numerous image editing effects inbuilt. To make outdoors photos look appealing, you need to be aware of pitfalls and tricks to overcome them. As it is, taking outdoors that can be often more challenging owing to several external elements and distractions like crowd, noise, and lighting anomaly etc. Below listed are a few tricks that will help you take outdoor shots of your subjects that will look quite aesthetic.
Utilize the Shade
While the sunlight is the best natural light source for imaging, it can act against it at times. You will realize this when you need to take shots under bright sunlight, during the noon. At that time, the sun shines the brightest and most of the shots can become over exposed, giving the subject an artificial look if you are not careful. It would be good if you use a shade near a source of light to shoot images at this time. For instance, you can make the person stand in shadow of a building or wall and take snap. This way, the light will not fall on his or her face and reflect. You will still benefit from the light around the subject.
Using the Surrounding as Reflector Helps
It is a good and practical idea to use the environment to reflect light on subject to make outdoor shots look outstanding. This is especially needed when you want the person to appear prominent than background and there is no reflector. There is no sure shot formula but you can use bright colored walls or glass surface behind the subject in some instance.
Tap Benefits of the Magic Hour
Veteran photography buffs like shooting images when the sunlight is dim especially during the dawn and dusk. You can still get the benefit of natural light but it does not reflect harshly or make your subject squint eyes. As a matter of fact, you can try experimenting with this soft golden light and take some breathtaking outdoor shots including some nature photos. However, you may not always get the chance to snap during these timings. However, keep in mind that it does not last for a long time and shoot with sun behind the subject to get a nice rim of sunlight around the face.
Dealing with Direct Overhead Sunlight
Despite your best efforts and desires there will be situations when you need to take portrait shots directly under the sun when it is noon. There is a trick that can help you evade getting those raccoon eyes type photos. With the subject standing directly under sun and no shade around, set your camera’s flash to ‘always on’ mode. The extra light made by it will help eliminate hard shadows generated by harsh overhead sunlight to an extent. Remember, for this, you need to take snap within 10 feet of the person or so.
This article is contributed by Evans who is associated with Fotografi a website gallery featuring the images by Tania Malkin.
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