Do you run away from cloudy days?
Friday, November 2nd, 2007Cloudy days can give you many opportunities for taking great photographs. Once you realise how easy it is to get great images, you’ll be looking forward to a cloudy day as much as a sunny day.
During my outdoor photo sessions, cloud cover diffuses the light of the sun much like a softbox, producing a soft even light that results in less contrasts and softer effect in images. While high contrast can be quite dramatic, lower contrast allows for more detail in both the highlight and the shadow areas of your photograph. Softer light is more suitable for portraits or candid shots of people.
In spite of the differences between film and digital cameras, what you learn about changes in lighting and your compositions and setup will be equally useful with your film camera. With a digital camera, you’ll feel free to experiment without the added cost of film.
Some subjects which benefit from the diffused lighting include waterfalls in shadowy forested areas and wildlife as well as close ups of flowers and people, mostly macro photography.
Diffused lighting is not as bright as direct sunlight, and you will need to compensate with a slower shutter speed most of the time. Alternatively, you may want to widen the aperture and adjust the depth of field. You should count on your tripod for wide or telescopic shots. The picture can be blurred by even slight hand or body shake with really slow shutter speeds, so use your remote or firmly attach your camera to a tripod if you have one. The result is really satifying.
