Shooting into the sun

eddo123

eddo123

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Edward Fury
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Ok, i have seen many landscape photos where they have the sun low to the horizon so the light is weaker, but they have managed to get a very balanced shot.
I have tried doing this myself, but i have struggled at getting a nicely exposed balance between the sky and the foreground.
I was just wandering if anyone has got any tips on this, such as stacking grads, to make say a 5 stop overall filtration over the sky, without getting a funny looking sky.
Its not really been the weather for me to go out there and shoot these type of shots, usually the sun disappers before it can get so low in the sky.
And help and thought would be greatly appreciated.
cheers Edd
 
I shoot in to the sun a lot, and normally deal with it by taking two exposures (one for the foreground and one for the sky/sun), and just combining them in PS afterwards using layer masks. Quick and simple.

I'm sure there'll be people along to offer advice from more of a 'purist' perspective, but this works for me :)
 
yeh, i have thought of doing this, but i find it a whole lot more pleasing to know that its all done in one shot. The likes of joe cornish manage to do it in a film exposure, just want to be able to do it like that on my digital SLR
 
I think most of the better shots "out of the Camera" are taken using graduated filters (or ND Grads as they're also known) basically, they're darker at the top, and you line them up with the horizon to balance the light entering the lens...... Someone else will no doubt explain it better than I can, but you get the idea...
 
An ND grad filter is basically a horizontal section of the filter is darker, and the rest of the filter is clear.

The darker section acts as sunglasses for your camera, and makes it harder for light to enter, meaning that the sky/sun/light doesn't overexpose and the foreground interest doesn't under expose.
As was said earlier, the same result can be achieved in photoshop in post processing.
 
When you print from a neg or pos you can alter the amount of light falling onto any part of the print.. effectivly like using Ps to dodge n burn.. so you can try and do it in camera so as not to 'Cheat' but its not cheating anyway.. in printing you can make things like Gobo's that are used in studio lighting but are little things that'll bllock light on the paper, they are used like you would use a mask in Ps..

Anyway, if you keep the ISO as low as possible and use good quality grads you CAN stack them.. but if you use a wide angle and shoot as the is sun is very low you shouldnt need too much filtering..

This shot was taken with 1 nd8 full grad..

MG_8449_1.jpg


I have pictures taken into the sun at over 200mm without any filters too... with no problems..

It really depends on where you are and how the conditions are for you.. its changes all the time..

So, you can stack them, you CAN have problems with stacking, You dont always need filters... Clear as mud really... hehe..
 
Taken into the sun, hand held with NO filters..
Sunset4.jpg
 
I know what i ND grad is, i do have a set of the lee ones, which i bought for the purpose that they are neautral, and i can stack them without a colour cast.
thats the sort of shot im talking about, but with possible a slightly lighter foreground so a ND9 grad stacked with a ND3 grad would work.
ill have to try it next time at at the coast, thats when i need to learn it by anyway
 
hmm, not so sure about that it looks a little forced to me
 
now they sound handy!!! ill have to have a look at them!!
 
Cough, splutter!!!! look at the price per filter, as handy as they sound i think i can make do with what i got at the moment
 
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