i got the shot photography
  • HOME
  • ABOUT
  • PETS
  • PEOPLE
  • SESSION INFORMATION
  • PRODUCTS
    • Christmas Greetings
  • GIVING BACK
  • CONTACT INFORMATION
  • BLOG
Elaine Mueller Tweedy
           (570) 575-1705

Project 52 - Week 7:  Natural Light

2/17/2017

8 Comments

 
Four hundred and fifty-two photos into practicing photography back in late 2011, I began to see a pattern with regard to taking pictures in natural light.  I probably would have figured the pattern out a lot sooner, if I did not live in Northeastern Pennsylvania, where unnatural things happen so often, the weathermen have taken to throwing darts at a weather map on the wall. 

Don't get me wrong, I LOVE NATURAL LIGHT! Just the right kind of light can help to make a fantastic portrait of any subject. And it's true that the best times to take photographs is in the very early morning or just before sunset, but sometimes clients have conflicts which do not allow them to necessarily meet at these wonderfully-lit times of day.

I like to spend some time taking practice shots in all kinds of natural light conditions, but Pennsylvania winters generally are their own gray card, and sometimes we don't see the sun for 10 days. So I am learning to become proficient in dull light. 

The saving grace is SNOW!  Snow really brightens up the landscape and helps with reflection (the good).  It can also reflect too much, be too bright, and become a vast wasteland of undefined nothingness (the bad).

This past week, while digging out from our second snow and ice storm, I had a chance to photograph our new neighbor's dog, a German Shorthaired Pointer (GSP) named Maverick, who was a willing participant, and enjoyed the snow way more than I enjoyed shoveling it.
Picture
The contrasts in a GSP's coat are great for setting against a blurred out snow scene, and despite the fact that this picture looks bright, it wasn't at all bright outside at the time.  I compensated with camera settings for sure, but while Maverick was doing a happy dance around me, I was analyzing the QUALITY of the light all around us, until I found this very open spot in his yard which afforded me good light, despite the overcast day.

Some tips:
1) Analyze the quality of light around you. (Look for the spots that will give you the best photo options.)
2) Look for contrasts to help you in dull lighting situations. (Generally these contrasts will come out much better on a dull, gray day, than on a bright, sunny one.)
3) Watch your white balance. (Remember, snow tends to have a blueish tone.)
4) Overexpose for snow.  Although this is counter-intuitive, the light meters in our cameras want to "fix" things for us and move in the direction of medium bright, but if you want the snow to be WHITE, you need to increase the exposure.  (In the photo above I increased my exposure by 1 and 1/2 f-stops.
5) On a sunny snow day, use a lens hood.  This helps with the massive reflections of the sun on snow effect.
Picture
A tip that a photography instructor shared with me a few years ago, is one I have never forgotten and always use: "Always try to have something other than snow in your photo to ground the subject in the image."  In the photo above, I have allowed the little rock wall, background trees, and snow hills to lend some interest to what otherwise might be an all-white scene surrounding Maverick.

And, as Maverick shows us, even when our light is right, that doesn't always mean both ears will be. (This face just makes me laugh out loud!)  I hope to take many more photos of Maverick, who is absolutely one of the friendliest dogs on the planet.

Now, because there are many more ways to use natural light, and many more people in our blog circle to give you examples, start here with Rochelle from Dark Sapphire Pet Photography in Nelson, New Zealand, then travel around the blog until you see this page again.  We are now headed into a warm up period weatherwise, but we Pennsylvanians know that more snow and cold are on the horizon through March and sometimes into April, so we are not fooled, Mother Nature!  Enjoy your weekend with whatever light you find yourself in!
8 Comments
Jodie Pholi
2/17/2017 05:38:10 am

Maverick is gorgeous and great explanation of how to shoot natural light in snow , Love the ear :)

Reply
Linda
2/17/2017 06:46:28 am

Such a beautiful dog! I love the contrast of his coat coloring with the snow & I especially like his flipped ear!!

Reply
Kelly
2/17/2017 07:16:08 am

Gorgeous pup! Great tips too!!

Reply
Jessica link
2/17/2017 07:30:42 am

Beautiful dog and snow images! He just pops against the snow.

Reply
Susannah link
2/17/2017 10:51:18 am

Love your explanation of working through natural light conditions. And GSP's are just such great looking dogs!

Reply
Lisa Browning
2/17/2017 11:51:45 pm

Helpful tips and great shots! I want to get more snow to try using the advice in this post!

Reply
Kim link
2/19/2017 07:03:25 am

Great post as always and I hope to see more photos of Maverick too. I love a GSP!

Reply
Darlene link
2/20/2017 01:47:17 pm

Great snow tips, Elaine! Beautiful images and beautiful Maverick in natural light - agree with Kim and hope to see more of this handsome guy! Great post!

Reply

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    i got the shot

    What People Are Saying:

    "From start to finish I had a great experience with I Got The Shot Photography.  I highly recommend Elaine and her excellent work!"
                                ~Carol C.


    "I LOVE MY PHOTOS. Thank you so much for getting a beautiful portrait of my two babies together.  It is perfect!"
                               ~Melinda F.

    "Elaine’s photos capture the very spirit of her subject."
                               ~Tim S.

    Archives By month

    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    February 2015
    September 2014
    May 2014
    March 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013

    RSS Feed

(c) Copyright  I Got the Shot Photography
 All Rights Reserved

Proudly powered by Weebly