Shooting when the sun is low.

Gleniffer Lake shoreline, Dickson dam, Alberta

As we approach the winter solstice I find the sun makes its presence known less and less every day.  It wasn't even 3:00 in the afternoon and its angle relative to the horizon was already low.  It was the perfect time to shoot landscape photos.

The advantage of a low inclination is that shadows are long and areas embraced by them have enough waning light that details are easy to see.  When the sun's elevation is higher the harsh shadows produced reveal few details; the only way to bring them out is to use an editor like Photoshop to lighten the darker areas.  In the above photo, no such alterations were made.  The photo is essentially as the camera saw it.

 When the sun is at greater angles shadows can also be filled with flash.  This works for nearby subjects but quickly loses the effect as distance increases.  The technique is especially desirable when photographing people as harsh shadows are rendered moot.  Even in light situations as above the shot will benefit from flash; their faces may be in mild shadow but the additional light will ensure better colour and separation from the background.

When photographing areas with shadows, regardless of how dark they are, it is generally a good idea to expose for the background area affected by the sun.  This way blown-out highlights will be reduced or completely removed.

Thanks for reading.

Eric Svendsen     www.ericspix.com