I need silhouette help!

[GothPuppy]

Can anyone please help me get the hang of taking a silhouette? :scratch

[Harryb]

Can anyone please help me get the hang of taking a silhouette? :scratch

It would be easier if you could have shared a shot and/or explained what you are doing now to get a silhouette shot.

I just expose for the sky.
http://behret.smugmug.com/photos/235803391-XL.jpg

[pathfinder]

Me too, Harry:D

http://Pathfinder.smugmug.com/photos/56497293-L.jpg

Welcome to dgrin, GothPuppy.

Can you explain more clearly exactly what you are having difficulty with? Focusing, exposure, how to accomplish? Are you shooting in Av, Manual, or one of the Auto modes? Shooting the auto modes will defeat shooting a silhouette, unless you dial in the -2 or -3 stops of Exposure Compensation.

Shooting silhouettes can truly be as easy as Harry described. Anytime the foreground subject is underexposed 2 or 3 fstops, you will have a silhouette if it is backlit.

[GothPuppy]

I didn't think to upload a picture... I will remember to do that for next time. I deleted them..as they were all bad :cry
Not sure were my aperture should be? I seem to get some color on my subject, not completely blacked out.


By the way...Awesome photo Harry!

[GothPuppy]

Sorry, I am very new to using a forum...

[pathfinder]

A Nikon D80 is an excellent camera, very capable of first rate silhouettes.

What is your level of understanding of photographic exposure settings, aperture, shutter speed, etc?

[SloYerRoll]

No worries about being new Goth.

What we need to know is what kind of results you want to walk away w/ and what kind of subject matter you want to shoot.

i.e. I want a silhouette of a dog against a sunset. I want a silhouette of a party kid against club lights. I want a silhouette of a skater doing a trick against a streetlight.

Even if you think the image totally bites. It still helps us paint a better idea of what you want to achieve. So consider that your last excuse of not posting shots :wink

So w/ that in mind. What kind of silhouette shots do you want to take?

-Jon

[pathfinder]

Sorry, I am very new to using a forum...

Then, somebody made you a pretty cool avatar.:scratch :D :D

[anwmn1]

As mentioned above- set yourself up to take the photo of the sky- when your subject is front of the sky they become a silhouette. It is important to have sky all the way around the subject matter or as best as possible.

http://aaronnewman.smugmug.com/photos/211867337-L-1.jpg

[GothPuppy]

Ahhh Pathfinder, my Daughter helped me with my Avatar!

Ok - I'm very new to photography, I got my D80 in July. I have very little knowledge of using the aperture,shutter,exposure... So I spend alot of time looking up on the internet how to set my camera. Don't always get good info, LOL

As for what I was trying to shoot - Bird silhouette.


By the way - I'm Dawn :D

[pathfinder]

Hi Dawn, nice to meet you. MY name is Jim, but most folks here just call me PF.

Perched or inflight?

Using a D80, is kind of like flying a jet fighter. There are a lot of controls you need to understand in order to make it fly loops and upside down, and land safely.

Most of us here will strongly rec you shoot in Av or Manual Mode only. To shoot silhouettes, that will almost be a requirement. You will also need to understand using the light meter in the camera, and how to set Exposure Compensation, either positive, or negative.

If this is way too basic and you know this already, just tell me what you want to learn.

[LiquidAir]

The key to taking a silhouette is shoot such that the primary light source is directly behind your subject. Doing this means pointing the camera into the light. The exposure adjustment for including the light source in the frame will result in your subject going dark and, if the lighting contrast is high enough, black.

In this shot I am looking at the shadowed side of the rocks and the exposure is set for peak color in the setting sun.

http://gallery.liquidairphoto.com/photos/228174406-L-1.jpg

[GothPuppy]

I was trying both infight and perched..

That helps alot Jim... I have been using the manual mode. I'm glad I got a digital instead of film, LOL

I'll be working on it!

Dawn

[GothPuppy]

Thanks LiquidAir... Beautiful Shot!

I'll just keep trying till I get the shot!

[pathfinder]

Happy New Year, Dawn.

Post your silhouettes when you get them:thumb

[LiquidAir]

As for what I was trying to shoot - Bird silhouette.


By the way - I'm Dawn :D

Hi Dawn!

OK, here's the gig:

If you are shooting at mid day, the blue sky meters very close to the same as an bird lit by direct sun so metering for the sky will not cause a sunlit bird to be underexposed.

Here a quick introduction to photographic brightness:

Modern DSLR cameras have a dynamic range of about 8 stops which means that to create a silhouette with no detail, your subject must be at least 8 stops darker than pure white.

Reflective surfaces (say bird feathers) have a dynamic range of only about 5 stops. That means a black bird is only 5 stops darker that a white bird. This is why a properly exposed photo of a black bird still shows detail in the feathers. For the bird to be any darker than that, it must be in a shadow. In midday sun, simple shadows run about 3 stops darker than the sunlight which means a black bird in the shadows will silhoutte against a blue sky. However, a white bird in the shadows is rendered not much darker than mid grey.

To get a more satisfying silhouette of a bird, you need to shoot under different lighting conditions. On an overcast day, the clouds are relatively much brighter than the blue sky which will result in much more effective silhouettes. Here is a shot of a flock of white pelicans which have rendered quite dark against a cloudy sky:

http://gallery.liquidairphoto.com/photos/129228399-L.jpg

The light from this sky was very flat; almost equally bright everywhere. To get a yet stronger silhouette, you need a sky with one area brighter than the rest. Sunsets or sunrises are the most common times to see this, but the right cloud cover can create it at any time. Exposing for and shooting toward the brightest part of the sky will give you an almost guaranteed perfect silhouette of your foreground subject.

[GothPuppy]

Ahhh LiquidAir... That is so helpful! It makes alot of sence to me. You broke that down so well. Thank You!
Ok I will be going out a shooting silhouettes tomorrow :D:D
I will upload them as soon as I can!

Thanks Again!
Dawn

[Antonio Correia]

Today, late evenning in Lisbon, Portugal - EXIF (http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/newexif.mg?ImageID=242606569)
Manual mode 1/500 f/5,6

http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/242606569-M.jpg