Shooting into the sun

[Chris_Johnstone]

Morning all,

I've in a couple of situations where I thought shooting into the sun(set) would create a really good effect however, I can never pull it off as far as exposure is concerned. Is there a technique to this?

Just a fast shutter speed to avoid burning out the sun etc?

Chris

[nightshade]

Standard warning about the sun burning out your eyes, making holes in your shutter curtain
The full power of the sun is preferably masked by your subject foliage, cloud etc. A high shutter speed may darken the forground, I usually take a reading off the back of my hand,grass or use a grey card depending on wether you want silhouette.Check for Iris flare in the frame before you press the shutter
A bit chaotic ,the phone keeps ringing ,hope this is some help

[mh68]

Originally Posted by Chris_Johnstone

Morning all,

I've in a couple of situations where I thought shooting into the sun(set) would create a really good effect however, I can never pull it off as far as exposure is concerned. Is there a technique to this?

Just a fast shutter speed to avoid burning out the sun etc?

Chris

Chris, are you trying to get silhouette type shots or trying to get foreground detail aswell? If its the former then spot metering on the sky ( not right into the sun though) should get a decent exposure, you can try spot metering off various points of brightness to get the exposure you want.
If youre trying to get both a well-exposed sky AND some foreground detail you may have to use fill flash for the latter, or take two seperate shots - one exposed for the sky and one for the foreground and merge them in software. The dynamic range of the scene in this case may be outside the cameras abilities and you wont be able to expose both foreground and sky accurately in one shot.

Mark H

Mark H

[Chris_Johnstone]

yea, I was wanting some foreground detail. I think HDR is the way to go with it. I might give it a try tonight and see what the results are like.

The advice you're giving me is good, I think I just need practice.

Chris

[Fourwings]

I have had success by dropping the exposure comp by 2 stops, this image was taken on a really bright afternoon in December with the sun burning through the fog, a recipe for over-exposure you would think.

The technical stats are as follows;
EOS 20D fitted with Sigma 50 - 500mm zoom (Bigma)
taken at 50mm
ISO - 400
1/1600th sec @ f22
exp comp -2.0
white balance - Sunlight

[glsammy]

Originally Posted by Fourwings

I have had success by dropping the exposure comp by 2 stops, this image was taken on a really bright afternoon in December with the sun burning through the fog, a recipe for over-exposure you would think.

The technical stats are as follows;
EOS 20D fitted with Sigma 50 - 500mm zoom (Bigma)
taken at 50mm
ISO - 400
1/1600th sec @ f22
exp comp -2.0
white balance - Sunlight

As you know, I really like that shot Steve. you got it spot on.