The Philosophy Behind Silhouettes
Since silhouettes appear as two-dimensional shapes lacking detail, it is often the absence of color that actually enhances our perception by allowing our minds to fill in the details. Angled lighting, whether from above, behind, or the side is a form of lighting that emphasizes edges and depth. In this way, even without the detail, you can create an image that engages your viewer.
An even greater of interaction from your audience will be created with the mystery that is added when silhouettes are used as the subject for your image. With careful planning, you'll be able to create not only the scene, but also the effect that you're trying to get across. With this clearly in mind, it will be much easier to make it a reality.
Amazingly, you may find that the impression you intended was not what your audience perceived. While this can be disheartening at first, when you understand that the viewer's mind is interacting with your photograph, it's much easier to understand how there can be such a variety of impressions. Their own moods, perceptions, and perspectives will shape what it is that they believe they are looking at. Yet, since your goal is engagement, you have been successful.
The How To of Silhouettes
Now that we've taken a look at the philosophy or aim of silhouette photography, it's time to examine the steps that will get us there. Of course, any subject can be rendered as a silhouette as long as we have proper back lighting. Do not limit your subjects to merely people since, nature, architecture, and distinguishable products can also create interesting silhouettes.
First, backlighting is the most important component of a great silhouette. To be sure, both natural and artificial lighting can be used, but each have their challenges. For natural lighting, getting the right angle can sometimes be a challenge, yet the strength of the light hardly ever is. For artificial lighting, you don't have to worry about the time of day in order to get the right angle, but you need to be sure that your lighting is strong enough. Harsh lighting works great as well as softer lighting if used at close distances.
But, beyond backlighting, you'll also need to consider the settings on your camera. For a crisp focus, I recommend using a larger than normal aperture setting, usually of f8 or higher. We want the background to be in focus as well as the silhouette, so this setting is a great way to achieve both. Taking silhouette photos is an intermediate photography skill which improves, of course, with experience. Begin today to adjust and fine tune the settings that work best for you.
Since silhouettes appear as two-dimensional shapes lacking detail, it is often the absence of color that actually enhances our perception by allowing our minds to fill in the details. Angled lighting, whether from above, behind, or the side is a form of lighting that emphasizes edges and depth. In this way, even without the detail, you can create an image that engages your viewer.
An even greater of interaction from your audience will be created with the mystery that is added when silhouettes are used as the subject for your image. With careful planning, you'll be able to create not only the scene, but also the effect that you're trying to get across. With this clearly in mind, it will be much easier to make it a reality.
Amazingly, you may find that the impression you intended was not what your audience perceived. While this can be disheartening at first, when you understand that the viewer's mind is interacting with your photograph, it's much easier to understand how there can be such a variety of impressions. Their own moods, perceptions, and perspectives will shape what it is that they believe they are looking at. Yet, since your goal is engagement, you have been successful.
The How To of Silhouettes
Now that we've taken a look at the philosophy or aim of silhouette photography, it's time to examine the steps that will get us there. Of course, any subject can be rendered as a silhouette as long as we have proper back lighting. Do not limit your subjects to merely people since, nature, architecture, and distinguishable products can also create interesting silhouettes.
First, backlighting is the most important component of a great silhouette. To be sure, both natural and artificial lighting can be used, but each have their challenges. For natural lighting, getting the right angle can sometimes be a challenge, yet the strength of the light hardly ever is. For artificial lighting, you don't have to worry about the time of day in order to get the right angle, but you need to be sure that your lighting is strong enough. Harsh lighting works great as well as softer lighting if used at close distances.
But, beyond backlighting, you'll also need to consider the settings on your camera. For a crisp focus, I recommend using a larger than normal aperture setting, usually of f8 or higher. We want the background to be in focus as well as the silhouette, so this setting is a great way to achieve both. Taking silhouette photos is an intermediate photography skill which improves, of course, with experience. Begin today to adjust and fine tune the settings that work best for you.
About the Author:
For further detail on photography, visit our camera reviews or video on coming releases.