Photography Myths 101

Today’s Myth: When a photographer is shooting on a sunny day he must always have his subjects look into the sun so that their faces are not in shadow.

Fact: Most professional photographers will choose to not to shoot with the sun at their back for the following reasons:

• If the subjects are facing the sun they will most likely be squinting as the photographer tries to take the picture.
• If the photographer’s back is to the sun any faces or white clothing tend to overexpose easily.
• If the sun is low enough the photographer may get his own shadow in the picture.

What to do if you are shooting in the sun:

• Have your subject’s backs to the sun, that way they can keep their eyes open and not squint.
• Have an assistant hold a light reflector so that your subject’s face is lighted properly.
• If the sun is setting then you can position the setting sun behind your subject’s head to get a really cool halo effect.

Here is an example of what you can do when shooting in the sun and you don’t have an assistant to hold a reflector. (Picture by Lukas van Dyke)  Go here to see what the results look like.