Taking photographs into the sun is fun!

Who said photographers have to obey the rules, when using photographic tools?
Why stick to photography rules like glue, and always put that sun behind you?
Make taking photographs more fun, by putting your subjects in front of the sun!

Every beginner photographer should perhaps start with learning a few photographic rules if they’re wanting to take better photos, but most photographers want to be a little more creative as soon as possible. Taking photographs that are little more creative is fun!

A photographic rule that most photographers automatically apply and are aware of, is then rule of taking photographs with the sun behind you.

Taking most photos either early in the morning or late afternoon is another good tip to remember – the light and shadows are less harsh when it’s not close to the middle of the day – on a sunny day.

If it’s an overcast day, it doesn’t matter too much, and, often, overcast days are best for beginner photographers to get familiar with their new camera and for getting used to taking pictures with it.

There will come a time though, that beginner photographers will want to experiment more and be more creative with their cameras, producing the desired and creative end-result photographs.

So, break the rules, and have fun in the sun!

I won a local East London photographic competition a few years ago, with a photo taken into the sun, and using just a cheap little point-and-shoot camera. It was of my two sons who were still so young then playing in rock pools on the beach. It was early in the morning on a hot day, and there was mist all over the place, waiting for the sun to rise higher in the sky to evaporate it. But I took advantage of that sun not being too high in the sky yet, and of the mist helping to shield my eyes from the bright sun, and snapped away happily. It was a colour photograph, but looked more like it was black and white at first glance. I had fun.

Silhouettes are super fun too. Block the bright sun out by placing an object between it and you and your camera. If there are a few objects, you may manage to get the sun rays filtering through here and there, resulting in a moody and creative picture, but just one or two objects, placed, ideally, near one third of the frame in your picture, can result in a strong, bold image too.

The bottom line with regards to enjoying photography is simply be creative and have fun – in the sun, or not.

© Teresa Schultz 2014