Sunday, January 4, 2009

Silhouettes



As most of you know, a basic photography rule is to always keep the sun to your back. However, for a silhouette opportunity, you break that rule. While waiting for the morning light in Wakodatchee, saw that there was silhouette potential at heron nest building site and positioned myself and gear. I have found that the best way to shoot silhouettes is to meter the sky above/around your subject. What happens is that the subject will become severely underexposed and become black or dark. I usually bracket to ensure to get the right effect. The top image was taken last month and is of a Great Blue Heron pair. The sun had just starting to rise to the right when I took this photo. The male had just returned with a stick and stood up, proud of his recent construction material addition. The second image was taken in Green Cay last year. The bird that is silhouetted is an Anhinga. Really enjoyed the morning sunrise and the way the partial sun broke through the clouds for this silhouette. Life is grand. Blue Skies.

16 comments:

gina said...

these are beautiful indeed.

Adrian Olivera said...

Amazing Ken. Great photos!

Twisted Fencepost said...

Those are some really beautiful shots, Ken!
You really have an eye for nature photography.

SAPhotographs (Joan) said...

These shots have left my mouth hanging open in awe!! They have to be the best photographs I have seen in a long, long time!! Congrats Ken!! It takes a lot for me to gape like this!! :) I think I will close my mouth now. :)

Anonymous said...

Wow these are so neat! The first one especially looks so romantic!

This Is My Blog - fishing guy said...

Ken: Thanks for the neat shots and the great information.
Have a great 2009.

Ivar Østtun said...

Excellent silhouettes. Lovely color and great composition.

Anonymous said...

Ken, these Silhouettes are absolutely great. They are just perfectly done. You have fused and balanced the Landscape to the subject of wildlife. I am inspired to try your method. Once again, these are superb.

Willard said...

Ken,
Those are absolutely superb. What more can I say!

The Birdlady said...

Those are stunning! I'm not very good with those, but my daughter does beautiful portrait silhouettes http://www.rdavidphotography.com/

Anonymous said...

Ken, wonderful shots. Also thanks for the info on how they were taken I can always use info.

Brad Myers said...

Fantastic shots again Ken.

Stacey Olson said...

Life IS grand! and so are these shots.. thanks for the tips..

animtreebird said...

Very beautiful birds. Great photos. :)))

Unknown said...

The first image is a mindblowing silhouette shot.

This Makes My Day said...

Amazing silhouettes, they are so serene and divine, a real treasure. Thank you for making my day with your wonderful photo collection, I love your blog!
Have a great evening!