The Highwayman

[Carolyn Lee]

My first silloette shot. I have gone from auto to now working in shutter priority. IS0 400, ss 1/200, f 7.1 white balance: sunny, off auto focus - using manual

I had little room to work with and not the best sunset I could have chosen. Did use a tripod. Preset ISO - forgot to change white balance setting:

Could I have used better settings? My polarizer was left on - should I remove it? Is the picture in focus? Can you suggest a better white balance for this type of picture? Would a lens hood have helped?I want to work in shutter priorty now - did I choose the right one? Last but not least - how long can you get a great sunset after the sun is below the horizon? Please feel free to really pick this apart - I want to take better ones in the future. Thanks

[Sterling]

A silhouette is normally a solid black image of a strong, recognizeable or interesting shape. Your shot just looks like the camera correctly exposed for the sky and left the truck too dark.

Not sure why you felt shutter priority was the best way to go. I'm assuming the truck was parked. Was it actually moving? Since you were on a tripod, camera shake shouldn't have been an issue so I'm not sure why you felt it important that the shot be captured at 1/200 vs. 1/50 or 1/800?

Same with your polarizer, why was it left on? What were you trying to achieve by using it for this shot?

As far as white balance, do you want it to look more blue or more yellow? Or does the sky look the right color to you?

A lens hood is meant to stop bright light from hitting the lens from the sides where it can cause flare. A hood won't usually make much difference if the sun is shining straight into the lens like here.

I don't really see a good reason for manual focus here either. Without the polarizer (and maybe even with it on) your camera could probably focus perfectly well with auto focus. If you really prefer to manually focus though, that's your choice.

Another question, why ISO 400? It is generally better to use the lowest possible ISO to get the highest picture quality. By the ss and aperture used, you weren't forced to use a higher ISO...so why?

If there is a common theme in my critique it is that there seems to be a lot of settings and equipment selections here that haven't really been thought through. It's great that you want to dive right in a try everything but I think you'll find a higher satisfaction level sooner if you concentrate on learning each variable individually rather than trying to learn a bunch all at once.

[Carolyn Lee]

Hi Sterling

Thanks for the great feedback. There were a couple of reasons for my initial settings which I probably should have explained in the beginning. In addtion to trying for this type of shot, I was also trying to capture the sun hitting the side truck from a different angle that that had more of the truck showing. I was working with two sets of lighting conditions at the time. I left the polarizer on because when I was shooting from the side, the metal picked up a lot of glare and this helped reduce it in the other shots. I agree, it makes no sense for a silloette I do have the completely blacked out shots of the truck, I just chose this one for critique because the bits and peices you can still see interested me. My other settings were just simply left on because I was moving my tripod back and forth in the two light conditions. My big lesson here is to slow down and concentrate on one shot at a time. Appreciate you taking the time, I learned a lot

[LeeR]

I wouldn't be so hard on you. The shot is fine, not great but essentially well executed. Many of the settings you choose really didn't make a difference. The lens hood, polarizer, manual focus and shutter priority did nothing to add to the quality of the image. You probably would have got the same shot if everything had been set to manual and the polarizer and lens hood had been left off. My biggest recommendation would be to lower the camera so that more of the truck is featured in the silhouette. I'm not particularly bothered by the fact that some of the truck shows through the silhouette. There is no penalty for that. Sometimes an all black silhouette is best, sometimes not. It just depends on whether or not the parts that show through contribute to the effect you are trying to generate.
By the way, polarizers have no effect on glare from metal. Glass, water, painted surfaces, yes, but not metal. Also they darken the sky 90 degrees from the sun, so when you are shooting into the sun they have no effect.

[Carolyn Lee]

Hi Lee

Thanks so much! Did not know that about polarizers. I am very ok with being challanged technically - ya gotta learn somehow. So what would be considered the right settings for a silloette such as this: white balance? ISO etc? Would like to try again tonight.

[Michael_2010]

Did you shoot in RAW mode? If so, you can adjust the White Balance after the fact. You can click through all the options and choose the one that pleases your eye. Some times people will use a polarizer while shooting directly into the sun as a way to prolong an exposure without blowing out the sky. Not as effective as an ND filter, but it works to a degree. Otherwise, it is useless when shooting directly toward the sun and can often create those annoying refractive light spots bouncing through the glass.

Hard to explain, but I don't think this would work well as a silhouette. The lower portion of the tractor would get lost in the shadows. However, a clear shot of the rig along with the setting sun could prove to be very attractive. The combination of colors and chrome could be striking, if properly exposed.

[Carolyn Lee]

Thanks Micheal

I took all of the suggestions to heart and went out again last night. Big learning experience. Changed my settings ISO 100 ss 1.30 to 1/50 No polarizer, switched back to auto focus and changed to the white bal to shade. HUGE difference in the results. Thankyou Sterling! Lee, tried your suggestion re: being lower to the shot - yes yes yes!

I see where trucks are tricky for this type of shot. Great in a sunset pic. Not so easy in a silloette. My shots are in jpeg - still figuring out raw and processing. An ND filter is on my list of things most wanted

In short - thanks guys - you were bang on with everything and I learned so much as a result. Sometimes the not so great pictures are your best learning tool. Will be posting a new silloette later. Your feedback is greatly appreciated.

Just an observation - really cloudy skies make greater sunset pics - I am hoping for storms!!!