Silhouette Everytime?

[Goldie Green]

I took this photo on accident, & tried to duplicate it another day & it didn't work well...is there a rule of thumb to shooting a silhouette? I know I need to shoot directly into the light, but what settings should I use? Any tips are greatly appreciated...

[kencaleno]

wrong section

[Goldie Green]

Where should I put it? Thanks for the information! I will try it out soon.

[zarquon]

I think would be more suited in the Digital Photography Technique, maybe in the lighting section? Or in the Other Techniques section.

Anyway, I really love the photo, it's very ghostly.

[oldwolf]

Take a look at your EXIF data:

Exposure: 0.002 sec (1/500)
Aperture: f/10.0
Focal Length: 55 mm
Focal Length: 55.0 mm
ISO Speed: 1600
Exposure Bias: 0 EV

You'll notice that your shutter speed is fairly fast at 1/500th of a second. This controls how much ambient light (the background lighting) gets to the sensor. Now look at the f/stop which is f/10. This controls how much light from the subject gets to your sensor. f/10 is about what the human eye sees as far as what's in focus. Your ISO was pretty high as well at 1600 so it looks like the camer metered for the bright spot on the floor.

If you can choose what metering type to use then meter for the brightest spot in the frame and take a picture to see what you get. Sorry, I can't be more specific because your settings are going to be different each time. You probably could've dropped your ISO down to 200 and it would've taken your shutter speed to around 1/60. Not sure if your subject would have stood still that long though.

[Silverz]

the easy way i find to get a good silhouette is to use a shutter speed fast enough to make the main subject exposed to an ammount that leaves them completely or almost black, while ensuring that the background behind them is bright enough to be properly exposed to give the effect you want.