It seems like everytime I’m at a family event or somewhere outside among other people where there is a camera present, the question always comes up about where the sun should be when taking a picture of someone.
The short answer is that there is no hard and fast rule. It depends on what else you have available and where the sun is in the sky. Here are two scenarios where the placement of the subjects with relation to the sun are different.
You’re in an open area outside, with very few trees or other covering structures, such as a ball field or the beach. The sun is at about a 45-degree angle to your position, so it’s either mid-morning (10am during the summer) or late afternoon (4:30pm in the summer). Let’s think about this for a moment. If you put the sun behind you (the one with the camera), that means the sun will be on the faces of your subject. They will be very well lit and you won’t need to use a flash. But there’s also a problem with that. Because the sun will be on their faces, it will also be directly in their eyes. Bright light in anyone’s eyes causes them to squint. It also causes their face to distort from the squinting. So now you’re taking a well-lit picture of someone whose face is squinting so much that they look like a raisin. Not good.
So, you decide to put the sun behind them (in front of you) by turning everything around. That works to make sure there isn’t any squinting! But it creates two new problems. The first problem is that now your background is very bright and your camera will underexpose your subject’s faces, making them appear very dark (see the picture below for an example). You can turn on your flash (yes, turn ON your flash – even in sunlight) to fill in the dark spots on their faces, but your camera has to be smart enough to know how to do this properly. The other problem you face is the sun beaming directly into your camera and causing a phenomenon referred to as camera flare. These are bright flares of light that can show up as streaks, circles or a combination of both in various colors. It’s SOOOOO complicated.
But here’s the solution. Place your subject (and yourself) so that the sun is to the SIDE of where you are. That’s right, so that the sun is coming from the left side or the right side. There won’t be much squinting, if any, you will still have brightly lit faces, the shadows will be at a minimum, and the chances of camera flare are almost non-existent. The picture below gives you an idea of what that might look like.
Second problem. Outdoor at the local park, enjoying a family outing. You want to take a picture of your family for the scrapbook. The sun is directly overhead. You want it to be nicely lit, but you are worried about the horrible shadows that are caused by the direct sunlight (these appear as dark spots under chins, noses, eyebrows, etc.). What to do, what to do?
You could wait for a cloud, but sunny day clouds aren’t usually thick enough to dim the sun’s light sufficiently to reduce the shadows. Instead, move your family under a shady tree. The direct sunlight is reduced significantly, and you still have enough surrounding light to get a good photo!
There are lots more scenarios you could come up with, and I encourage you to do so. Please post a comment with your outdoor lighting question (or indoor if you like) and we’ll see if we can come up with a solution for you.
Until next time, keep those cameras snappin’!