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Archive 2012 · Shots combining a sunset and people?

  
 
Access
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · Shots combining a sunset and people?


How do you guys combine the two? I did a search but didn't find a whole lot of threads / examples.

Sunset photos are a common request from my friends and we're going to try some more this weekend at the beach. I've only done this once before and then I stuck with the basics of either silhouettes or a basic three-point lighting setup (with strobes) with the sun serving as the backlight -- carefully trying to balance the exposure of the subject(s) with the sunset in the background.

This time it is likely I will use the portable modeling lights rather than the strobes just because it's easier to balance everything that way. What else do you guys do during sunset shots beside the two basic things I've mentioned above?



Jul 27, 2012 at 01:40 PM
Michaelparris
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · Shots combining a sunset and people?


Use manual mode. Get a setting that gives correct exposure for sunset. Place subjects in picture. If you take a pic they will be under exposed. Add fill flash to taste. I usually start with flash at lowest power and work up from there. Best results are with a small soft box off camera up close on either camera right or left. Good luck.


Jul 27, 2012 at 05:06 PM
Deanh
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · Shots combining a sunset and people?


I have heard graduated filters also work well for this type of situation.


Jul 27, 2012 at 05:51 PM
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · Shots combining a sunset and people?


Deanh wrote:
I have heard graduated filters also work well for this type of situation.

Yeah though I'm trying to not to buy anything else... enough time and money to get these modeling lights working, just trying to figure out some more creative things I can do besides the usual.



Jul 27, 2012 at 06:16 PM
bwhip62
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · Shots combining a sunset and people?


When I tried this for the first time recently, I felt it was important to make sure my fill flash matched the warm tone of the sunset light. I've seen lots of sunset photos where the flash was very obvious because the color of the light was so white and bright, and it seemed unnatural to me. I used a Lastolite Ezybox, with a 580 EX II that had a 1/2 CTO gel to warm it up a bit. I used manual mode, and tweaked the settings until I was happy with the histogram results.

http://www.latebraker.com/galleries/BlogPhotos/c_c/C_C-21.jpg

http://www.latebraker.com/galleries/BlogPhotos/c_c/C_C-22.jpg



Jul 30, 2012 at 08:50 AM
unknown_photog
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · Shots combining a sunset and people?


@Access are you asking how you get the right exposure or are you asking for creative ideas?

What are portable modeling lights? Are you talking about speedlights?

Andy



Jul 30, 2012 at 11:50 AM
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · Shots combining a sunset and people?


unknown_photog wrote:
@Access are you asking how you get the right exposure or are you asking for creative ideas?

What are portable modeling lights? Are you talking about speedlights?

Andy

More creative ideas, beyond the standard/typical of a silhouette or lighting the face(s) trying to mimic a 3-point lighting setup with the sun as the backlight.

I just ended up doing the usual, strobes because there was far too much wind to even attempt using the modeling light and umbrella, the wind would flip the umbrella into reverse in an instant.

The portable modeling lights are just that, similar to studio lights (continuous, not strobe) except they're portable, I use them all the time for night shots.



Jul 30, 2012 at 01:36 PM





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