Techniques for dealing with backlit locations

[Josh66]

Unfortunatly I'm tied to a school schedule and am at the mercy of the director. The kids come to school at 8:00 and are finished before noon.

I wish it was like that when I went to school...

 

[tsaraleksi]

I think your best bet would be to lock the camera down on a tripod, then shoot exposures metered for the background before the kids arrive. This will let you blend in detail in the background so that you won't have blowout.

 

[GeneralBenson]

Put the kids on the lowest levles of the bleachers, and go stand on the highest level of the bleachers on the other side. That way you'll hopefully havea downward angle and the sky won't even be in the picture. Then you don't have to worry about the blown out sky, and only have to meter for the faces.

 

[JerryPH]

I'd also suggest you go to the strobist site and look for an article where David Hobby basically lights 1/2 a basketbal court with just 2 flashes. Your scenario is much different, but the techniques apply. ANY light that you can get from the front that you can feather in will make the shot better as long as it is even from side to side. A one stop increase can make a big difference under these conditions.