Tips for photography on a bright sunny day?

[RL168]

Hi,

Do you guys have any tips for taking pictures on a bright sunny day? I was looking at some vacation pictures that I took last May in Grand Canyon. We were there for a whole day from morning till evening and it was a sunny day. So the pictures I took are all really bright, whether it is just the canyon or with my family with it. So my question is on a bright sunny day, are there any tips to take photos so they will come out with good exposure?

Thanks,
rl168

 

[xfloggingkylex]

Hi,

Do you guys have any tips for taking pictures on a bright sunny day? I was looking at some vacation pictures that I took last May in Grand Canyon. We were there for a whole day from morning till evening and it was a sunny day. So the pictures I took are all really bright, whether it is just the canyon or with my family with it. So my question is on a bright sunny day, are there any tips to take photos so they will come out with good exposure?

Thanks,
rl168

metering is everything. If you meter for one brightness, anything that is brighter than that will be over exposed and everything darker will be underexposed. You need to learn to use the meter appropriately and compromise the amount.

Or find some shade.

 

[Kingpatzer]

Look for scenes where strong contrast helps create the mood.

Consider using fill flash

Get in the shade and use reflectors and diffusers

 

[auer1816]

Expose for the highlights and let the shadows drop into blackness. Blown out highlights look worse than underexposed shadows.

If you're taking shots of people against a high brightness backdrop, use the fill flash so they don't turn out too dark.

 

[Alpha]

Expose for the shadows. If there is more than a 3 stop difference between the lightest and darkest parts of your shot, use a graduated ND filter.

 

[simonkit]

I know it's not always possible or preferable but often it's just not possible to get great shots in "peak" daylight hours - try & take those special shots around sunset/sunrise, winter is also a great time to get good landscape shots as the sun remains low in the sky throughout the day, casting nice shadows over the landscape

simon

 

[auer1816]

The other option is to use a tripod and expose for everything with several shots -- then make an HDR out of it.

 

[jimiismydaddy]

Dont want to jump to conclusions but it seems like this guy is just taking great pictures of his family and memories, not worrying about HDR or reflectors.

What type of camera do you have?

It helps to meter at the right places and get a good balance, or if you can adjust exposure on your camera that helps. You have to decide what is most important in the shot and focus on that and try your best to get the rest good.

 

[poshedesigns]

I just took some pictures of my daughters in the Texas bluebonnets. Unfortunately, I don't do mornings so I missed out on the sunrise opportunity. I made myself a reflector out of aluminum foil wrapped around a 2 foot by 3 foot board. The pictures turned out awsome. I had the sun coming from behind and slightly to the side of them which really lit up their hair from behind. I aimed my reflector at them which got rid of those pesky dark shadows beneath noses and chins. You could also try using one of those foil car window shades. They are definately more compact. Hope this helps. Click here to view my pictures http://kyleandlisa.tripod.com/id11.html
Happy Shooting