New year, new tricks

摘要

In the first weeks of the New Year the sun never climbs very far from the horizon, so it's a great time to experiment and shoot into the light. This technique is also known as contre jour (against the light). It throws drama into the scene, and you'll find no shortage of backlit subjects throughout the day. Keep lenses and filters as clean as possible to reduce the risk of flare, and try to partially hide the sun behind part of your subject. Add structure to your compositions by including the raking shadows cast by trees or spires. However, keep safety in mind - never look directly at the sun through the viewf inder, especially if using a telephoto lens.