AskJoeB: Question On The “Law Of The light”

After reading your blog post about the “Law Of Light” (part one) I’ve started to pay attention in my photography for the “glow” effect you described. Of course I never shot photos with that physical law in mind, I only knew that the best light was with the low angle at sunrise/sunset and having my subject side lit would make it “pop” and it give it a more tri-dimensional effect by revealing it’s form.

Here’s a landscape shot I took in Sand Diego at Pacific Beach.  I only got the right creative exposure —shutter speed of about 2 seconds to get a calm ocean— later on this photographing session, when the sun was almost gone and the rocks were not glowing anymore.

Moreover the tight wasn’t my friend at that time —it was rising and it was the only time I could take this photo, meaning no other chances to plan another session with the light getting low.

I think of these shots as keepers but I’m not gonna use them in my portfolio. This is not only because I didn’t get the creative exposure I wanted, but also because I’m noticing a light flare on them. The flare is probably due to the camera position towards the sun and the use of an ND Grad filter to hold back the sky exposure.

What are your thoughts about it? How can we avoid light  flares when shooting with the “law of light” in mind? Is that possible to avoid light flares when we are obligated to use an ND grad filter, a polarizer or an ND filter for creative purpose (or a mix of this three depending on what we’d like to get)?

Is my approach to this matter right, or am I missing something here, Joe? Thanks for your suggestions and for the tricks you usually share with us non professional photographers.

PS I’ve also added the shot without any light glare but that I consider to be a shot for my portfolio. Thus you decide if is the case to show ’em both or not.”

Valeriano.

Valeriano,

If you read my post on the ‘Law of the Light“, you read that the sun should be in the ’10’ or ‘2’ position on the clock. In your photo the sun is closer to ’11’, making it almost backlit. In this case you won’t be able to get rid of any flare since the sun is  close to the middle of the frame. This not to say that if the sun were at ’10’ or ‘2’ you wouldn’t get some flare, because you would if the sun is too close to the edge of your frame. Btw, filters don’t have anything to do with flare from the sun.

We talk a lot about light ( as you know) a lot in my online class with the PPSOP, and also in my “Stretching Your Frame of Mind” workshops I conduct around the planet.

The solution is an easy one. Make sure you have a sun shade on your lens. If that doesn’t completely solve the problem, stick your hand out in front of you opened flat and place it between the sun and the lens. When the shadow from your hand covers the lens, the flare will go away. You can count on flare when you light from 9’oclock to noon to 3’oclock. I always watch for it.

Personally, I like the version on the left where the light and color is more dramatic. The glare in the water doesn’t detract from your photo. If anything, it adds Energy.

Thanks for the submission.

Visit my website at: www.joebaraban.com and check out my 2012 workshop schedule at the top of this blog. Come shoot with me sometime.

Don’t forget to send a photo and question to: AskJoeB@gmail.com.