Flash+Silhouettes

[|Flash Silhouettes - How I Took It]
//In the popular// //[|How I Took it]// //section of the Digital Photography School Forums Sana posted about how they took this ‘flash silhouette’ shot. It’s a striking technique and one that I thought more DPS readers might enjoy experimenting with. Sana’s done a great job but feel free to stop by// //[|the thread on the forums]// //to make comments and suggestions on how they could improve it.//
 * Where I took it**: in eastern outskirts of Belgrade, Serbia, 2 min walk from my apartment.
 * Gear**: just Canon Powershot S3 IS
 * Settings**:


 * Exposure**: 0.017 sec (1/60)
 * Aperture**: f/2.7
 * Focal Length**: 6 mm
 * Exposure Bias**: 0/3 EV
 * Flash**: Flash fired, auto mode, red-eye reduction

Canon S3 IS does not decrease the DOF on larger apertures much, so f/2.7 worked well here – all branches are pretty sharp. There could be no focusing, it was too dark (one more reason for increased DOF). Shooting this in auto mode and even without focusing makes it as simple as it can possibly get! So, this isn’t about an interesting technique – it’s more about the idea. I’ve been drawn to trees as long as I can remember. I also photograph it often, but they rarely come out as interesting as they are in the nature. Here, the high contrast between illuminated branches and the black background maximizes the structure and the spreading of the branches, giving the tree the vivid impression of movement. All disturbing elements in the background visible in the daylight (street, buildings, cars, other trees) are eliminated. All the branches are almost equally illuminated, and there isn’t much depth in the photo. It’s all about the pattern here. I needed to choose the branch that is not too busy with smaller branches, also the one that is not too close to the ground or other elements in the background that could be illuminated by the flash. Also, I made sure that the closest branches are approximately at the same distance from the flash. There are also interesting post processing tricks that can be done later with this kind of photos. When I lowered the midtones in some of them, the further branches appeared darker, and the colors came up stronger. That added the depth to the photos, and also defined the structure of the branches closer to the camera, undisturbed by the branches in the background. The cloning of the unwanted branches is very easy. Also, playing with curves, changing the tones of illumination can give interesting results. On this photo for example I lowered mid tones; I also darkened few overly exposed spots, cloned some branches off and increased saturation a bit.
 * Post processing**: none, this is straight from the camera.