Silhouettes are a great way to simplify a photo: They reduce an image to dramatic areas of light and dark, lines, and not much color. One of the best places to shoot a silhouette is against a window.
A photograph that accentuates shadows and darker regions of the frame is generally referred to as “low-key.” Many photographers have used low-key lighting to great effect over the years, and silhouette photography is one of the quickest ways to achieve this style. By experimenting with window silhouettes, you’ll be able to create a unique low-key portrait easily and without complicated equipment.
There are several ways to expose a silhouette. In this article, prepared exclusively for the Adorama Learning Center, we offer two techniques that can be accomplished any camera, from a sophisticated DSLR, a MILC, or humble compact digital camera, all of which are available at Adorama.
How to Shoot a Profiled Silhouette?
For our first example, look at the photo at right of the young lady sipping a cup of coffee. There’s a bit of light on her face—just enough so you can see her eye and some details on her fingers and blouse. This is a profiled silhouette, and it is shot at a slight angle to the window rather than straight on. The face picks up light reflected off the surface of the cup and her hand.
Example of Profiled Silhouette
The photographer exposed for the details on her blouse, which means the background is blown out.
This is a case you can use a typical digital camera’s limited dynamic range to your advantage. The sunlit outside beyond the window overexposed and appears as pure white. Film might have picked up some distracting details.
Exposure: In a high-contrast scene like this, the detail in the subject’s shirt add important texture, and so it is best to take a meter reading off the shirt. You may need to add contrast in post-processing to get rid of any detail that might show up in the shadows or the bright window.
How to Shoot a Pure Silhouette
In the second example, the girl’s profile is in complete shadow. Because there’s no detail seen in her features, we call this a pure silhouette. In this case, the photographer exposed the image for the lighting outside the window, casting the girl in complete darkness. In some cases, pure silhouette can also create a bit of an optical illusion. With only a silhouette to provide visual information, it’s hard to know if the girl is facing toward the camera or away from it.
Example of Pure Silhouette
Exposure: Meter for the correct exposure for what is outside the window. You can do this automatically by simply pointing the camera out the window and using the suggested exposure. If you want to do this manually, use the “sunny 16 rule” and dial in a correct exposure for the outside lighting conditions. So, if it’s a sunny day outside and you’re shooting at ISO 100, the exposure would be 1/100 sec at f/16…or 1/250 at f/11, or 1/500 at f/8, etc.
Now, go find a window, turn off your flash, and shoot a silhouette yourself!
Featured Image by Joe Shields on Unsplash.
