Tips for photographing silhouettes

The basic idea behind a silhouette is to capture the background which is bright and colorful. The background is so powerful that it overpowers the foreground and the side of the subject facing you. To get that perfect silhouette technique work for you, you'll have to try a few different angles and a few different settings.

Silhouette is one of the most interesting photography technique where the foreground of an image is dark and the background is lit-up and colorful. The difference between the brighter and darker areas of the shot creates a silhouette.

Here are some tips for photographing Silhouettes

1. Wind is your enemy when you want to create a silhouette outdoors. It gets difficult to capture waving trees and branches. Because you are shooting in long exposure, a slight movement can ruin it all. So, shoot at sunrise to avoid it.

2. A tripod helps you keep your camera still for a long time. You should use it for long exposure photography. Creating a silhouette is also a long exposure technique, so preferably use a tripod.

3. A wide aperture is good for creating a silhouette mainly for two reasons i.e it makes the background more out of focus, and it helps get you a faster shutter speed (which is good for battling the wind as stated in point no. 1).

4. Keep your silhouette simple. Instead of photographing a whole bush, focus on just one branches and see the difference. Follow the rule that says 'Less is more'.

5. Pre-plan what you want to shoot. As silhouettes all about back-light and the shape of the object in the foreground. Find your subject well in advance, before you start taking pictures.