Sunsets are among the favorite subjects of people who love photography, whether amateurs or veterans. Wherever they go, people just love to watch sunsets while relaxing at the end of the day, and when there’s an opportunity, they don’t hesitate to capture the sun going down with their cameras.
Photo by Jon Bunting; ISO 200, f/5.6, 1/5000-second exposure.
According to the experts, sunsets are not that difficult to photograph. With some simple techniques, any camera owner can achieve beautiful shots regardless of their location.
Preparation
Planning your shot is very important. Most images of sunsets are taken at the spur of the moment when, but if you can, why not think ahead. Plan where you’ll be taking your shots a day or two ahead.
Find out as well the time the sun will set and the weather on that particular day. In addition, be ready with your equipment from your camera to your lenses, batteries and your tripod if want to ensure stability while capturing the scene.
Remember that a sunset takes only half an hour, so it’s better to be prepared for it in order to get that beautiful scene you’ve always wanted to take.
Composition
The next step is to decide on your composition. If you shoot at different focal lengths, you can create landscape shots or get images focusing on the sun itself. In this case, the lens choice is important.
You may also want to consider capturing silhouettes in your sunset photos as focal points. This creates a very dramatic effect. For this purpose, you can use anything that’s part of the environment from mountains to trees to sailboats and ships that pass by.
Photo by Theophilos Papadopoulos; ISO 100, f/8.0, 1/100-second exposure.
Another good tip for this aspect is to learn to break the rules. While capturing a sunset that’s centered looks great, you can always capture one that’s off center. You can do this not only for the sun but even for the horizon and your silhouettes as well.
Exposure
The exposure aspect should also be considered to let you capture the beauty of light during sunset. What you can do is switch your camera into shutter priority mode or aperture mode. This will allow you to take different shots at varying exposures thereby achieving different results and effects for your images.
Tripod
For best results, you may want to use a tripod. This is particularly important if you have longer shutter speeds and are shooting with longer focal lengths.
Also, keep shooting as the sun goes down. This will give you an opportunity to capture different colors. Again, use different exposures and focal lengths for variety.
While the sun slowly hides from the horizon, why not take photos of the scenes around you as well. There are so many scenes you can capture with the golden light, so take advantage of that opportunity.
Photo by Michael Levine-Clark; ISO 100, f/8.0, 1/100-second exposure.
Enjoy the experience of shooting at sunset. This is the best time of the day to relax, but if you need to, grab the chance to capture the beautiful scenery and you’ll never forget the moment.
About the Author:
For information about digital cameras, a resource is 42photo.com, New York’s legendary camera store in business for over 40 years.
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Don’t forget to look behind you as the sun is setting. The effect of a setting sun’s rays on a cloudy sky or buildings of a city can be fantastic.