When I think of a Silhouette, the first thing that comes to my mind is a James Bond movie! Well, if you remember the main title sequence of James Bond movies, they have mysterious visual elements that reflect each film’s theme showing silhouettes of the characters.
As you may be aware, silhouette photography is a type of creative photography where you hide your subject in the darkness, thereby creating a sense of mystery in your photographs.
Your subject could be a person, animal, bird, object, architecture or a landscape represented as a solid shape of a single colour – usually black – with a featureless interior; its edges matching the outline of the subject.
Silhouette images exude mystery, mood, emotion and drama; it kindles the viewer’s imagination to understand/interpret what story the photograph is trying to convey.
Pro tips:
- Let the Sun/any other light source be behind your subject so that your subject is backlit (more light will shine from the background than the foreground)
- Choose a subject with a defined and recognizable shape
- Experiment – If you think that the image looks better without the source of light in the frame, go for it.
Desert Silhouette
Camera Settings – Aperture: f/5.6, Shutter Speed: 1/4000 sec, ISO: 100
Sunset Silhouette
Camera Settings – Aperture: f/32, Shutter Speed: 1/100 sec, ISO: 100.
Blue Hour Silhouette
Camera Settings – Aperture: f/3.5, Shutter Speed: 1/50 sec, ISO 400
Rule of Thirds Composition was used in this image.
Golden Hour Silhouette
Camera Settings – Aperture: f/5, Shutter Speed: 1/250 sec, ISO 100, Exposure bias: -0.3 step, Metering Mode: Center Weighted Average
Bird Silhouette
Camera Settings – Aperture: f/5.6, Shutter Speed: 1/60 sec, ISO 3200
We bring you ‘Jo & His Camera’ Comic Strips wherein a Magical Camera gives DSLR photography tutorials to Jo, an aspiring photographer
Click on the below Image to see the Comic wherein the Camera explains Jo, the concept of Silhouette Photography with the help of practical examples.
When you do photography: Remember the 5E’s – Explore, Experiment, Experience, Enjoy & Express.
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Want to create mystery using the art of photography, then go for silhouette photography! And do share your amazing clicks with us in the comment box below.
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