Silhouettes are created when there is a high degree of contrast in the image - usually caused by a bright background. Typically this will occur at sunrise or sunset when the sky is relatively bright behind the subject of interest. This photo on the left was taken one evening soon after a storm passed through our area one evening and I knew the lighting could be fairly dramatic. Sure enough, I happened to pass by this old, rugged tree with the branches clearly outlined against the bright but moody sky. The silhouette is formed by exposing the image for the sky and allowing the subject (the tree in this case) to go dark. (One could expose for the tree, in which case the sky would look very bright). In this case the contours of the dark branches reinforce the drama in the sky. This particular photo also has two compositional features that are usually quite desirable: (1) placing the subject off center, and (2) incorporating a diagonal in the frame. The former is especially important - try it next time you take a photo of an interesting subject!

The silhouette photo on the right was taken in Spring before the leaves came out on the trees. The location was at my usual favorite nature photography park not far from where we live (Bong Park). I happened to see these trees against a beautiful sunset with the cloud bases being lit by the setting sun. I was immediately struck by how the trees silhouetted against the bright sky appeared to resemble flames shooting upwards from the ground! Perhaps the intense yellows near the bottom of the frame made me think of fire.

Notice how this sky is quite different from the sky in the photo of the isolated tree above. That's the thing with nature photography - the variety of moods, textures, colors and patterns in the sky alone can vary tremendously. Each is interesting and enjoyable to observe in its own right.

Finally, the photo on the left was again taken at Bong, this time along one of the several lakes in the park. I love to see the reflection of the sun (or, more generally, the sky) in a lake. Here it was late evening and the sun was a soft gold ball low on the horizon, its brightness diffused by thin clouds. I saw some bulrushes along the waters edge so I aligned myself such that the sun's reflection formed a beautiful golden backdrop to the bulrushes now silhouetted against the water. The mood is one of somber solitude - nature getting ready to sleep for the night!

If you wish to see these photos in a larger format just visit the blog gallery where I keep all my blog photos. Till next time, bye for now.