The snow scenery in Xuexiang is recognized as beautiful. Every winter here, in addition to many tourists coming here to play, there are also many literati and elegant guests who come to take pictures and write articles. It is really beautiful and indescribable. , taking pictures in Xuexiang is also an art, because it is difficult to take pictures because it is white everywhere. Below, the editor will bring you a guide for taking pictures of snow scenes.
1. How to take good photos of snow scenes
It is best to take pictures of snow scenes on a sunny day after snow. It is even better if you can catch the early morning light.
In the sun, the use of side light and reverse side light can best express the light and dark levels of the snow scene and the transparent texture of the snow particles. The tone is also rich in changes, and even distant views can produce a profound atmosphere. .
If you are photographing people in the snow, it is best to add fill light to the face and wear a hood on the camera lens.
If you use black and white film to shoot snow scenes, you should add a dark yellow, orange, or yellow-green filter to lower the tone of the sky, weaken the brightness of the snow, and make the scene soft; if you use color film to shoot snow scenes, It is best to use a polarizer to absorb the polarized light reflected by the white snow, reduce the brightness, adjust the tone, make the white clouds in the blue sky stand out, and also increase the saturation of the color.
Correct metering and correct exposure are the keys to success in taking snow photos. In a large area of ??snow, if you use the camera's internal metering system to measure the light, and shoot the snow scene based on the displayed data, the snow scene will generally be underexposed. This is because the camera's internal light meter measures the light according to a certain procedure, and what it displays The data is the average light value of the highlights, midtones, and shadows in the comprehensive scene. This is feasible in most cases, but in snowy scenes, strong reflected light often causes the metering results to differ by 1 to 2 stops of exposure.
In this case, you can use exposure compensation and increase the exposure by 1 to 2 levels as appropriate. You can also aim the camera at the mid-tone object, take a local close-up measurement, and press the data measured at this time. , adjust the camera to the "manual" position to take pictures. Photographers who have an incident light meter can measure the light beam shining on the subject in the snow and take pictures according to the resulting exposure data, which will be accurate.
On a snowy day, to get a photo of flying snowflakes, you should choose a dark background as a foil; the shutter speed should not be too high, generally 1/15 to 1/60 seconds, so that the The flying snowflakes form lines, giving the impression of falling snowflakes.
When photographing people in heavy snowfall, be careful not to let the snowflakes get too close to the lens, so as not to block the person's face due to perspective.
When shooting snow scenes, you should also make full use of snowy or ice-covered branches, fences, buildings, etc. as foregrounds to improve the expressiveness of the snow scene, increase the spatial depth of the picture, and enhance people's feeling for the ice and snow.
2. How to expose snow scenes
After the earth is covered with snow, it loses its original appearance and takes on a new look. Under forward light conditions, the earth looks like a white slab. Only under side light or backlight conditions can the undulations of the ground be seen. For this reason, the lighting principle for shooting snow scenes is to use more side light or backlight, and use less or as little forward light as possible, because all parts of the subject illuminated by the forward light receive the same light intensity, and the layers are lost and the texture cannot be expressed. For subjects illuminated by side light and backlight, the intensity of light received by each part is different. The part that receives strong light appears bright, and the part that receives weak light appears dim, so that the layers and texture can be expressed. For subjects such as snow-covered fields, grasslands, mountains, woods, streets, and buildings, only side-light and backlight photography can achieve crystal clear and dazzling effects.
However, if the theme of the performance is not snow, but characters with snow as the background, the snow scene becomes an accompaniment and only plays the role of explaining the environment and highlighting the theme. Its level and texture have nothing to do with the overall situation. In this case, it is of course possible to shoot under smooth lighting.
At the same time, the exposure must be accurate. The color of snow is pure white and extremely reflective. It creates a strong contrast with the people and objects in the snow scene. Due to the limited latitude of photosensitive film, it is difficult to faithfully record such a strong contrast effect. Therefore, snow photography must adjust the exposure according to the creative intention.
For example, if you are photographing snow-covered mountains or fields, you can meter the subject and then add one to two levels of exposure to shoot. For example, when photographing people or objects in a snow scene, in order to highlight the artistic conception of the people and objects in the vast snow, you might as well overexpose the white snow slightly and expose according to the brightness of the people and objects. Although some of the layers of the snow scene will be lost, it will not affect the subject of the photo. It is necessary because it expresses the creative intention of the photographer. The rule is: avoid overexposure when photographing snow scenes, and avoid underexposure when photographing people.
When shooting snow scenes, if you can capture the falling snowflakes in the photo, it will add color to the picture. Falling snowflakes are white. When taking pictures, you must choose a dark background (such as dark buildings and mountains and trees that are not covered with heavy snow, etc.) so that the falling snowflakes can be seen in contrast. If you shoot at night, you can use the black sky as the background and use lights to shoot the falling snowflakes to get better results. To capture the flying snowflakes, you can see the fluttering snowflakes and short blurry white lines in the photo, creating a sense of movement to increase its beauty and appeal to the viewer. The shooting speed should be adjusted to 1/ 8 seconds to 1/30 seconds. It is advisable to choose large snowflakes when shooting.
Ice and snow reflect a lot of blue-violet light, making the brightness difference between the ground and the sky very different, which can be corrected with color filters. When shooting black and white films, you can use a light yellow color filter when shooting forward light, and when shooting side light, side backlighting, or backlighting, you can use medium yellow, orange, orangish-red color filters. When shooting color negative film, the color tone is greatly affected by the color temperature. The color tone at noon will be bluer or purple. You can add a CR color filter to correct the color temperature to lower the color temperature. If you add a UV filter or polarizing filter, the effect will be ideal.
3. How to use light when photographing frost
Frost is a natural landscape in nature in winter.
In the early morning in winter, we will find a layer of snow-white frost on the grass, dead leaves, railings and metal surfaces in the open air. The crystal shimmer shines under the golden sunlight, making things that are usually very plain or even ugly become full of charm.
Taking photos of frost can only be done in the early morning, because when the sun rises, the frost will melt immediately. When photographing frost, you generally need to use a dark background with side backlighting or full backlighting to show the crystal texture of the frost. When shooting, it is better to show the frost part or part. Only when you are close to the subject can you express the shape and texture of the frost.
When photographing frost, such as objects under backlight, it is easy to underexpose; in order to photograph the levels of dark areas, you can increase the exposure by one level based on the normal metering reading. When shooting, wear a hood in front of the lens to prevent stray light from reflecting into the lens and affecting the picture quality.
Most photos of frost require close-up shots. Therefore, it is best to have a macro camera lens, or prepare a close-up lens, a close-up lens, or a teleconverter. In this way, you can freely frame the scene, especially when shooting close-ups of frost. Photographing frost is extremely valuable when you encounter the wonderful little water droplets that begin to deepen due to sunlight.
4. Techniques for Photographing Dynamic People in Snow Country
The sharp contrast between the blue sky and the white snow will make the entire lens capture more vivid colors. At this time, if A colorful ski suit and snowboard are both safe and ensure beautiful photos. When choosing such a scenery, you should make the angle between the camera and the ground as large as possible, so that you can take dynamic photos and make the photos look more tense. .
Backlit photos are suitable for capturing sunsets and sunrises. The tones are more natural. The silhouette of the skier is photographed against the light, forming an alternative expression method. Since it is a silhouette, the color of the skier’s clothing is not required. The combination of light and shadow increases the texture of the photo! Many friends do not have professional shooting equipment for continuous shooting and cannot capture professional and clear sports pictures. Taking pictures similar to skiing also requires certain equipment. If you are using a card camera, use the continuous shooting function. Shooting 5 or 10 consecutive shots and then selecting a clear picture is also a method. You can also use this series of photos to make a flow chart like this. Accurate positioning is specific to taking photos of skiing competitions. Generally, it is best to take photos in the middle and lower sections of the flag gate, because athletes often make beautiful racing movements at this time, and the splashing snowflakes are important components of the photo.
5. Things to note when shooting in Xuexiang
1. Because we are in a ravine, we cannot see the sunrise or sunset in Xuexiang. However, the brilliance of sunrise and sunset will still dye the white snow with a brilliant golden color. The sunshine at sunrise shines on the yard fences of people in Xuexiang. The shadows cut through the golden snow, with curved arcs, and there is a kind of desolate beauty.
2. Xuexiang is located in a valley, and the sun rises very late. It is almost 8 o'clock, and the entire Xuexiang is still sleepy; at 9 o'clock, it is dyed with a layer of golden yellow. Gradually wake up from sleep.
3. I dare not climb mountains in the snow town. Although the mountain is not high, the snow is too thick. The snow on the mountain is basically knee-deep. For the above reasons, it is difficult to see impressive scenery in Xuexiang. But few people have photographed it!
4. During the Spring Festival, every household hangs lanterns and pastes couplets. The contrast between red and white is particularly beautiful and very photogenic. But there are still many "photographers" who bring their own red lanterns and Spring Festival couplets to take selfies.
5. Batteries are easy to discharge at low temperatures. It is best to store them close to your body, try to keep the camera and battery as warm as possible, and prepare an extra set of spare batteries. For cameras or video cameras with electronic shutters, when the temperature is below -20°C, the battery is prone to "discharge", the camera "fails", and the shutter cannot be pressed. Therefore, after shooting outdoors, you should promptly put the camera inside your coat to "keep it warm" and take it out again when needed. Also, be sure to stock up on extra batteries. Film is very brittle, so be careful when loading it, otherwise it will tear easily. If you use an in-camera reflected light meter for snow photography, please use exposure compensation to add one to one and a half steps.